It’s the third part of the Triple Header – and Formula 1 is coming home to where it all began. Motorsport Week previews the British Grand Prix.
History
The British Grand Prix was first run at Brooklands in 1926 and in 1950 a converted World War II airbase near the village of Silverstone was used for the first ever Formula 1 World Championship event.
Silverstone and Aintree shared hosting duties in the 1950s and early 1960s before Brands Hatch got in on the act in 1964.
Brands Hatch and Silverstone alternated from 1964 through 1987, with the Kent circuit hosting Formula 1 in even-numbered years, and Silverstone in odd-numbered campaigns.
Since 1988, Silverstone has remained as the permanent host of Formula 1’s British Grand Prix – surviving various threats to its position – though its future beyond 2019 is uncertain.
Circuit
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Some of the current Silverstone layout can still be traced back to the one used during the early 1950s, though there have been multiple tweaks over the years.
The largest of these came in 2010, with a new complex added, while a year later the new pits and paddock facility was opened, coinciding with the displacement of the start/finish line.
A lap now begins with a short burst along the pit straight prior to the fast sweeping right/left of Abbey and Farm.
The fiddly section of Village and The Loop leads drivers through Aintree and on to the Wellington Straight, with the tightening left-hander at Brooklands bringing drivers back onto the pre-2010 layout.
Brooklands immediately tightens into Luffield while the right-hand kink at Woodcote takes drivers along the old pits straight, setting up for the fearsome Copse corner.
After Copse comes one of the most famous sequence of turns in the world – the Maggots, Becketts and Chapel complex. Fast, ferocious and phenomenal.
The Hangar Straight, long right-hander at Stowe and the Club section brings the lap to a close.
“Silverstone is probably one of the best circuits for these new cars,” says Haas’ Kevin Magnussen.
“It’s a real downforce circuit with lots of high-speed corners. We all know that high-speed corners are the most impressive in a Formula 1 car, and Silverstone is all about that.”
What happened in 2017?
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Lewis Hamilton dominated the race weekend to convert pole position into victory, having never been headed up front, adding the fastest lap to his collection just for good measure
Valtteri Bottas followed Hamilton home for a Mercedes 1-2 as rival Ferrari suffered late tyre failures, dropping Kimi Raikkonen to third and Sebastian Vettel to seventh.
Hamilton’s victory was his fourth on the bounce at Silverstone, and his fifth overall, having dominated in the wet in 2008, while competing for McLaren.
Hamilton’s triumph drew him level with Jim Clark and Alain Prost on five British Grand Prix wins, meaning the Mercedes driver has an opportunity to set a new record this weekend.
Out of Hamilton’s rivals, Fernando Alonso is a two-time victor of the British Grand Prix (2006, 2011), while Kimi Raikkonen (2007) and Sebastian Vettel (2009) each have one win.
Hamilton has also topped qualifying on five occasions at Silverstone (2007, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2017), with title leader Vettel having taken pole during his Red Bull days in 2009 and 2010.
Alonso, meanwhile, has three Silverstone poles (2005, 2006, 2012), while Raikkonen’s sole Saturday success came back in 2004.
Other details
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In order to combat the stresses placed upon tyres by the high-speed nature of the resurfaced Silverstone layout Pirelli will bring its 2018-spec Hard tyre to a Grand Prix for the first time.
The Hard – coloured ‘ice blue’ this year – will be joined by the Soft (yellow) and Medium (white) compound.
Either the Medium or Hard must be run for one-stint of the 52-lap Grand Prix, should dry conditions prevail.
There will be three DRS zones, one each along the Wellington Straight, Hangar Straight and pit straight, the latter positioned such that drivers can keep DRS open through Abbey and Farm curves.
Nine-times Le Mans winner Tom Kristensen will act as the Driver Steward.
Formula 2 and the GP3 Series will again race alongside Formula 1, with each category set for two races – one on Saturday and Sunday respectively.
Mercedes-backed George Russell currently leads the Formula 2 standings, while Ferrari junior Callum Ilott is atop the pile in GP3.
Red Bull, Haas and Williams will stay on at Silverstone for two days of 2019 slick tyre testing on Tuesday and Wednesday.
England’s World Cup quarter-final clash with Sweden is set to kick off just as qualifying concludes on Saturday afternoon, and will be shown at the circuit.
Weather forecast:
Friday: Sunny spells, 24°c
Saturday: Sunny spells, 26°c
Sunday: Sunny, 27°c
Timetable: (GMT+1)
Friday 6 July
FP1: 10:00 – 11:30
FP2: 14:00 – 15:30
Saturday 7 July
FP3: 11:00 – 12:00
Qualifying: 14:00 – 15:00
Sunday 8 July
Race: 14:10 (52 laps or two hours)
What next?
Hockenheim will host the 11th round of the season, the German Grand Prix, from July 20 to 22.
