Preview: The 2019 British Grand Prix
- Published on 10 Jul 2019 17:03
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- By: Fergal Walsh
The Silverstone circuit is the location on Sunday for the tenth race of 2019, the British Grand Prix. Silverstone is a monument in motorsport history. The very first official Formula 1 world championship kicked off on this track in 1950.
The circuit
The first British Grand Prix was held at Silverstone, but has been held at two other circuits, Brands Hatch and Aintree. Since 1987, only Silverstone has been raced at. The Silverstone circuit is located on a former airbase. The course is known for its fluid bend combinations such as Maggots, Becketts and Chapel. The super-fast Bridge bend has disappeared from the current layout. The drivers have had to turn right at Abbey instead of left for a few years, then get an arena section and return to the old circuit at Brooklands.
| Length of the circuit | 5,891 meters |
| Number of racing laps | 52 |
| Total racing distance | 306,198 kilometres |
| Lap record | 1:30.621 (Lewis Hamilton, 2007) |
This year the circuit only has two DRS zones, in contrast to the three from 2018. The rear wing can be opened between bends 5 and 6, and also between corners 14 and 15.
| Driving direction | Clockwise |
| Number of turns | 18 (8 to the left, 10 to the right) |
| Distance from the start to the first corner | 296 meters |
| Braking points of more than 2G | 8, of which 3 heavy |
| Percentage of full gas | 66 per cent |
| Highest lateral G-force | 4.8 G in Turns 1, 9 and 11 |
| Length of the pits below limiter | 376 meters |
| Duration of the ride through pits | 16.9 seconds |
| Fuel consumption | Average |
| Side of pole position | Left |
| Tyre compounds | C1, C2, C3 |
| Opportunity of a safety car | Low |
| Chance of rain | Average |
Tyre allocation
| Driver | C1 | C2 | C3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lewis Hamilton | 1 | 4 | 8 |
| Valtteri Bottas | 1 | 4 | 8 |
| Sebastian Vettel | 1 | 3 | 9 |
| Charles Leclerc | 1 | 3 | 9 |
| Max Verstappen | 1 | 3 | 9 |
| Pierre Gasly | 1 | 3 | 9 |
| Daniel Ricciardo | 2 | 1 | 10 |
| Nico Hulkenberg | 1 | 2 | 10 |
| Kevin Magnussen | 1 | 3 | 9 |
| Romain Grosjean | 1 | 3 | 9 |
| Carlos Sainz | 1 | 4 | 8 |
| Lando Norris | 1 | 4 | 8 |
| Sergio Perez | 2 | 2 | 9 |
| Lance Stroll | 2 | 2 | 9 |
| Kimi Raikkonen | 1 | 3 | 9 |
| Antonio Giovinazzi | 1 | 3 | 9 |
| Daniil Kvyat | 1 | 3 | 9 |
| Alexander Albon | 1 | 3 | 9 |
| George Russell | 1 | 5 | 7 |
| Robert Kubica | 2 | 4 | 7 |
The contenders
In Austria, the hegemony of Mercedes was finally broken, but the question remains whether Red Bull Racing can also compete in the UK for the victory. The expectation is that Mercedes will not suffer from cooling problems at Silverstone, which resulted in a lot of time loss in Austria. However, based on its current form, Red Bull may pose a threat to Ferrari.
Last year in Great Britain
Last year Sebastian Vettel won the home race of rival Lewis Hamilton. The Ferrari driver had a 2.2 second gap ahead of the Mercedes driver, who was spun around at the start Kimi Raikkonen. Despite the ten-second penalty, the Finn finished in third place.
Weather
The changeable English weather sometimes causes chaos at the Grand Prix, but this year the weather gods seem to favour the race at Silverstone. For Sunday the experts don't predict rain, but instead, conditions that are partly cloudy and a temperature of around 22 degrees. It will remain dry for the rest of the weekend.
Trivia
The longest race in Silverstone's history was the race in 1956 that was won by Juan Manuel Fangio in 2h 59m 47s. The shortest race dates from 1985, won by Alain Prost in 1 hour 18m 10.436s.
Seven out of ten Formula 1 teams are based in Great Britain, all within a 160-kilometre radius of Silverstone. Racing Point - whose plant is located in Silverstone - is closest to the circuit, McLaren - in Woking - is farthest away.
Jenson Button raced 17 full Formula 1 seasons, but has never been on the podium in Silverstone.
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