The Dutch Grand Prix, the 13th round of the season, will be held at the circuit in Zandvoort, which returned to the World Championship two years ago after a major renovation.
Because the circuit there is quite short, only 4259 meters (only the city ring in Monaco is shorter), the riders will have to do 72 laps. At the same time, the track is distinguished by a number of unique features, first of all we are talking about the slope of the 3rd and 14th turns.
Moreover, because the autodrome is on the coast, there is always a fairly strong wind, so there is always sand from the surrounding beaches on the doorstep.
Overtaking on the track is possible with the help of DRS, for example before the Tarzan corner – this ends the start-finish straight and also has a slightly profiled character. Therefore, although overtaking in Zandvoort is generally very difficult, as the track is narrow and rather winding, success in the race largely depends on the results of qualifying, in which it is important to show the best possible result.
The track requires an adjustment of the aerodynamics of cars to a medium, closer to a high level of downforce, while the asphalt there is very abrasive, which affects the wear of rubber. In the process of finding the right balance, the drivers and their engineers will try to achieve a setting where the car is fast in qualifying, but capable of a high pace throughout the race.
Frederic Vasseur, team principal: “We have regained our strength and are ready to start again. This was preceded by a solid performance in Belgium, where Charles Leclerc took the podium, made possible thanks to excellent preparation for the race weekend and well-coordinated teamwork. She chose the right tactics, executed them successfully, made clear pit stops and our car was able to handle a high pace and saved us tyres.
As always in Zandvoort we will be fully focused on our work, but at the same time we have to take into account that this circuit has a short lap, so the results will be even tighter. Qualifying is especially important, and the riders who reach the final will have to fight literally thousandths of a second.
We have a very eventful weekend ahead of us and look forward to working effectively to give Charles and Carlos Sainz the opportunity to get the most out of the SF-23.”
Source: F1 News
I am Christopher Clyde, an experienced journalist and content writer with a passion for sports. I have been writing about Formula 1 news for the past five years and am currently employed as an author at athletistic.com, one of the top sports websites in the US.
