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PRIXVIEW – British Grand Prix

Round ten of the 2022 season brings F1 home to Silverstone in Northamptonshire and Buckinghamshire for the British Grand Prix. Silverstone is the spi111rual home of F1 hosting the very first world championship Grand Prix and since 1987 the circuit on the Northamptonshire and Buckinghamshire border has been the sole home of the race as well as the anchor for the Motorsport Valley with seven of the ten teams based within fifty miles of the circuit.

Built on a former airfield the circuit features long straights made up of the former taxiways and runways of the former bomber base. The current layout was built in 2009-11 with phase one opening in 2010 and the Wing pit lane opening the following season. Silverstone is a high speed and high downforce with wide-open corners provides opportunities for overtaking, while it has evolved into a modern circuit while retaining its heritage.

Silverstone is an airfield circuit, which means unpredictable weather and wind can blow around the circuit. The long straights, largely based on taxiways, mean drivers need high downforce and straight-line speed, and the corners are quite open which creates opportunities for overtaking. It tends to favour cars which are fast in a straight line and have good mechanical grip are key to unlocking lap time.

Expect another battle between Ferrari and Red Bull, but following the momentum that Red Bull has at the moment. I think this is more a Ferrari circuit because in my view they have been better in a straight line and high-speed circuits whereas Red Bull have a good all-round car.

The circuit is also one which is hard on tyres and the cars, and that can lead to crashes and brake failures. The drivers however need to attack the circuit to unlock the best lap time and that doesn’t come without a little bit of risk as Silverstone is lined with gravel and grass after the tarmac run-off. Drivers however should be able to follow more closely and overtake easier, with the big braking zones placing demands on the cars and drivers.

Pirelli typically goes towards the harder end of the tyre compounds given the high loads and stresses which the circuit creates. It also requires good power from the PU so we could see some drivers move to a fresh units or parts ahead of this run of high-speed circuits heading to Spielberg and Le Castellet over the next month, it could be a good time.

This is the first of three circuits with long straights and high speed corners, it means that the teams can learn a lot this weekend for the Red Bull Ring and Le Castellet, but get it wrong and there could be some difficult weekends ahead for teams. This weekend is about getting momentum with the four races in five weekends, as we head to the summer break.

Silverstone also creates closer racing as well as overtaking because of the wide open corners and long straights, with this year’s regulation changes you need to hope that there will be close racing again, there could be big chances for the midfield. However historically it has tended to favour the cars which are good in a straight line and corners, as well as drivers who have an attacking driving style.

The unpredictable weather is common, one of F1’s iconic races in 2008 saw Sir Lewis Hamilton pull off one of the best drives of his career in the wet building a minute’s lead to take the victory. He has gone on to be the most successful driver, last year an eighth win put him and saw him equal the record of wins at the same Grand Prix, shared with Budapest and Schumacher at Mangy-Cour.

Its often said that British fans don’t support one team or driver, while Sir Lewis Hamilton, Lando Norris, Alex Albon and George Russell, McLaren, Williams, and Aston Martin, will get home support you will see all kinds of banners and drivers supported. This fifty-mile so-called motorsport valley will come alive, with seven of the ten teams all based nearby.

Charles Leclerc heads to Silverstone needing to regain momentum, Red Bull have made a step up in recent races since the Ferrari’s drivers’ last win in Barcelona. This circuit historical has been a very good race for Ferrari, they have sixteen wins at this race.

This circuit should also create closer racing, it has been an outlier in the hybrid era as we have seen some overtaking. The regulation changes this year you need to believe will see increased overtaking as the long straights, hard braking zones and wide-open corners all should allow great racing on track.

Of course, this circuit is one which drivers enjoy, a traditional circuit but with a mixture of tarmac, grass and gravel run off which means there is still a risk of mistakes being costly, but without punishing the minor error. This weekend tends to throw up surprises in the midfield, as this is a circuit where drivers can make a difference if they have a decent car and take advantage of the situations which present themselves.

You need to believe that in the midfield the battle could be between Alpha Tauri and Alpine who have been looking very competitive at these types of circuits. But the question is if Mercedes aren’t in the ‘no mans land’ are there more porpoising issues at this high-speed circuit where bouncing could be an issue on the straights.

