Albert Park gets fourth DRS zone

Oscar Piastri is preparing for his debut season in Formula 1 and one of the most important races for him is of course the home Australian Grand Prix.

“I grew up 10-15 minutes from Albert Park and last year I was in Melbourne as a reserve driver – the atmosphere in the Grand Prix days was electrified,” said the newcomer to the McLaren team. “Now I have a very special event ahead of me as I know there will be a lot of fans in the stands to watch the Australian rider perform.”

Coincidentally, it was before this year’s race that the organizers of the Australian Grand Prix, along with the FIA, decided to add another DRS zone, and this should be reflected in the results of the laps. According to Andrew Westacott, CEO of the Australian Grand Prix Corporation, the track configuration will now be the fastest in all the years Albert Park has hosted Formula 1 races.

There will now be four DRS zones on the 5278m lap as originally planned, but one was canceled ahead of the 2022 race.

“This will be Melbourne’s fastest ever race and it is the result of several factors,” Westacott told the Melbourne tabloid Herald Sun. – The cars have improved from last year, they’ve gotten better of course and we’ve also added a fourth DRS zone which makes the cars lap faster.

Speeds will increase, lap times will decrease, so average speeds will be higher than ever before.”

The new DRS zone will be set for a 1.3 km stretch along the lake in the part of the track between Turns 8 and 11 where speeds are expected to reach 340 km/h.

“I have received positive feedback from the FIA ​​and Formula 1 and this fourth DRS zone is being set up,” continued Westacott. – This means that cars will approach turn 11 faster, so the time to pass this section and the circle as a whole is reduced. So the race promises to be the fastest in history.”