[shibujp]

Formula 1 - The Brazilian GP (Nov 10 - Nov 12)



Autódromo José Carlos Pace, São Paulo

Commonly known as Interlagos, the circuit is one of a minority of non-oval racing circuits to go in an anti-clockwise direction (Circuit of the Americas, Imola, Istanbul Park, Yas Marina Circuit, Laguna Seca, Singapore, Korea International Circuit and Circuit Ricardo Tormo in Valencia, being notable others). In 1979 upgrading work was done and the pit lane was extended past the first left-hand turn (Curva 1), making the corner more narrow, and the pit lane ended right in the middle of Curva 1 and 2. The present design of the track dates back from 1990, when the original circuit was shortened from 7,829 m to only 4,397 m (so that it could fit the new FIA restrictions on track length). As a consequence of the reduction, the track lost three long straight sections and nine fast curves (5 were lost forever, 4 were made slower and are still there). The original track was full of fast corners and it allowed cars to keep maximum speed for up to twenty seconds[citation needed] and was considered very dangerous (although no one ever died there whilst racing Formula One) and in 1990 the old layout was majorly revised. The new track still had a very long top-speed section that contained bumps, high-speed turns and little run-off area (though the track is very wide at this point).

Another reason why many drivers consider Interlagos interesting is that it was not built on flat terrain, but follows the ups and downs of hilly ground, which makes it harder to drive and demands more power from the car's engines. The hilly course is also a good feature for road cycling races usually held in the circuit.

The circuit is known for its many inclines and formerly bumpy surface, which could take its toll on F1 cars because they have a very low ride height and little suspension travel. The races are therefore very tough on the car, and also physically tough on the drivers, especially since the circuit is anti-clockwise, where the centrifugal forces in the many hard left turns push the drivers' necks to the right, instead of left as in the majority of circuits on the F1 calendar.

Source:Wikipedia



Track Stats


2017 Tyre Choices



2017 Qualifying and Practice Sessions

Mercedes dominated the free practices locking out the top two slots in all three practice sessions. However by FP3 Ferrai had caught up with just 6 tenths of a second separating Hamilton at first and Vettel at 4th with Valteri Bottas and Kimi Raikkonen in second and third respectively. All the front runners set the pace on super softs though the Mercs initially started FP3 on softs. Fernando put the McLaren in front of the Renaults and Force India in FP3.



The biggest upset in qualifying was Hamilton crashing out with the Brit set to start from the pit lane. Should be interesting...

Qualifying resumed after being red flagged for Hamilton's crash. Brendon Hartley managed to haul his Toro Rosso into Q2 while Lance Stroll could not get out of Q3. However Hartley get a penaly for an MGU-H change and will drop down, Alonso is set for his best ever start of 2017 as P6 as Ricciardo has a grid penalty for a couple of power train changes.



The weather may throw a curveball in the race with a few drops of rain coming in towards the end of qualifying but not enough to impact the grip. Weather forecast is sunny for the race though.

With the two championships decided, the battle may well be for second place as just 15 points separate Vettel and Bottas.

Drive on,
Shibu.

[mayankk]

Should be fun to watch Hamilton try and blitz the field, though dirty air is the Mercedes' nemesis.

[glikithvinayaka]

Originally Posted by shibujp

The weather may throw a curveball in the race with a few drops of rain coming in towards the end of qualifying but not enough to impact the grip. Weather forecast is sunny for the race though.

I was really hoping for a wet race, well now atleast the Ferrari's won't struggle
Interlagos is such a beautiful track, shame it ends up being in the end of the calender most of the time, after the championships have been decided.

[dZired]

Meanwhile, Hamilton has tweeted something disturbing regarding the Mercedes team's security in Brazil.

[arun_josie]

Here is the news, Mercedes team members unhurt after minibus robbed at gunpoint

Mercedes have confirmed their team bus was robbed at gunpoint on Friday when they left the circuit following practice for the Brazilian Grand Prix. A team spokesman said valuables were stolen but confirmed "everybody is safe and uninjured".

Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton has tweeted his shock about the incident and said "F1 and the teams need to do more, there's no excuse!"

An armoured car carrying officials from the FIA, F1's governing body, was also approached by gunmen on its departure from the circuit at just after 8pm on Friday.

The men put their guns against the window, but the car managed to evade traffic and escape.

A car carrying Williams crew witnessed the attempted ambush and none of their team members were harmed.

They are the latest ordeals faced by F1 personnel in Sao Paulo in recent years.

