FORMULA 1
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 Sunday Starting Grid-
Sunday Feature Race-
Joanna Blackmore Writer @ F1 Journal
0 Comments
 Sprint Shoot Out
Q2
Q3
Sprint Race Round Up
It didnt work out for everyone though, Norris had a slow stop and lost out to Hamilton, George Russell lost out, but there where some big winners like Pierre Gasly who with a combination of great team call, fast stop and great out lap took himself from 6th to 3rd, Hamilton who gained 2 places to be in 5th and Perez was up 4 places to 4th. Lap 3 Alonso drops the rear and the car spins and ends up resting in the barrier, stuck in a gravel trap at Pouhon. This brought out the Safety car, which lasted 3 lap and by lap 6 we where racing again with Piasrti in the lead.
Lap 8 and Ricciardo was up to 8th and Gasly was still going strong with a rapid Lewis Hamilton starting to catch him fast. Both Mercedes seemed to come alive at the end of the race as Russell was carving his was through the field over taking Ocon & Ricciardo to take the last points paying position. But despite catching Gasly and having a good go at overtaking it wasn't lewis' day and Gasly held off to get 3rd on the road and his first podium with the Alpine team since joining them for the 2023 season, made especially sweet by the 2 double DNFs the team suffered at Silverstone & Hungary.
Sprint Race Result1- VER 2-PIA 3-GAS 4- SAI 5-LEC 6- NOR 7-HAM 8-RUS 9-OCO 10- RIC 11-STR 12-ALB 13-BOT 14-MAG 15-SAR 16-ZHO 17-HUL 18-TSU DNF'S 19- PER 20- ALO Joanna Blackmore Writer @ F1 Journal 
Qualifying - For Sunday Feature Race
Q2-
Q3
Grid After Penalties Have Been Applied1- LEC 2- PER 3- HAM 4-SAI 5-PIA 6- VER (5 place penalty) 7-NOR 8-RUS 9-ALO 10- STR 11-TSU 12- GAS 13-BOT 14- OCO 15- ALB 16- MAG (3 place penalty) 17-ZHO 18- SAR 19- RIC 20- HUL Now we look forward to the Sprint day tomorrow starting with the Sprint Shoot out setting the grid for the 15 lap Sprint race later in the day, but expect the weather to play it's part in both sessions tomorrow and hopefully give us an exciting Belgian Sprint Saturday. Joanna Blackmore Writer @ F1 Journal  Race Stats
Weekend Formula 1, Formula 2 & Formula 3
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| Times Held-78 First Held- 1925 Pole Record-1.41.252 HAM 2020 Lap Record- 1.46.286 BOT 2018 Pole Sitters-34 Winners-51 Podium Sitters-75 Most Driver Poles- HAM 8 Most Team Poles-Ferrari/Mclaren 11 Most Driver Wins- SCH 6 Most Team Wins-Ferrari 18 Most Driver Podiums- HAM 10 Most Team Podiums-Ferrari 40 Times Won From Pole- 21 Wins From the Front Row-35 Lowest Start Position to Win- 16th SCH '95 Largest Win Margin- 474secs Clark '63 |   |
Remembering Anthoine Hubert & Dilano Van't Hoff
Its hard to come to Spa without remembering the events of the Formula 2 feature race of 2019 and the sad passing of Anthoine Hubert, but this year we come here with a second driver in our thoughts. Dilano Van't Hoff sadly lost his life just meters further up the track from where Hubert sadly passed.
Life long best friend of Anthoine Hubert, Pierre Gasly invited the whole of the Formula 1, 2 & 3 paddocks to join him on a memorial run around a lap of Spa to honor the 2 lost drivers and show that racing is a family and every loss is felt by the whole community. It was a moving tribute to Anthoine and Dilano and one that shows their family and friends that they are both still deeply missed and always remembered.
