2007 EUROPEAN GRAND PRIX NÜRBURGRING 20 - 22 JULY
PREVIEW
The second half of the 2007 Formula One season continues
this weekend with Round 10, the European Grand Prix, to be
held at the historic Nürburgring circuit in Germany's
Eifel Mountains.
With only one Grand Prix taking place in Germany, the Nürburging
will host this year's event before the race alternates with
Hockenheim from 2008 onwards. With no testing at the venue
and a change from the usual May date, the European Grand Prix
on the challenging Nürburging circuit presents a unique
and tough challenge.
SHUHEI NAKAMOTO - Senior Technical Director
"We used the test at the Spa Francorchamps circuit last
week to evaluate some new aero upgrades which we plan to use
from the European Grand Prix onwards. We also put the V8 engine
through its paces for the first time at Spa and worked to
find a good set-up for the Belgian Grand Prix in September.
We struggled for balance at high speeds which meant that our
lap times were not good. However on the positive side, we
were one of few teams to experience little or no mechanical
problems with the engine. Looking ahead to the race at the
Nürburgring this weekend, it is a venue that poses a
lot of challenges. Good levels of downforce are required as
the circuit has a range of low to high speed corners. You
also need good stability under braking. We will be as aggressive
as possible and aim to score points."
RUBENS BARRICHELLO
"The Nürburgring is a challenging circuit for the
drivers and one that I particularly enjoy. I won the Grand
Prix here back in 2002 so I always feel good about returning
and racing around here. I like the layout of the circuit and
it has some great high-speed corners and interesting undulations.
With the recent improvements to our car, we are now capable
of knocking on the door of the points-scoring positions so
I am hoping to have a good race at the weekend."
JENSON BUTTON
"Although it is a venue with a great deal of motor racing
history, I have to be honest and say that the Nürburgring
is not one of my favourite circuits on the Formula One calendar.
It is actually quite a tricky circuit, particularly going
down to the first corner from the start line, as it has a
bumpy approach and you need to keep your wits about you and
position yourself well for the best exit. Having said that,
the first corner is one of the best opportunities for overtaking
as the cars around you quite often just slide straight on.
You can also overtake going into the chicane at the end of
the lap. The key to getting a quick lap around the Nürburgring
is getting your approach to turn one absolutely right because
you can ruin your whole lap if you get on the brakes at the
wrong moment. From a technical viewpoint, the biggest challenge
is to have a car which works well with the changes of camber
because there are a lot of corners off-camber so it is vital
to get the correct line when you arrive into the corner."
NÜRBURGRING
No of Laps 60 laps
Circuit Length 5.148 km
Race Distance 308.863 km
The Nürburgring is decidedly tame by comparison to its
historic and intimidating 14 mile and 174 corner predecessor.
Further changes to the old track came in 2002 when the first
turn was reprofiled to cut into the infield and around a new
stadium section, slowing the track even more, but yielding
another overtaking spot.
The circuit remains a fairly high downforce track that is
light on both brakes and tyres. To achieve a competitive lap
time here requires all the normal chassis attributes: good
traction particularly out of the hairpins, good chassis balance
and stability under braking, and the best possible compromise
between downforce and straight-line speed.
The Nürburgring has the full mixture of slow through
to high-speed corners, from the revised first turn, hairpin
and chicane, to the double medium-speed 'S' bends and the
very high speed 'S' after the hairpin. It also features a
lot of undulation change, which is unusual for most modern
circuits. As the circuit is situated close to the Eifel Mountains,
weather can often play a major role in the outcome of races.
HONDA IN GERMANY
· Honda began operations in Germany in 1961 to become
the first Japanese importer in Europe · Germany has
grown to become the second biggest market for Honda in Europe
· Germany is home to Honda's main European R&D
centre located in Offenbach · Automobile sales rose
by 10.8% to almost 50,000 units in 2006 · Over 30,000
Honda motorcycles were sold in Germany in 2006
|
