Belgian Grand Prix, Spa-Francorchamps: Preview and weekend times

The Formula 1 circus returns from holidays and arrives in Belgium, on the legendary Spa-Francorchamps track, widely considered the university of motor racing. Everything makes Spa legendary: the ups and downs, its very fast bends, the long stretches through the Ardennes forest and obviously the Eau Rouge, perhaps the most famous bend in the world!

The Spa-Francorchamps track is undoubtedly the favorite of the majority of drivers, as in Silverstone and Monza, here too you can still breathe the air of the Formula 1 of the past and the fans are very happy to witness one of the most beautiful races of the 'year.

Situated in the middle of the Ardennes, the Spa track offers a unique mix of corners, changes of direction, long straights and heavy braking. We start immediately with La Source, a very slow hairpin and then head at great speed towards the point characterized by the most impressive driving difficulty: the Eau Rouge, followed by the bend to the right of the Raidillon. You tackle the Kemmel straight to get to the Les Combes chicane, very fast and then go down to the Malmedy, Rivage and Brussels curves. From here onwards there is what is perhaps the most beautiful part of the track: the very fast Pouhon bend, the Fagnes chicane, the Stavelot bend and the very long Blanchimont bend. You then face the bus stop, the slowest point on the track, and arrive on the starting straight.

We arrive in Belgium after almost a month's break in which discussions focused on three points: Schumacher's maneuver on Barrichello in the Hungarian Grand Prix; the first tests of the new Pirelli tyres; Lauda's new comments on Ferrari. Let's go in order.

In the last Hungarian Grand Prix, which saw Mark Webber triumph, followed by Alonso and Vettel, in the final laps a Schumacher who was increasingly in difficulty with the tires tried to resist Barrichello's attacks for several laps, just a few laps from the end on the finishing straight Barrichello throws himself inside the German who increasingly squeezes the Brazilian against the pit wall at high speed. Controversy was inevitable with Schumacher who in the end was also penalised: in "his" Spa he will be forced to start ten positions behind his qualification.

Over the last week, Pirelli, using an old converted Toyota, carried out the first tests on the new tires that will be used starting from 2011. Nick Heidfeld, released by Mercedes, was on board the car. The leaders of the Italian company said they were satisfied with the results obtained even if there is still work to be done in view of next season.

In recent days there has also been no shortage of the now usual utterances from Niki Lauda, ​​the former World Champion has harshly criticized Ferrari for the events at Hockenheim (the team order which forced Massa to give way to Alonso), and has said that in his opinion Ferrari will be "severely beaten" at the World Council meeting on September 8th. Soon came the vitriolic response from the Maranello company, branding Lauda as an "old maître à penser" and confirming Ferrari's trust in the FIA.

Returning to the Belgian Grand Prix, when the Formula 1950 World Championship was established in 1, the Belgian race had already existed for a quarter of a century: the idea of ​​creating a car circuit in the Ardennes area in fact dates back to the 20s, when Jules de Their and Henri Langlois Van Ophem planned to join the roads connecting three small towns: Francorchamps, Malmedy and Stavelot. The resulting track was one of the longest (almost 14 km) and fastest ever built and in 1925 the first Belgian Grand Prix was held, also valid as the European Grand Prix and included in the first edition of the so-called "World Automobile Championship". ”, saw the overwhelming victory of Antonio Ascari's Alfa Romeo who, having set out to become the reference driver of that era, instead died a few months later, during the French Grand Prix.

His son Alberto, with Ferrari, would then triumph in 1952 and 1953, in his magical world championship seasons. In the 30s other prestigious names found a place in the roll of honour, such as Chiron in 1930, or Tazio Nuvolari in 1933, who with a private Maserati started in last position, but had already jumped incredibly into the lead at the end of the first lap, staying there until the finish line.