Life long best friend of Anthoine Hubert, Pierre Gasly invited the whole of the Formula 1, 2 & 3 paddocks to join him on a memorial run around a lap of Spa to honor the 2 lost drivers and show that racing is a family and every loss is felt by the whole community. It was a moving tribute to Anthoine and Dilano and one that shows their family and friends that they are both still deeply missed and always remembered.
Previous Results
2020
Qualifying 1- HAM 1.41.252
2- BOT 1.41.763
3- VER 1.41.778
Race- 1- HAM (1stop)
2-BOT (1stop)
3- VER (1stop)
Fastest lap- 1.47.483 RIC lap 44
2021
Qualifying (VERY WET)
1- VER 1.59.765
2- RUS 2.00.086
3- HAM 2.00.099
Race-.( Only 3 laps under the safety car)
1- VER
2- RUS
3- HAM
2022
Qualifying- 1-VER 1.43.665
2- SAI 1.44.297
3- PER 1.44.462
Race- 1- VER (2stop)
2- PER (2stop)
3- SAI (2stop)
Fastest lap- 1.49.354 VER Lap 32
Qualifying 1- HAM 1.41.252
2- BOT 1.41.763
3- VER 1.41.778
Race- 1- HAM (1stop)
2-BOT (1stop)
3- VER (1stop)
Fastest lap- 1.47.483 RIC lap 44
2021
Qualifying (VERY WET)
1- VER 1.59.765
2- RUS 2.00.086
3- HAM 2.00.099
Race-.( Only 3 laps under the safety car)
1- VER
2- RUS
3- HAM
2022
Qualifying- 1-VER 1.43.665
2- SAI 1.44.297
3- PER 1.44.462
Race- 1- VER (2stop)
2- PER (2stop)
3- SAI (2stop)
Fastest lap- 1.49.354 VER Lap 32
Random Facts
- Spa boasts the longest full throttle section on the current calendar with the cars going 22seconds flat out from the hairpin of La Source to the chicane of Le Combes
- Pole has finished on the podium every year since 2007
- Pole has not retired since 2005
- The safety car has been deployed in the last 7 races here (technically winning the 2021 race)
- The elevation change between the bottom and top of Eau Rouge is 35 meters
- Fernando Alonso has never won at Spa-Francorchamps
- Jim Clark ( the man that the very best call the best) "Detested" Spa
- The total for the 2022 track renovations totalled €25 million
- Micheal Schumacher made his debut at Spa in 1991 and won his 7th World Championship title here in 15 years later in 2004
The weather is looking on the drastically damp side for the whole weekend which could really liven up the action at Spa-Francorchamps this weekend.
Enjoy Guys
Joanna Blackmore
Writer @ F1 Journal
Enjoy Guys
Joanna Blackmore
Writer @ F1 Journal
| Alpha Tauri have announced the release date for their official documentary. "Whatever it takes, the race before the race" will have its world premiere on 6th September 2023 in Venice. "Our story as it's never been seen before" The production is a collaboration between Alpha Tauri them selves and Digital Lighthouse which will begin with a look at the 2021 & 2022 seasons with members of the team and former driver line up Pierre Gasly and Yuki Tsunoda as well as taking you through the 20 year story of Alpha Tauri from the end of the Minardi team and birth of Toro Rosso to the teams greatest moments, drivers and team members that have all contributed to the teams time in Formula 1. But an unexpected highlight glimpsed from the trailer is the behind the scenes access to the process of making their Formula 1 cars, something most teams choose to keep close to their chest, and which will be one of the real highlights of this documentary. So we look forward to 6th September only a few days after the Italian Grand Prix to see the premiere that will be hosted in the City of Venice. After the premiere the documentary will be available free on the Scuderia Alpha Tauri Youtube channel. |  |
Joanna Blackmore
Writer @ F1 Journal
Writer @ F1 Journal
Formula 1 and F1 Academy have announced that all 10 Formula 1 teams will run a car with their livery and a driver of their choosing along side the 5 other teams who already take part in the series.