Race & Circuit Guide

Fast facts

• There is yet to be a British GP at Silverstone in which all of the top three on the grid finish the race in the same order.
• As well as holding the record for most home wins, Sir Lewis Hamilton also holds the record for pole positions at a home Grand Prix the same Grand Prix,
• Informally the race is known as the ‘Mutton Grand Prix’ Maurice Geoghegan, and eleven other drivers raced over a 2-mile (3.2 km) circuit, during the course of which Geoghegan himself ran over a sheep that had wandered onto the airfield. The sheep was killed and the car written off,

Event timetable

What happened in 2021?

Lewis Hamilton beat Max Verstappen to take pole for the sprint by seven hundredths of a second, despite being behind all day on Friday the Mercedes driver took advantage of Verstappen’s error on his final lap in Q3,thanks to understeer. Hamilton’s teammate Valtteri Bottas was third ahead of Sergio Perez, but the Mexican’s fastest lap was deleted after he exceeded track limits promoting Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc to fourth

Verstappen however overtook Hamilton on the opening lap before opening up a 1.4-second lead securing pole for the sprint. In a taste of what was to come in the opening lap of the Grand Prix, they went wheel to wheel at Copse, before backing off as Verstappen took control.

The decision to start Bottas on softs did not pay off for Mercedes, as he finished 7.5s behind Verstappen, albeit solidly ahead of Leclerc, who was a further 3.7s to maintain fourth on the grid for the main race.

Hamilton went on to take victory after earning a ten-second penalty after crashing into Verstappen at the start of the race. After hounding Verstappen from the start when the duo reached Copse on the opening Hamilton went to the outside after gaining a slipstream, when he tried to overtake Abbey he clipped the rear of the Red Bull sending the Dutchman into the wall bringing out the red flag.

Ferrari meanwhile had one of their strongest races of the season with Leclerc leading up until the second round of stops, but Hamilton found a way past. While it wasn’t victory for Ferrari it was an important step forwards towards their revival in 2022.

Lando Norris showed strong pace for McLaren finishing fourth leading his teammate Daniel Ricciardo home by fourteen seconds. Ricciardo holding off the Carlos Sainz was sixth ahead of the Alpine of Fernando Alonso, the Spaniard having a slow pit stop and holding of his more experienced countryman.

Race Result – 1) L. Hamilton, Mercedes, 01:53:23.284, 2) C. Leclerc, Ferrari, +00:03.871, 3) V. Bottas, Mercedes, +00:11.125

What to watch for?

Red Bull appears to be on a roll of results as in Montreal I feel Ferrari need a win and those errors which cost them in 2018-19 I feel are creeping in again. With Red Bull and Max Verstappen looking like a strong combination having won the last three races and pulling thirty-six points ahead of Charles Leclerc, it could be a key weekend in the championship as we head into July with four races in five weeks. The nature of Silverstone should give an idea for the Red Bull Ring and Paul Ricard.

Silverstone we know is a high-speed and long straights circuit, which means porpoising and bouncing could be an issue for Mercedes. It will be a true test to see if they have resolved those issues continue for them, but this has been a good circuit for Mercedes in the hybrid era and they have only been beaten by Ferrari since 2014. The circuit is going to throw up different challenges as it’s hard on tyres an we know there has been tyre failure and most teams need to go harder on compounds.

There is always a risk of a safety car because most of the grass and gravel run off areas create their own hazards. Coupled with the demands on the cars there can be crashes through the high-speed sections, again this has been a two-stop race an outlier to most teams will factor that in. I think that’s going to increase because as we’ve said all season these regulations were designed to create closer racing.

Weather can also play a role, though it hasn’t in recent years, this was a former airfield meaning gusts of winds which can bring in rain as well. This can affect the downforce of the cars which can be unsettled through corners like Copse and Stowe. But they are high speed ninety-degree corners, and with the varied nature of the circuit. aerodynamics play a more important role than mechanical grip, due to a high average speed.

The midfield battle I believe this is another circuit which could suit Alpine and Alpha Tauri who have looked to be gaining momentum recently in the midfield battle. Montreal we saw a brilliant strong qualifying and race performance the battle as well looks very strong, we have seen great racing in that group. They can also be there to pick up the pieces in thew

2020 vs 2021 Race Data

2021 Lap time comparison

 Tyres