The subsequent domination of German cars also extended to this race, which saw Caracciola's Mercedes triumph in '35 (when the German became European Champion), Hasse's Auto Union (with his first and only victory in a GP ) in '37, and Mercedes again in '39 with Lang, in an edition marred by the tragedy that befell his teammate, the Englishman Seaman who went off the track in the wet just before the Source and crashed into a tree , catching fire: Seaman died the following night from the terrible burns, without having almost lost consciousness.

After the long period of the Second World War, Chaboud's victory in '46 marked the return of competitions on the Ardennes circuit, and the following year Alfa returned to victory with the symbolic driver of the '40s, Jean Pierre Wimille, who triumphed aboard the legendary supercharged Alfetta 158. Talbot, meanwhile, with Rosier's victory in '49, but above all with Sommer's exceptional performance in '50 who seriously managed to undermine the Alfa record of the winner Fangio (first also in '54 and '55), he showed everyone (Ferrari first and foremost) the path of the naturally aspirated engine whose reduced consumption, on a fast track like Spa, became a fundamental factor.

Although Spa was a magnificent circuit for driving, its intrinsic danger often caused dramatic accidents: in the 1960 edition, won by Jack Brabham, in two separate accidents Chris Bristow and Alan Stacey lost their lives, tragedies which almost led to his retirement from racing. Another young rookie raced, Jim Clark, who would later become a dominator of this race, achieving a string of consecutive successes between 1962 (his first ever victory in F1) and 1965.

The '64 edition was daring: in the last kilometres, first Gurney, then Hill and finally McLaren were incredibly forced to give up the victory due to mechanical problems, which rewarded the "flying Scotsman", who among other things had always confessed that he hated the Belgian track, whose danger was accentuated when Formula 1 switched to a 1966 cc engine capacity in 3000: that year, during the filming of the film "Grand Prix", a downpour caused a multiple accident in the fastest area of ​​the track, and the young Stewart miraculously survived, but remained stuck and injured for a long time in the cockpit of his BRM. Since then Jackie undertook a convinced campaign for safety, which within a few years inevitably had negative effects for a circuit like Spa, at least in its original 14 kilometer version which wound between houses, ditches and electricity poles. In fact, Stewart once said that “running at Spa is like walking on a tightrope on a windy day”.

In '68 Bruce McLaren brought a car that bore his name to success for the first time, which has since become one of the most prestigious teams in F1, while in the same year Ferrari debuted the spoilers in the race, an accessory that is soon became an integral part of every single-seater of the top formula. The '70 edition, with Rodriguez's victory in '70 achieved in the sprint against Amon, is the last held at Spa in its original configuration.

In the early seventies, the Belgian Grand Prix moved twice to Nivelles ('72 and '74, both won by Fittipaldi), and then permanently to Zolder: to remember the Lauda-Ferrari double in 1975-76, followed by the only victory in Formula 1 by Gunnar Nilsson, the unfortunate Swedish driver who died the following year from cancer. In '78 (curiously, just ten years after Ferrari's spoilers) Andretti's Lotus 79 made its victorious debut with its rigid and sliding miniskirts: it was the definitive birth of ground effect, which would forever change the way Formula 1 cars were designed .

But the Zolder circuit is also linked to tragic episodes: in '81 Reutemann (who then won the race) during qualifying hit an Osella mechanic in the pit lane, Giovanni Amadeo, who then died a few days later, while in the confused At the start, an Arrows mechanic was also hit on the grid and, despite suffering numerous fractures, he managed to get away. Instead, 1982 is remembered for the death of Gilles Villeneuve, who in qualifying was the victim of a misunderstanding with Mass: the crazy flight of Ferrari number 27 is impossible to forget.

Finally in 1983 F1 returned to Spa, but in the new shorter and infinitely safer version, since the dangerous Bourneville curve, the Malmedy unevenness, the interminable Masta straight (interspersed with a very fast S) were excluded, the dizzying Stavelot curve (where Moss got his legs back in '60) and the La Carrière complex. The route thus modified was reduced to less than seven kilometres, but still remained very selective: Prost's Renault won (also first in '87 over McLaren).