| Currently in the 2023 season 5 teams are racing in the series Prema, ART Grand Prix, MP Motorsport, Campos Racing & Rodin Carlin who all run 3 cars and have 3 drivers, all names you may recognize from both FIA Formula 2 and FIA Formula 3. For 2024 10 out of the 15 drivers will be nominated by 1 of the Formula 1 teams and the car that drivers runs will have the livery of their F1 team.The other 5 drivers will be nominated but the teams themselves or alternative nominees. The details for all 15 drivers have not been released and wont be for sometime with the current season still under way. |  © F1 Academy |
 © F1 Academy | Managing Director of F1 Academy Susie Wolff ( former Williams F1 test driver & wife of Mercedes Toto Wolff) showed her real passion for her work on the F1 Academy project and its new partnership with Formula 1 and its entire grid of teams. "As we join the F1 Calendar for next year, I am confident we will have a positive impact across our sport in the long term" "The depth of support from the F1 community, will inspire a whole generation of young girls the oppertunities both on and off the track" |
| This sentiment was echoed by President and CEO of Formula 1 Stefano Domenicali.. " We created F1 Academy to bring about real and lasting change to ensure young female talent have the right system in place to follow and achieve their dreams" The creation of the series and its growth in the short time since then has been quite special and the support of the F1 grid only gives the series and drivers chosen to participate in it a platform to show what they can do at world class tracks, to a global audience as well as give them the chance to be seen by the people who make the driver calls in Formula 1, 2 & 3. Changes in our sport are hard to come by without great resistance but the willingness of the whole grid to support young female drivers, engineers or the many other roles in Formula 1 including mine is something that this girl in the racing community thinks is long over due but truly commendable. Roll on the start of F1 Academy 2024 Joanna Blackmore Writer @ F1 Journal |  © Formula 1 |
| Spa-Francorchamp is both famous and infamous for many reasons, but one of the best of those is being the track that Bruce Mclaren and a Mclaren car scored their first Formula 1 World Championship Victory at the 1968 Belgium Grand Prix. Bruce also became only the 2nd man to win an F1 race in a car that bares his name, only being beaten to the achievement by Jack Brabham just 2 years before. The 1968 Belgium Grand Prix was a brilliant one! While Mclaren had taken 2 victories in England's non championship races, teams such as Ferrari, Matra (now Mercedes) & Lotus had bested them at official Formula 1 World Championship Grand Prix they had previously entered and that day Bruce wasn't all together optimistic about his and team mate Denny Hulmes chances. |  |
 | Amon in the ferrari 312 took Pole position with Stewart in the Matra and the sister Ferrari of Jackie Ickx joining him on the 3 car front row. The 2 Mclaren's lined up on the 2nd row, Hulmes in 4th & Bruce in 5th & the Honda of John Surtees in 6th. Surtees got a great start and passed both Mclarens, both Ferrari's and Jackie Stewart off the start to take the lead. But that day was not meant to belong to Surtees or the Ferrari's. In the next few laps Anon retired his Ferrari with an oil cooler leak, Ickx's Ferrari suffered a massive engine misfire dropping him down the order then on lap 11 Surtees rear suspension broke which left Denny Hulmes in his M7a Mclaren in the lead of the race followed closely by a rapid Jackie Stewart. |
| Hulmes and Stewart swapped places for the lead over the next few laps but after leading the race for 4 laps Hulmes' drive shaft broke, ending both the Mclaren mans race and chance of that elusive first F1 win. While all this was taking place a very calm, cool and determined Bruce Mclaren had recovered from a bad start and was in a 3 way battle for 2nd with Pedro Rodriguez and the 10 cylindered Ferrari of Jackie Ickx. The 3 drivers battled hard for many laps, right up to the finish line with Bruce at the helm . This meant they where totally oblivious to the fact Stewart had been forced to pit from the lead for fuel on the penultimate lap or risk running out and not finishing the race. Bruce had won!! |  |
