2006 HUNGARIAN GRAND PRIX PREVIEW
Team McLaren Mercedes arrive in Eastern Europe this week
looking to build on the podium secured by Kimi in Germany
at the 2006 Hungarian Grand Prix. The Hungaroring plays host
to the event and is located approximately 20km north of Budapest,
the circuit is set in a natural valley surrounded by rolling
countryside.
The race marks Kimi Raikkonen’s 100th Grand Prix start
and is also the one year anniversary of Team McLaren Mercedes’
Partnership with Johnnie Walker. To celebrate these milestones,
Johnnie Walker is hosting an event for the media on the Saturday
of the Grand Prix at the Hungaroring and on Sunday a commemorative
helmet will be revealed that Kimi will wear for the Hungarian
Grand Prix. The race helmet will have gold leaf incorporated
into the design, alluding to the current centenary year of
Johnnie Walker Gold. Kimi will also be presented with a pair
of unique racing boots by Johnnie Walker to mark the event.
The race was introduced in 1986 at the modern facility which
was built with Formula 1 in mind. Since the inaugural race,
McLaren has won the event six times, the first of which was
in 1988 with Ayrton Senna at the wheel. Recent years have
seen success for the Team McLaren Mercedes team at the Hungaroring,
with Mika Hakkinen securing two consecutive victories in 1999
and 2000 with David Coulthard also achieving podium finishes
in both years. Last year, Kimi took a dominant victory for
the team, having started the race from fourth position.
The Hungarian Grand Prix is the second slowest race on the
Formula One calendar. In the first race in 1986, drivers were
shown the chequered flag one lap earlier than planned because
the two-hour limit had been reached, even though there hadn’t
been a drop of rain.
KIMI RAIKKONEN
“The MP4-21 was definitely quicker in Germany than the
previous race, and it had great balance. We have made a step
forward and I am looking forward to getting back out on track
again this weekend and racing for another podium finish. At
the Hungaroring, the main factor is downforce, we don’t
need to worry about aero efficiency or drag. This is as a
result of all the slow, tight corners, and you will see all
the cars running with maximum wing. Overtaking here is tricky,
nevertheless I passed two cars on the first lap last year.
It is a bit better since they modified the first corner, but
qualifying is very important, perhaps more so than at any
other race apart from Monaco. Along with Monaco the Hungaroring
is the most demanding in terms of engine cooling, as there
are no real straights and the temperature is always so high.
So we will run with bigger radiators and apertures to increase
the cooling within the car. The race has in the past been
affected by the dusty track surface however they now have
a truck that cleans up the dust beforehand so track conditions
are more constant over the weekend, which makes set-up less
tricky. The Hungarian race is like a home Grand Prix for me
so I am always really looking forward to it, we get all the
crazy Finnish fans that come down to watch the racing and
I hope I can put in a great result for them. The car ran well
in Monaco, so we will see. ”
PEDRO DE LA ROSA
“Of course for me it was a disappointing end to the
race at Hockenheim, but the car felt really good and with
the strategy I was running we could have been just behind
Kimi at the end of the race. We get to race again already
this weekend and hopefully I will be able to make the most
of the pace we have found with the package. The Hungaroring
is characterised by slow, tight, twisty corners and it is
also fairly short. As a result, it feels a lot like a karting
track. With all the cornering and constant gear changing in
the hot temperatures you have in Hungary at this time of year,
it is a race of endurance, but all the testing of late has
been in similar conditions so it will not be a problem physically.
The constant cornering also places a demand on the tyres,
as this generates high temperatures, and this combined with
the extreme track temperature has the potential to lead to
issues with blistering. In addition there are a number of
long duration corners that tend to put a lot of load on the
rear. We have been working with Michelin for this race over
the past couple of tests, evaluating a range of compounds
on track temperatures of over 50 degrees centigrade. We completed
our programme with Michelin and are comfortable with the tyres
we will have available to select from.”
MARTIN WHITMARSH, CEO FORMULA 1, TEAM McLAREN MERCEDES
“The feedback from the drivers over the course of the
Mobil 1 German Grand Prix and the pace in the car that led
to Kimi’s podium demonstrates that we are moving in
the right direction with the MP4-21. Hungary presents the
team with a number of challenges, similar to those on the
streets of Monaco such as cooling, high downforce, tyre degradation.
One effect of these is that the car weight / fuel load is
more significant on lap time than at the last three circuits.
We see this weight effect at the Hungaroring because of the
proportion of time spent cornering. This combined with the
short pit lane certainly makes a three stop strategy more
attractive for the event. After this race Formula 1 enters
a well deserved three week break prior to the Turkish Grand
Prix at the end of August. Whilst this provides our race and
test team with the opportunity to recharge batteries and spend
time with their families, work will continue intensively in
Woking, Brixworth and Stuttgart as we push forward with developing
the 21.”
NORBERT HAUG, VICE PRESIDENT, MERCEDES-BENZ MOTORSPORT
“The Hungaroring has always been a special race for
us and we have fond memories of our victory last year. Almost
every year, the race in Hungary is one of the hottest with
regard to the temperatures, on race day last August we had
an ambient temperature of 36 degrees and a track temperature
of almost 49 degrees. Chassis, cooling, tyres, engine and
of course the drivers are often put to the most extreme test.
Qualifying and strategy will be particularly important here,
because during the race there are almost no overtaking opportunities
on the track, like in Monaco; however, as shown in Hockenheim,
overtaking happens if an opponent suffers from tyre problems
and the other driver copes better with the situation. With
regards the track layout, there is a comparable characteristic
with Monaco; there we were in good shape and it is our target
to continue our positive trend in Hungary.”
USEFUL STATISTICS
Hungarian Grand Prix McLaren Team McLaren Mercedes Kimi Pedro
Circuit length 4.381 km Race starts 608 198 99 67
2.722 miles Race wins 148 44 9 -
Race distance 306.663 km Pole Positions 123 44 10 -
190.560 miles Points 3118.5 1217 330 12
Laps 70 Podiums 390 138 35 -
Inaugural race 1986 Fastest Laps 129 59 18 1
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