The following year the race was held at Zolder for the last time, and the winner was Michele Alboreto, in his first success with Ferrari: an Italian hadn't won in a red Maranello car for eighteen years. In '85 Ayrton Senna with Lotus achieved the first of his five victories on this track, including four consecutive victories between '88 and '91 with McLaren Honda: several times the Brazilian stated that Spa was the circuit he liked more among the existing ones.

Precisely in 1991, and precisely on this track, Michael Schumacher made his debut in Formula 1, who has always maintained a special bond with Spa, in fact exactly one year after his debut the German achieved his first success with Benetton, going on to score well six: the memorable comeback in '95 which led him to win starting from sixteenth position in the downpour, resisting Damon Hill on slicks in the wet, or the victories in the following two years with Ferrari, always taking advantage of his great ability in the wet .

But the German's claims could have been much more if we consider that in '94 he crossed the finishing line as the winner but was disqualified for excessive wear of the floor of the car, or think of the infamous and discussed edition of '98 when, largely in the lead, Schumacher he collided with the lapped McLaren of Coulthard, who suddenly slowed down when exiting the corner. Both times the victory went to Damon Hill (also first in '93), and the 1998 victory over Jordan is also the Englishman's last in Formula 1 (and last career podium for Alesi, 3rd on Sauber).

Hakkinen won only once at Spa, in 2000, but it was a triumph enhanced by the great overtaking that the Finn made on Schumacher at the end of the Kemmel straight, when the two contenders found themselves rounding Zonta's Bar: the German he passed on the inside, while Hakkinen quickly threw himself on the outside, passing both of them, performing a maneuver rightly remembered as one of the most exciting ever. Schumacher made up for it by winning again in 2001 (overcoming the all-time record for F1 victories held by Prost) and in 2002, becoming the most successful driver in the history of the Belgian Grand Prix.

In 2003, due to long-standing disputes over anti-smoking laws, the race was not held, as also happened in 2006.

Meanwhile, after the Schumacher era, in recent years Spa has been an almost exclusive hunting reserve for Kimi Raikkonen who, first with McLaren (2004 and 2005) then with Ferrari (2007 and 2009, the last to date Kimi's success in Formula 1), achieved four triumphs, narrowly missing out on fifth in the controversial 2008 edition, when the Finn, leading until the rain began to fall, made a mistake on the slippery asphalt and went off the track while fighting with Hamilton's McLaren, who crossed the finish line first but was then penalized 25" for a controversial cut of the chicane and an alleged insufficient "return" of the position to the Finn. The obvious victory therefore went to the other Ferrari driver, the Brazilian Massa: a decision that is still being discussed after some time.

With the Belgian Grand Prix and the subsequent Italian Grand Prix, Formula 1 is moving towards its epilogue, Spa in fact represents the penultimate race in the old continent, after Monza it will go to Asia and South America. The fight for the drivers' championship is very open: the top five drivers are within twenty points (less than a victory) and not making mistakes will be decisive for the final sprint towards the championship. The fight for the constructors' championship is also very close with Red Bull and McLaren separated by just eight points, with Ferrari further back.

The Spa track should suit Red Bull well even if team manager Christian Horner dampened enthusiasm by stating that their car could find itself in difficulty on the long straights of the Ardennes. McLaren will certainly try to make amends after having stumbled on a bad weekend in Budapest: with Button finishing in eighth place and Lewis Hamilton forced to retire due to a gearbox problem. There is an air of optimism in Ferrari which aims to close the gap in both rankings.