| | Bruce had no clue he had won when he crossed the start/finish line. He had no clue when he saw his team celebrating as he crossed that line, not even when his car and garage was surrounded by well wishers and fans, and it still didn't click when he was told he crossed the line number 1. It wasn't until Cyril Atkins a BRM engineer came to congratulate his driver Rodriguez on 2nd place & told him in no uncertain terms "You've Won, don't you know" thats when Bruce realized he had won the Belgium Grand Prix. "I didn't know and it's about the nicest thing I've ever been told" said the Mclaren founder, "I had won a Grand Prix in a car with my name on the nose". |
| The events of that day at Spa in 1968 put Bruce and his Mclaren team on the top step of the coveted Formula 1 World Championship Podium and cemented them as a winning outfit in our sport. But more so it was the birth of what has become through various generations of management & drivers the 2nd longest competitor, with the 2nd most wins of any team and up till 3 days ago boasted the most successful car of all time in the form of 1988 MP4/4. Sadly just 2 years on from this race Bruce Mclaren passed away after a crash during a test of his Can-Am car at the Goodwood Circuit on 2nd June 1970 but his dream lived on and to this day his name is synonymous with the very best of Formula 1. |  |
 | 2023 sees 60 years of Mclaren. 60 years of their cars winning across continents and in series around the planet. They are the only team in racing history to win the Triple Crown( they won the Monaco Grand Prix, the Indy 500 & Le Mans 24 hour) and have proven their prestige against the best in the world. They are a team who have proven their resilience, intelligence, integrity & fidelity to Formula 1 and their fans (which this writer has been for as long as I can remember) and we look fondly and proudly back at the 60 years of Mclaren. |
| Bruce's legacy is more than just winning, it is about 'the dream of racing'. It's about putting in the hard work and the blood, sweat & tears that can just as easily break you as make you and nothing embodies that legacy more than the fight back the team have made this year. The team have taken a car from last on the grid in Bahrain 2023 to a car that stood on the 2nd step of the British & Hungarian podiums back to back. They never gave up and with the new leadership of Andrea Stella have developed a car from a real lemon to a race leader, with Lando briefly leading the British Grand Prix after a brilliant 1st corner move on Max Verstappen. Both the drivers and the team at the Mclaren Technology Center(MTC) lead by Zak Brown have shown they still have that Bruce Mclaren spirit at their core. |  |
It would be beautifully poetic to see Oscar Piastri or Lando Norris get their first race win at Spa this weekend to bring it full circle in this celebration year for the team. 60 years on could one of the current line up do the same as Bruce? This writer hopes so!!!
Congratulations to Mclaren on 60 years of racing and here is to 60 more!!!!
Congratulations to Mclaren on 60 years of racing and here is to 60 more!!!!
Joanna Blackmore
Writer @ F1journal
Writer @ F1journal
Max Verstappen’s Win in Hungary breaks the record for most consecutive wins by an F1 team.
23/7/2023
© Redbull Media Pool Red Bull driver Max Verstappen cruised to another victory at the Hungarian grand Prix, this is now Redbull’s 12th win in a row taking the record off McLaren. McLaren set the record for 11 races in a row back in 1988 with Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost.
Team Principal Christian Horner told Redbull media "It's an historic moment and one that mean so much, we certianly don't take this for granted. Checo drove a great race today... Max was typically phenomenal once again. He's at one with himself and the car"
Verstappen was joined on the podium by Driver of the day and teammate Sergio Perez. Perez Placed third on the podium after gaining six places.
The Milton Keynes based drivers were split by the orange of Lando Norris, in 2nd. This is Norris’ first back-to-back podium after finishing in 2nd at his home Grand Prix, in Silverstone.
Lewis Hamilton started on pole for the first time in 33 races to break a record himself. Hamilton gained his 9th pole in Hungary, the most by any driver at one track. The Mercedes driver however had a poor start off the line being engulfed by both Mclarens.
After Mclaren’s rookie, Oscar Piastri, managed to slip into 2nd place he found himself finishing the weekend in 5th. Piastri picked up damage to his floor and struggled to maintain his tyres in the closing half of the race. Both Perez and Hamilton capitalised on the Aussies issues.
