Ferrari expected to
fly, whilst young pretenders lust for glory at the
32nd British Grand Prix
The major focus of attention at Silverstone
this weekend will be the battle for pole position, as
the Ferrari-Williams encounter is reopened on home
turf and the McLaren, Benetton and Jordan teams strive for a slice of the
victory pie.
For the Jordan team,
located a mere 50 yards from the circuit gates, it
should be a straight forward event. "The
British Grand Prix is very different to the other
races," explained Boss Eddie Jordan. "not
simply because it is our home, but because of the
historical connections. Eddie Jordan racing was the
first team to set up at Silverstone in 1980 and the
Grand Prix acts as a reminder of how far we have come
since then. It is also the closest race to Ireland so
we have a huge number of fans who come to see
us."
Silverstone is not
favoured by drivers as their circuit of choice. Windy
and bleak, at times, desolate and lacking in the
picturesque qualities that make circuits like Spa and
Imola so ‘user friendly’, it is
first and foremost a ‘high speed’ track and
despite subsequent redesigning of some corners, it
still remains one of the fastest.
Both Crystal Palace
and Brooklands - which held the first ever
Grand Prix in 1926 - were already falling into
disrepair and a new venue was badly needed to
accommodate the ever increasing demands of faster
cars. Built on an old airfield leased from the Air
Ministry in 1948, the first track laid out over the
straight runways and perimeter roads was a rather
makeshift affair with the pits in nearby farm
buildings and the 3.7 mile circuit marked out with
hay bales. By 1949, with a chicane added at Club
Corner, the basic layout was formed and on May
13th of the following year, the first officially
designated Formula 1 Grand Prix of Europe took place
in front of no lesser nobility then King George IV
himself. The race was won by the Alfa Romeo of
Nino Farina who would dominate the season to
become World Champion.
The pits were
eventually relocated to the runway between Copse
Corner and Woodcote and the track
resurfaced. By 1961 the British Racing Drivers
Club purchased the lease outright, the track
alternating with Aintree from1955 til 1973
when the much friendlier circuit at Brands Hatch
hosted the even years up until 1986. A chicane was
added at Woodcote in 1975 after a major start
finish pile up, triggered by Jody Scheckter at
Woodcote, eliminated seven teams at a stroke.
The chicane itself was replaced in 1988 by a short
dog leg which was unpopular with the drivers as it
completely changed the rhythm of the circuit. Further
modifications carried out last year, re-aligned Copse
and opened up both Priory and Brooklands
aiding a faster entry through Luffield and Woodcote
corner which by now had become a sweeping right
hander. With tunnels and bridges added and a new
Press centre, Silverstone has become the premier
motor racing circuit in Britain and has exclusive
rights to the British Grand Prix well into the
Millennium, leaving the spectator friendly circuits
of Brands and Donnington to lesser automotive
activities.
Memorable for several
firsts, Silverstone saw both Ferrari and Williams
take their maiden Grand’s Prix in 1951 and 1979
respectively. It also marked the first appearance of
a Turbo charged engine in the Renault of Jean-Pierre
Jabouille and the race debuts of Gilles
Villeneuve in a McLaren and Patrick
Tambay in an Ensign Ford. It was also the
scene of Johnny Herbert’s first GP win,
in a Benneton in 1995.
Extensive testing has
been carried out at the circuit by most teams and
already Damon Hill’s pole position last
year of 1.26.87 has been bettered by almost 5 and a
half seconds by fastest Jordan driver Giancarlo
Fisichella with a 1.21.44s. Jordan’s
Technical director Gary Anderson says of the
new configurations, "The circuit is far
better than last year. It is faster and more of a
driver’s circuit, with excellent quick sections.
The surface is a little mixed, as the resurfaced
areas have lots of grip and other areas do not.
Aerodynamically we don’t have a problem on areas
which lack grip." Regarding tyres he
continued, "The problems Giancarlo
experienced in France when he could not get his tyres
up to temperature should not occur here because the
first section is all fast corners. In addition the
slow section before the start of the lap gives the
drivers the confidence to push."
The big question is,
has Williams put anything into it’s bag of
tricks that will be the equal of the Ferrari? Boss Frank
Williams must surely bring an early autumn to Jacques
Villeneuve’s silly season. With Ferrari
holding both Constructors and Driver’s
Championship cards, and looking extremely strong
for a fifth win this year, it has to be down to the
Didcot outfit to fly the British flag. There seems
little likelihood of current World Champion Damon
Hill doing it in his beleaguered Arrows A18 despite his legion fans that
will no doubt form the greater part of the 100,000
expected for race day.
Jordan will be
confident for obvious reasons but with the recently
announced Mugen Honda tie up for the next two
seasons, they will be anxious to leave Peugeot with
style.
David Coulthard,
so unjustly out of the points both in France and
Montreal for McLaren, will do his utmost to reverse
his unlucky streak as will both Benetton drivers.
Whether Alex Wurz, who is proving to be an
exceptionally talented addition to boss Flavio
Briatore’s stable, gets to stand in yet
again for the ailing Gerhard Berger, remains
to be seen, but having upstaged team mate Jean
Alesi in both his outings, he looks a sure fire
bet for the Frenchman’s seat next season.
The young pretenders
are now coming on stream and podium places can not be
ruled out for the excellent Jarno Trulli
having the time of his life ‘driving’ in,
for the injured Olivier Panis in the Prost
Mugen Honda and Ralf Schumacher hungry now for
the number one slot after having tasted the
Champagne.
The Jordan will be
running a new EV5 version of the Peugeot and
sporting new sponsorship in the shape of the locally
based Nationwide Building Society. Jordan is
indeed the team to watch for next year. Stewart Ford are also running a new improved
Project 7 engine "aimed at increasing the top
end power of the engine while retaining
driveability." Tyrrell’s recent problems are
under sharp scrutiny from team engineers and computer
experts, urgently seeking to identify and eradicate
the bug which caused onboard computers on both cars
to shut down all the control systems during the
French Grand Prix.
Class of the field
will not necessarily be the Williams Renault despite
a new evolution V10 to be used for qualifying. It may
get them to the front of the grid, but if the changes
promised by Ferrari - which include a narrower rear
wing, revised suspension geometry and the Step 2 V10
- move the Prancing Horse in the direction that it
has been going all season, then the boys in blue will
indeed be seeing red. It is also useful that the
Ferrari is the only car of that hue, as all the
spectators will see of it, especially along the back Hanger
straight will be a scarlet blur, but enough to
know that if all goes well, the Scuderia
will have another race in the bag by close of play
and Williams will be wiping even more pasta from
their collective faces. Villeneuve will have the
craving for victory too, but maybe not the head. A
fast race is expected and provided the rain and wind
stays away, a Battle Royal should be expected.
Chris Richardson
The British Grand
Prix can be followed on the Web at the following URL:
http.www.grandprix97.co.uk