The unknowns linked to the weather should not be underestimated: Spa is famous for its atmospheric conditions which are not at all stable: it can rain suddenly and the sun can shine on part of the track and the downpour can break out on the other. Strategists will also have their work cut out for them…

Domenico Della Valle – Francesco Ferrandino

INFO
Circuit length: 7,004 km
Laps to go: 44
Total distance: 308,052km
Number of curves: 19 – 10 right, 9 left
Bridgestone compounds: medium/hard

RECORD
Test lap: 1:44.503 – J Trulli – Toyota – 2009
Race lap: 1:47.263 – S Vettel – Red Bull Renault – 2009
Distance: 1h20:39.066 – K Raikkonen – Ferrari – 2007
Driver victories: 6 – M Schumacher
Team victories: 16 – Ferrari
Driver pole: 4 – J Fangio, A Prost, A Senna
Pole team: 13 – Ferrari
Km in the driver's lead: 1.806 – M Schumacher
Team lead km: 5.459 – Ferrari
Best driver laps: 6 – At Prost
Best team laps: 17 – Ferrari
Driver podiums: 9 – M Schumacher
Team podiums: 44 – Ferrari

Hall of Fame
01. 1950 J Fangio – Alfa Romeo
02. 1951 N Farina – Alfa Romeo
03. 1952 In Ascari – Ferrari
04. 1953 In Ascari – Ferrari
05. 1954 J Fangio – Maserati
06. 1955 J Fangio – Mercedes
07. 1956 P Collins – Ferrari
08. 1958 T Brooks – Vanwall
09. 1960 J Brabham – Cooper Climax
10. 1961 P Hill – Ferrari
11. 1962 J Clark – Lotus Climax
12. 1963 J Clark – Lotus Climax
13. 1964 J Clark – Lotus Climax
14. 1965 J Clark – Lotus Climax
15. 1966 J Surtees – Ferrari
16. 1967 D Gurney – Eagle Weslake
17. 1968 B McLaren – McLaren Ford
18. 1970 P Rodriguez – BRM
19. 1972 E Fittipaldi – Lotus Ford
20. 1973 J Stewart – Tyrrell Ford
21. 1974 E Fittipaldi – McLaren Ford
22. 1975 N Lauda – Ferrari
23. 1976 N Lauda – Ferrari
24. 1977 G Nilsson – Lotus Ford
25. 1978 M Andretti – Lotus Ford
26. 1979 J Scheckter – Ferrari
27. 1980 D Pironi – Ligier Ford
28. 1981 C Reutemann – Williams Ford
29. 1982 J Watson – McLaren Ford
30. 1983 A Prost – Renault
31. 1984 M Alboreto – Ferrari
32. 1985 At Senna – Lotus Renault
33. 1986 N Mansell – Williams Honda
34. ​​1987 A Prost – McLaren TAG
35. 1988 At Senna – McLaren Honda
36. 1989 At Senna – McLaren Honda
37. 1990 At Senna – McLaren Honda
38. 1991 At Senna – McLaren Honda
39. 1992 M Schumacher – Benetton Ford
40. 1993 D Hill – Williams Renault
41. 1994 D Hill – Williams Renault
42. 1995 M Schumacher – Benetton Renault
43. 1996 M Schumacher – Ferrari
44. 1997 M Schumacher – Ferrari
45. ​​1998 D Hill – Jordan Mugen Honda
46. ​​1999 D Coulthard – McLaren Mercedes
47. 2000 M Häkkinen – McLaren Mercedes
48. 2001 M Schumacher – Ferrari
49. 2002 M Schumacher – Ferrari
50. 2004 K Raikkonen – McLaren Mercedes
51. 2005 K Raikkonen – McLaren Mercedes
52. 2007 K Raikkonen – Ferrari
53. 2008 F Massa – Ferrari
54. 2009 K Raikkonen – Ferrari

Belgian Grand Prix times

Friday August 27 2010
10:00-11:30 Free Practice 1
14:00-15:30 Free Practice 2

Saturday August 28 2010
11:00-12:00 Free Practice 3
14pm-00pm Qualifying – Live Rai Due

Sunday August 29
14pm Race – Live Rai Uno