George Russell was among the drivers that put on a show today as he moved from 18th up to 6th.
More pain for Ferrari Fans
Difficulties were faced in the Ferrari garage as Charles Leclerc faced a +5 penalty for speeding in the pitlane, to make the race even more painful for the Monegasque driver completed the race with no water, and a tyre fitting issue that led to a 9.4 second pit stop putting him out behind teammate Carlos Sainz. After Leclerc trailed behind his teammate for 16 laps the team pitted him first for the pairs third set of tyres. The Ferrari drivers finished in 7th and 8th.
The Collision: ending the Alpines day
Further down the grid after a turn one collision caused by Alfa Romeos Zhou Guanyu, he was hit with a +5 penalty. After an impressive Saturday Zhou fell from 5th to 16th.
Alpine suffered the most from this collision as for the second weekend in a row both drivers were eliminated from the race. After an unlucky start being caught up in the drama, Daniel Ricciardo on to his first race back managed to get his Alpha Tauri up into 13th. Ricciardo finished ahead of his teammate Yuki Tsunoda down in 15th.
Aston Martin kept just inside of the top 10, Alonso in 10th keeping him third place in the drivers standing and Stroll in 9th. Williams just missed out on points as Albon finished 11th but after tyre degradation Logan Sergeant was forced to end his race with one lap left.
Bronwen Jones
writer @ F1 Journal
Team Principal Christian Horner told Redbull media "It's an historic moment and one that mean so much, we certianly don't take this for granted. Checo drove a great race today... Max was typically phenomenal once again. He's at one with himself and the car"
Verstappen was joined on the podium by Driver of the day and teammate Sergio Perez. Perez Placed third on the podium after gaining six places.
The Milton Keynes based drivers were split by the orange of Lando Norris, in 2nd. This is Norris’ first back-to-back podium after finishing in 2nd at his home Grand Prix, in Silverstone.
Lewis Hamilton started on pole for the first time in 33 races to break a record himself. Hamilton gained his 9th pole in Hungary, the most by any driver at one track. The Mercedes driver however had a poor start off the line being engulfed by both Mclarens.
After Mclaren’s rookie, Oscar Piastri, managed to slip into 2nd place he found himself finishing the weekend in 5th. Piastri picked up damage to his floor and struggled to maintain his tyres in the closing half of the race. Both Perez and Hamilton capitalised on the Aussies issues.
George Russell was among the drivers that put on a show today as he moved from 18th up to 6th.
More pain for Ferrari Fans
Difficulties were faced in the Ferrari garage as Charles Leclerc faced a +5 penalty for speeding in the pitlane, to make the race even more painful for the Monegasque driver completed the race with no water, and a tyre fitting issue that led to a 9.4 second pit stop putting him out behind teammate Carlos Sainz. After Leclerc trailed behind his teammate for 16 laps the team pitted him first for the pairs third set of tyres. The Ferrari drivers finished in 7th and 8th.
The Collision: ending the Alpines day
Further down the grid after a turn one collision caused by Alfa Romeos Zhou Guanyu, he was hit with a +5 penalty. After an impressive Saturday Zhou fell from 5th to 16th.
Alpine suffered the most from this collision as for the second weekend in a row both drivers were eliminated from the race. After an unlucky start being caught up in the drama, Daniel Ricciardo on to his first race back managed to get his Alpha Tauri up into 13th. Ricciardo finished ahead of his teammate Yuki Tsunoda down in 15th.
Aston Martin kept just inside of the top 10, Alonso in 10th keeping him third place in the drivers standing and Stroll in 9th. Williams just missed out on points as Albon finished 11th but after tyre degradation Logan Sergeant was forced to end his race with one lap left.
Bronwen Jones
writer @ F1 Journal
“The most competitive field in terms of drivers that we’ve ever had in Formula One” - Franz Tost
22/7/2023
© Redbull media pool
Franz Tost © Redbull media pool During the Hungaroring FP2 session Sky sports commentator David Croft drew attention to Franz Tosts (Team principal of Alpha Tauri) comment claiming this is the “most competitive field in terms of drivers that we’ve ever had in formula one”.