In 2010, former McLaren driver Jenson Button escaped unharmed when gunmen approached an armoured car he was travelling in on the way back from the circuit. The driver managed to speed away from the incident through traffic.

That same year robbers accosted team members from Sauber and stole valuables.

Source: Skysports

[sgiitk]

Disgusting, display of the lawlessness there.

I still am unable to figure out Lewis's problem. Was he careless or was it a system failure.

[shibujp]

Originally Posted by sgiitk

I still am unable to figure out Lewis's problem. Was he careless or was it a system failure.

I think he accepts that it was a mistake on his part.https://www.google.co.in/amp/s/www.s...696.html%3famp

Seems the car bottomed out on the corner as per https://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/h...sh-977432/amp/this report.

[glikithvinayaka]

Originally Posted by sgiitk

Disgusting, display of the lawlessness there.

I remember reading something like this Last season too. One of the Mercedes engineer was held at gunpoint while he was driving from airport to the hotel. Looks like mugging is a common offence, although very scary and dangerous.

[glikithvinayaka]

Sebastian Vettel wins the Brazilian GP, Valtteri Bottas and Kimi Raikkonen joined him on the podium at P2 and P3 respectively.
Meanwhile Lewis Hamilton finished P4 starting from back of the grid, who also was awarded Driver of the day.

Fun fact :Lewis Hamilton, 4 time WDC in the car 44, who pitted on lap 44 finished for the 4th time on P4 in this season, which is Mercedes' 4th WCC.

Found this on formula 1 subreddit.

[avdhesh15]

Hamilton was super yesterday. Starting from the back and getting so close to the leaders is an awesome task. For a change it was nice to see this side of him.

[GTO]

A fun race. Also love the Brazilian GP's timing. Wish all F1 races were at dinner time.

Perfect drive by Vettel & Hamilton - both shone as champions. It was fun to watch Hamilton come up to 4th, after starting from the pitlane . What a driver. Am amazed he was able to make his first set of tyres last as long.

Bottas is such a poor driver . His team-mate starts last and finishes just two spots behind him, and Bottas can't even hang with Vettel. But then, maybe this kind of no.2 driver is exactly what Hamilton wants.

[glikithvinayaka]

Originally Posted by GTO

Bottas is such a poor driver . His team-mate starts last and finishes just two spots behind him, and Bottas can't even hang with Vettel. But then, maybe this kind of no.2 driver is exactly what Hamilton wants.

To be fair to Bottas, overtaking slower cars in the fastest car on the grid especially in Interlagos, is much easier than to overtake an almost equally fast car which is having clean air in the front.

Also Bottas had a better start, but then Seb had a better launch while releasing the second clutch, you can see the Ferrari jump to the first corner leaving Valtteri behind.

[arun_josie]

It was a good race especially with the top 4 finishing within 5 seconds. Despite starting from pit, Hamilton was able to challenge Raikkonen during the last few laps for P3 and it was a good recovery drive by Ricciardo too.

Midfield was very close with Massa, Alonso and Perez finishing within a second.

Now, Toro Rosso, Renault and Haas are split by just 6 points. So, it will be a interesting and very important race for them in Abudhabi.

Originally Posted by GTO

Bottas is such a poor driver . His team-mate starts last and finishes just two spots behind him, and Bottas can't even hang with Vettel. But then, maybe this kind of no.2 driver is exactly what Hamilton wants.

Infact, he was just 2.7 seconds behind Bottas.

[vb-saan]

Originally Posted by GTO

It was fun to watch Hamilton come up to 4th, after starting from the pitlane . What a driver. Am amazed he was able to make his first set of tyres last as long.

I agree! The way he was climbing up order, along with the layout of the track made it a very fascinating watch. With an extra lap, he probably would have covered Kimi.

Originally Posted by GTO

Bottas is such a poor driver . His team-mate starts last and finishes just two spots behind him, and Bottas can't even hang with Vettel. But then, maybe this kind of no.2 driver is exactly what Hamilton wants.

Bottas is the perfect team-mate for Lewis; the kind which the latter will be always praising

[Hatari]

Great drive by Lewis. Shame for Bottas, never got around to mounting a challenge.
No wonder Lewis is so fond of him. Like Seb with Kimi.

Great race for Massa & Alonso too. I cant believe Williams are ditching him. With Stroll still learning how to walk, they need a consistent driver, Kubica will take time to settle in.

Anyone following the Speed trap figures on the F1 app? never follows the speed reading on the Onboards.

Also, Max having a fastest lap bonus is interesting, no wonder he wanted a fresh set when there was nothing to lose!