F1 Madness

Tag: baku city circuit

  • Changes To Baku Circuit Pit Lane Entry and Circuit Kerbs

    Changes To Baku Circuit Pit Lane Entry and Circuit Kerbs

    After a number of safety concerns by drivers the FIA will make changes to the Baku City Circuit pit lane entry and some of the kerbing around the circuit.

    After the GP2 Qualifying was postponed the FIA discovered that the bolts that hold the kerbs down had worked loose and were causing cuts on the tyres. Race officials managed to weld down the bolts. Teams were told by the FIA to notify their drivers not to drive on the kerbs at Turn 6.

    The FIA will now make changes to the kerbs overnight. According to Motorsport.com the kerbs at Turn 6 and Turn 12 will be removed and will be replaced by painted versions.

    The chicane at the pit entry was also a talking point among drivers. There is potential that things can go spectacularly wrong at the chicane and could end the race of a driver if he got it wrong.

    The pit entry line, according to the drivers, was not obviously visible due to the undulations down the pit straight. The FIA will extend the pit lane line further back and to the left. This means that the left side of the track will be for drivers entering the pits. Drivers are not allowed to cross the pit entry lines if they decide to dive into the pits at the last second.

     

    Photo credit: Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula One Team

  • Hamilton Fastest in Baku Second Practice

    Hamilton Fastest in Baku Second Practice

    Lewis Hamilton made it two from two after finishing top of the time sheets at the end of the second free practice session at the Baku City Circuit in Baku, Azerbaijan.

    Hamilton set a time of 1:44.223 on the super softs tyres to give him the fastest time of the session. Mercedes team-mate Nico Rosberg was a little more than a second adrift in 2nd with a time of 1:44.913. The Mercedes powered Force India of Sergio Perez finished 3rd fastest with a time of 1:45.316, 1.113s off Hamilton’s time.

    There were issues with the kerbs before the session started after it was revealed that the kerbs at certain corners around the track were causing cuts to the tyres. Drivers were advised to stay off the kerbs at those corners when the session went ahead as planned.

    The Baku City Circuit is a power hungry circuit and with the long straights and long periods of full throttle Mercedes powered cars seem to have the upper hand. As evidenced by the top 5 placed cars were all Mercedes powered.

    Valtteri Bottas finished 4th fastest in his Williams 1.541s off the pace. Nico Hulkenberg in the sister Force India was 5th fastest with a 1:45.920.

    Carlos Sainz in the Toro Rosso was the highest place runner with a Ferrari engine finishing 6th fastest ahead of Red Bull’s Max Verstappen who was the highest placed runner with a Renault engine.

    Jenson Button finished 9th fastest with Daniel Ricciardo in the second Red Bull rounding out the top 10.

    It was a session filled wide running as the drivers continued to push the limits of the tyres and the brakes to find the latest braking spot possible.

    Nico Rosberg had to retire early from the session with a suspected engine issue.

    Fernando Alonso was seen coasting around the track with a gearbox problem. He took quick action and pushed the neutral button on the nose of the car which the marshals use to enable to move the car. He was then able to coast in neutral to the pits. He emerged later in the session.

    Ferrari, apart from being off the pace the entire session, had problems as well. Kimi Raikkonen came to a halt before the end of the session after his rear wheels locked up. Vettel was then told a few mins later to return to the pits as he may have had the same issue. Riccardo Adami, Vettel’s race engineer, said that there was an issue with the [MGU-]K as Vettel pulled into the pits.

    Long run pace suggests that Mercedes have the upper hand going into the weekend. Williams, Ferrari, Red Bull and Force India to some extent are quite close together but are not anywhere close to the pace of the Mercedes cars.

    With a few safety concerns which track officials are addressing the circuit seems to have gone down well with the drivers and most of them are enjoying the mix of corners the circuit offers. The layout seems to favor the brave. The drivers will relish the opportunity to take their cars to the absolute limit this weekend.

    Pos Driver Team Best Time Gap Laps
    1  Lewis Hamilton Mercedes 1:44.223 – 33
    2  Nico Rosberg Mercedes 1:44.913 +0.690 26
    3  Sergio Perez Force India 1:45.336 +1.113 37
    4  Valtteri Bottas Williams 1:45.764 +1.541 35
    5  Nico Hulkenberg Force India 1:45.920 +1.697 37
    6  Carlos Sainz Jr. Toro Rosso 1:46.027 +1.804 35
    7  Max Verstappen Red Bull 1:46.068 +1.845 35
    8  Sebastian Vettel Ferrari 1:46.219 +1.996 36
    9  Jenson Button McLaren 1:46.234 +2.011 32
    10  Daniel Ricciardo Red Bull 1:46.293 +2.07 32
    11  Fernando Alonso McLaren 1:46.498 +2.275 27
    12  Romain Grosjean Haas 1:46.681 +2.458 29
    13  Kimi Raikkonen Ferrari 1:46.694 +2.471 32
    14  Daniil Kvyat Toro Rosso 1:46.744 +2.521 35
    15  Esteban Gutierrez Haas 1:46.830 +2.607 26
    16  Felipe Massa Williams 1:47.060 +2.837 28
    17  Kevin Magnussen Renault 1:47.329 +3.106 38
    18  Rio Haryanto Manor 1:47.487 +3.264 33
    19  Marcus Ericsson Sauber 1:47.772 +3.549 22
    20  Jolyon Palmer Renault 1:47.794 +3.571 35
    21  Pascal Wehrlein Manor 1:48.018 +3.795 36
    22  Felipe Nasr Sauber 1:48.081 +3.858 38

     

    Photo Credit: Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula One Team

  • Video: Baku Grand Prix 2016 Feature – Part 1

    Video: Baku Grand Prix 2016 Feature – Part 1

    Just a few days away from the first Grand Prix of Europe in Azerbaijan, heartbeats rise in Baku. Fans are thrilled with anticipation, and the road workers are breaking a sweat due to time pressure. Final sprint in Baku, but the city has done it’s homework and is ready for F1’s initial run.

  • Pirelli Tyre Choices for European Grand Prix

    Pirelli Tyre Choices for European Grand Prix

    Formula 1 tyre supplier Pirelli has announced the tyre choices for the European Grand Prix which will take place at the Baku City Circuit in Azerbaijan.

    Pirelli have chosen the White Medium, Yellow Soft and Red Super soft compound tyres for the race weekend. The medium and the Soft compound tyre must be used during the race and each driver will be required to use at least one of them.

    The super soft compound will be available to drivers that make it to Q3 and will have to be handed back after Q3 in accordance with the regulations. Drivers that are not in the top 10 will have the super soft tyre available to them during the race.

     

    Photo by courtesy Pirelli