So far this year we have seen Redbull, Aston Martin, Mercedes, Ferrari, Alpine, and most recently Mclaren on the podium, showing over half the grid has the potential to compete near the top.
I say near, as the top is very clearly dominated by Redbull, specifically Max Verstappen who has entered a league of his own as he looks to break the record for the most wins in a season, which he already holds as he took 15 wins in 2022. With 12 races left of the season he currently has eight victories; he aims to hit his sixth in a row in Hungary.
Three quarters of the grid (15/20 drivers) having made the podium in their career, the 2023 grid is definitely competitive. But with championships like 1982 which had 11 separate race winners, and 2012 that started with seven different winners can this statement be argued?
*in order of current drivers standings (22/07/2023)
2023 Drivers and their accomplishments
Max Verstappen
Two-time world champion, 43 Grand prix wins, 87 podiums
Sergio Perez
6 Grand Prix wins, 31 podiums
Fernando Alonso
Two-time world champion, 32 wins, 104 podiums
Lewis Hamilton
Seven-time world champion, 103 wins, 195 podiums
Carlos Sainz jr
1 Grand Prix win, 15 podiums
George Russell
10 podiums, F2 Champion
Charles Leclerc
5 Grand Prix wins, 26 podiums, F2 Champion
Lance stroll
3 podiums, F3/F4 Champion
Lando Norris
7 podiums, F3 Champion
Estaban Ocon
1 Grand Prix win, 3 podiums, F3 Champion
Oscar Piastri (Rookie)
F2/F3 Champion
Pierre Gasly
1 Grand Prix win, 3 podiums
Alexander Albon
2 podiums
Nico Hulkenburg
Le Mans 24 Hours winner, GP2 champion
Valtteri Bottas
10 Grand Prix wins, 67 podiums
Yuki Tsunoda
F4 Champion
Kevin Magnussen
1 podium, Formula Renault 3.5 champion
Logan Sargeant (Rookie)
First American to win an F2 race
Nyck de vries (OUT)
FE World champion, F2 champion
Daniel Ricciardo
8 Grand Prix wins, 32 Podiums
Bronwen Jones
writer @ F1 journal
So far this year we have seen Redbull, Aston Martin, Mercedes, Ferrari, Alpine, and most recently Mclaren on the podium, showing over half the grid has the potential to compete near the top.
I say near, as the top is very clearly dominated by Redbull, specifically Max Verstappen who has entered a league of his own as he looks to break the record for the most wins in a season, which he already holds as he took 15 wins in 2022. With 12 races left of the season he currently has eight victories; he aims to hit his sixth in a row in Hungary.
Three quarters of the grid (15/20 drivers) having made the podium in their career, the 2023 grid is definitely competitive. But with championships like 1982 which had 11 separate race winners, and 2012 that started with seven different winners can this statement be argued?
