All Eyes on Suzuka F1
Posted on September 21, 2023 Tags: Suzuka
For the Japanese Grand Prix
And Bathurst’s Just around the Corner!
AS WE HEAD UP TO SUZUKA this weekend for the Japanese Grand Prix, let’s hope we see something akin to the undoubted excitement of the final laps last up on the steamy confines of the Marina Bay Street Circuit.
It was perhaps the most tense 20 minutes of the sport so far in 2023, as Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz led McLaren’s Lando Norris, and Mercedes’ George Russell and Lewis Hamilton on a merry chase, in a desperate race for line honours.
For hapless George it ended in tears. He misjudged the tight margins of the Marina Bay concrete with the chequered flag all but in sight – a calamity for the 25-y-o Brit – clipping the wall on the last lap and crashing out while chasing down Lando for second place on much fresher tyres.
And Carlos saw his stocks soar to alarming heights as he drove the lights out in an absolutely riveting performance.
“It has been an incredible weekend right from the start. The team deserves this win for the enormous work they have done both here and in Maranello and I’m proud to dedicate it to all of them and the tifosi.”
Carlos Sainz, Ferrari #55
Singapore was a Blinder!
That is what Formula One is all about as four champion drivers take it down to the wire, right on the limit of their magnificent machinery, in search of the glory of an elusive F1 win.
Aussie Oscar and Kiwi Liam Here for the Long Haul
Meanwhile Aussie Oscar Piastri has inked a new deal with McLaren, locking him into the team until the end of the 2026 season.
“It’s fantastic to confirm that Oscar has signed a multi-year extension with the team.
“Oscar is an asset to McLaren and constantly impresses with his performance, work ethic and attitude, so it was an easy decision for the team to make.
“He has already proved pivotal to the team, so it’s brilliant to have his vote of confidence as we push to win championships again in the future.
“I look forward to seeing him develop with us as we continue this journey together.” McLaren team principal Andrea Stella.
The Melbourne-born rookie has done himself – and manager Mark Webber – proud, turning up the heat on teammate Lando so far this season and reaping praise up and down Pitlane.
He thoroughly deserves his place on the F1 grid. As does Kiwi rookie Liam Lawson, sitting in Daniel Ricciardo’s possie as the Perth superstar recovers from his busted left mitt.
Williams has a new broom and is sniffing around. Liam would be wise to grab any chance with both hands, should he get the opportunity. He’s all but confirmed his future at the top level.
F1 Heads to Suzuka
This weekend we’re back at Suzuka – yet another exceptionally demanding track – fascinating with its quirky figure of eight layout, and right up there among the drivers’ favourites over many years of F1 history.
Those who have been fortunate enough to master Suzuka in today’s ultra-competitive single-seaters continue to sing its praises, as a singular thrilling experience like no other.
If you can get your head around an entry speed at some corners of 282kmh (175mph) and try to imagine the G-forces on the driver’s body.
With its significant lateral and vertical loads, Suzuka is as demanding on tyres as it is on drivers. These demands are equally distributed across all four wheels, according to Pirelli guru Mario Isola, with 10 right-handers and eight left-handers throughout the six-kilometre lap.
The asphalt at Suzuka features some of the highest levels of roughness and abrasion seen all season. Wear and degradation are important factors in determining the run plan for free practice, as well as race strategy.
The Tyres on Track
As a result of Suzuka’s challenging characteristics, Pirelli has opted to bring to Japan some of the hardest tyres in the 2023 range to Japan: C1 as P Zero White hard, C2 Yellow medium and C3 Red soft.
On Friday, the Teams get the chance to test a new version of the C2 compound, with a view to homologating* it for next season. This latest evolution should provide more grip than the current C2, and so fit in more coherently between the C1 and C3.
For the first two free practice sessions, each driver has two additional sets of tyres, compared to the usual 13 sets each weekend.
This test is part of a development programme that was recently defined for 2024 and will continue with a new C4 compound to be tested on track during the upcoming Mexican Grand Prix weekend.
*Homologation: In a motorsport context, is the process of approving a vehicle (or parts of) by the sanctioning body – say Motorsport Australia – to compete in a particular class. It’s a word, I’m told, that’s been around since the 16th century. Although I don’t recall having come across it before involving myself in motorsport.
Weather: always an important factor in motorsport
Suzuka, Mie, Japan
Weather conditions have often heavily influenced the Japanese Grand Prix. Four times – 2004, 2009, 2010, and 2019 – qualifying has been held on Sunday morning due to torrential rain or the threat of a typhoon.
With relatively high temperatures forecast this weekend, we could be in for a few surprises at Suzuka. In which case, tyre degradation could become an important factor.
In 2022, the race was interrupted due to rain on the first lap. In fact, the restart didn’t happen until three hours later, with only 45 minutes to go due to the maximum allowed race duration (four hours).
In total, just 28 laps were completed, with the drivers using only Cinturato intermediate and Full Wet tyres.
• There have been 36 editions of the Japanese Grand Prix valid for the F1 World Championship: 32 of them hosted at Suzuka – Honda’s home circuit – and four at Fuji, which belongs to Toyota.
The most victorious team is McLaren, with nine wins, while the driver who has won the most times is Michael Schumacher (six wins). In 1994 and 1995, the Pacific Grand Prix was also held in Japan, at the Aida circuit.
The Japanese Grand Prix has crowned a new world champion 11 times: most recently last year, when Max Verstappen won his second world title. In 1995, Michael Schumacher also became world champion for the second time after winning the Pacific Grand Prix.
Haupt Racing back in Points Again
Haupt Racing #77 Merc AMG GT3 leads the pack at Valencia
Mercedes-AMG Junior Driver Jordan Love just keeps on keeping on in the GT World Challenge Europe, with another stellar performance in round four of the Fanatec Sprint Cup in Valencia.
It was yet another pole position and a brace of podium finishes to keep the #77 Haupt Racing Team firmly in the championship fight with just one round left to contest.
On the Mediterranean coast, with Jordan and teammate Alain Valente sharing the wheel of Mercedes-AMG GT3 in the Silver Cup classification, the pair continued their strong form from the previous round at Hockenheim.
Despite heavy rain causing substantial delays during practice, Jordan took the wheel in qualifying to deliver a fantastic lap to claim his third pole position of the season.
He and Alain battled hard to chase down the leaders on Saturday, ultimately crossing the finish line in second place to secure yet another valuable podium.
Sunday’s action saw Alain on qualifying duties to take P4, in a closely knit session which saw the top four in the Silver Cup separated by a tenth of a second.
The pair put in a stirling performance again claiming second in class, and yet another podium finish.
The Perth ace now sits third in the Silver Cup drivers’ standings as the championship reaches an exciting conclusion heading to the spooky banked bends of Zandvoort – where Daniel Ricciardo recently came to grief – for the final round October 14-15.
“It felt great to claim two second place finishes last weekend! Can’t complain with some silverware, but we definitely wanted more. The fight is on for the championship with one round to go, so we will be pushing hard in that final round. A massive thank you Haupt Racing Team for all their efforts and to Alain Valente for an amazing effort all weekend yet again. Bring on Zandvoort!” Jordan Love.
EDITED by AC
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