*in order of current drivers standings (22/07/2023)
2023 Drivers and their accomplishments
Max Verstappen
Two-time world champion, 43 Grand prix wins, 87 podiums
Sergio Perez
6 Grand Prix wins, 31 podiums
Fernando Alonso
Two-time world champion, 32 wins, 104 podiums
Lewis Hamilton
Seven-time world champion, 103 wins, 195 podiums
Carlos Sainz jr
1 Grand Prix win, 15 podiums
George Russell
10 podiums, F2 Champion
Charles Leclerc
5 Grand Prix wins, 26 podiums, F2 Champion
Lance stroll
3 podiums, F3/F4 Champion
Lando Norris
7 podiums, F3 Champion
Estaban Ocon
1 Grand Prix win, 3 podiums, F3 Champion
Oscar Piastri (Rookie)
F2/F3 Champion
Pierre Gasly
1 Grand Prix win, 3 podiums
Alexander Albon
2 podiums
Nico Hulkenburg
Le Mans 24 Hours winner, GP2 champion
Valtteri Bottas
10 Grand Prix wins, 67 podiums
Yuki Tsunoda
F4 Champion
Kevin Magnussen
1 podium, Formula Renault 3.5 champion
Logan Sargeant (Rookie)
First American to win an F2 race
Nyck de vries (OUT)
FE World champion, F2 champion
Daniel Ricciardo
8 Grand Prix wins, 32 Podiums
Bronwen Jones
writer @ F1 journal
RACE STATS
Laps-70
Circuit Length-4.381km
Race Distance- 306.630
Corners- 14 6 Left 8 Right
DRS Zones- 1
Activation- Entry Turn 14
Deployment- Exit Turn 14
(Start/Finish straight)
Downforce level- High
Tyre Degradation- Medium
Time @ Full Throttle- 55%
Gear Changes- 78 per lap
Time lost in Pit lane- 21.7(fast)
Pole Side- Left
Tyre Compounds-
Hard Medium Soft
C3 C4 C5
Minimum Starting Tyre Pressure-
Front Rear
22.0psi 19.0psi
Maximum Tyre Camber-
Front Rear
-3.50° -2.00°
Circuit Length-4.381km
Race Distance- 306.630
Corners- 14 6 Left 8 Right
DRS Zones- 1
Activation- Entry Turn 14
Deployment- Exit Turn 14
(Start/Finish straight)
Downforce level- High
Tyre Degradation- Medium
Time @ Full Throttle- 55%
Gear Changes- 78 per lap
Time lost in Pit lane- 21.7(fast)
Pole Side- Left
Tyre Compounds-
Hard Medium Soft
C3 C4 C5
Minimum Starting Tyre Pressure-
Front Rear
22.0psi 19.0psi
Maximum Tyre Camber-
Front Rear
-3.50° -2.00°
TRIAL QUALIFYING FORMAT EXPLAINED
This weekend F1 & the FIA are trialing a new Qualifying format, previously run in Baku during the sprint weekend. This weekend is different in that the format won't be incorporated into a sprint weekend and the qualifying sessions with limited tyre running will have a direct impact on the Sunday feature race grid, where as the last test this format set the Sprint Race grid.
also different is the Pirelli and FIA tyre choices.
Qualifying 1 - Hard Tyre only 5 slowest are lost
Qualifying 2 - Medium Tyre only 5 slowest dropped
Qualifying 3 - Soft Tyre only top 10 Shootout
In Baku Pirelli chose to run the Medium Tyre during both Q1 & 2. This format is meant to help smaller teams with slower cars to gain an advantage on faster ones by stopping the stronger engined cars from putting a softer compound on to get through to the next round of qualifying.
Teams are given an allocation of tyre per weekend within which they may choose the amount of each compound they want for the weekend.
Teams like Redbull need to do less runs in qualifying to get through to the next round because their engine/car combined with the better soft compound of rubber means they have a fall back if their run on a harder compound isn't fast enough, this gives Redbull a scrubbed set of softs still within working range for a race stint. This is not the case for teams like..... well everyone other than Redbull it seems in 2023 . Sometimes needing to do 2 runs on a set of softs to guarantee progression to the next round will render that soft tyre unrace worthy, which compromises their race strategy and Sunday is when the points are scored so they can not run the soft to get through every time because it would ruin their race ultimately.
This new format forces Redbull and the other teams to make the cooler compounds work harder to get through the rounds of qualifying and historically they aren't the best at firing up those Hard compound tryes. Ferrari and Mercedes also have struggled to make the Hard tyre work in Qualifying this year resulting in some close calls and Q2 exits. So we could see some big names go out in the first 2 rounds of Qualifying and have a brilliantly mixed grid for Sundays Hungarian Grand Prix.
also different is the Pirelli and FIA tyre choices.
Qualifying 1 - Hard Tyre only 5 slowest are lost
Qualifying 2 - Medium Tyre only 5 slowest dropped
Qualifying 3 - Soft Tyre only top 10 Shootout
In Baku Pirelli chose to run the Medium Tyre during both Q1 & 2. This format is meant to help smaller teams with slower cars to gain an advantage on faster ones by stopping the stronger engined cars from putting a softer compound on to get through to the next round of qualifying.
Teams are given an allocation of tyre per weekend within which they may choose the amount of each compound they want for the weekend.
Teams like Redbull need to do less runs in qualifying to get through to the next round because their engine/car combined with the better soft compound of rubber means they have a fall back if their run on a harder compound isn't fast enough, this gives Redbull a scrubbed set of softs still within working range for a race stint. This is not the case for teams like..... well everyone other than Redbull it seems in 2023 . Sometimes needing to do 2 runs on a set of softs to guarantee progression to the next round will render that soft tyre unrace worthy, which compromises their race strategy and Sunday is when the points are scored so they can not run the soft to get through every time because it would ruin their race ultimately.
This new format forces Redbull and the other teams to make the cooler compounds work harder to get through the rounds of qualifying and historically they aren't the best at firing up those Hard compound tryes. Ferrari and Mercedes also have struggled to make the Hard tyre work in Qualifying this year resulting in some close calls and Q2 exits. So we could see some big names go out in the first 2 rounds of Qualifying and have a brilliantly mixed grid for Sundays Hungarian Grand Prix.
TRACK STATS
|   |
PREVIOUS RESULTS-
| 2020 QUALIFYING- 1 HAM 1.13.447 2 BOT 1.13.554 3 STR 1.13.377 RACE- 1 HAM (3 stop) 2 VER (2 stop) 3 BOT (3 stop) FASTEST LAP- 1.16.627 HAM Lap 70 2021 QUALIFYING- 1 HAM 1.15.419 2 BOT 1.15.734 3 VER 1.15.840 RACE- 1 OCO (3 stop) 2/DQ VET (3 stop) no fuel 4 sample 2 HAM (4 stop) 3 SAI (3 stop) FASTEST LAP- 1.18.394 GAS Lap 70 |   |
2022-
QUALIFYING- 1 RUS 1.17.377
2 SAI 1.17.421
3 LEC 1.17.567
RACE- 1 VER (2 stop)
2 HAM (2 stop)
3 RUS (2 stop)
FASTEST LAP- 1.21.386 HAM Lap 57
QUALIFYING- 1 RUS 1.17.377
2 SAI 1.17.421
3 LEC 1.17.567
RACE- 1 VER (2 stop)
2 HAM (2 stop)
3 RUS (2 stop)
FASTEST LAP- 1.21.386 HAM Lap 57
RANDOM FACTS
- 3rd shortest track on the calendar
- Ricciardo scored his 2nd win here in 2014
- Damon Hill & Michael Schumacher are the only drivers to take a grand slam here. They both took Pole, lead every lap and Won here. Can Max become the 3rd this weekend.
- There have been 5 winners in 11 years here.
- The is a lower than 50% Pole to Win conversion rate at the Hungaroring
- 8th & 10th on the grid have won the last 2 races.
- Nobody knew it at the time but the events of 2007 Hungarian Qualifying between Lewis Hamilton & Fernando Alonso in front of the Mclaren garages woud give birth to the so called ‘Spy Gate’ scandal and the departure of Mclaren Boss Ron Dennis!
- #wemissyourondennis
- The 55% of the lap spent @ full throttle here is the 2nd lowest percentage of the lap spent flat out on the calendar. Only Monaco has a lower percentage.
WEEKEND SCHEDUAL F1, F2 & F3
The Hungarian Grand Prix is an under rated race. Nomally a very hot race weekend its hard on both car and driver. Its a difficult place to over take, so with the running of the trial Qualifying format where competitors are only given one tyre option per Qualifying round, a difficult Qualifying could ruin your whole weekend. Lets hope its as eventful and entertaining as many of our other visits here.
Enjoy guys
Joanna Blackmore
Writer @ F1 Journal
Joanna Blackmore
Writer @ F1 Journal
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