British Grand Prix Facts & Figures

By Andrew Hooper
July 1 2002

 

 

  
Silverstone Facts & Figures
 
· The Silverstone Circuit has been changed many times over the years since the first British Grand Prix was held at the venue in 1950. This year's race will be the 36th held at the Northamptonshire Circuit, with the only other tracks playing host to the British round of the World Championship being Aintree (five races) and Brands Hatch (12 races). Although Great Britain only has one Grand Prix, three European Grands Prix have been held in the UK at Brands Hatch (1983 & 1985) and Donington (1993)

· In 2000, the race was not held on its traditional July date and Silverstone hosted the Grand Prix in April. Poor weather affected spectator transport in and out of the car parking areas which has led to substantial remedial work including extensive resurfacing of parking areas and the development of new arterial routes to the circuit

· The circuit is 3.194 miles (5.141 km) long and the 60 lap race will be 191.604 miles (308.356 km)

· The lap record was set in 2001 by race winner Mika Hakkinen in a McLaren Mercedes with a time of 1m 23.405s (221.900km/h. Michael Schumacher's pole lap from 2001 was 1m 20.447s (230.059 km/h)

· In 1985, Keke Rosberg drove a WilliamsF1-Honda at Silverstone to the fastest lap ever recorded with an average speed of 160.924 mph and a stunning lap time of 1m5.591s. A turbocharged engine, impressive slick tyres and a different circuit layout helped him to achieve this impressive record

· The BMW WilliamsF1 Team left the British Grand Prix last year with mixed feelings. Juan Pablo Montoya managed to convert eighth place on the grid into a fourth-placed finish. When the start lights went out he squeezed through the gap between his fellow drivers and the crash barrier, ending the first lap in third position. Ralf Schumacher was tenth on the grid and applied similarly skilful moves to gain five places on the first lap. Both were helped by a contact between Jarno Trulli and David Coulthard that sent the two drivers spinning off the track. Two pit stops were scheduled for Juan, while Ralf was on a one-stopper. Though both of them selected the harder of the two Michelin compounds, Ralf chose slightly run-in front tyres while Juan favoured fresh tyres all round. Ralf's pit stop was extended to 12.5 seconds due to a stuck fuel nozzle and two laps later while in sixth position, the German was forced to retire due to an engine failure

· The historical pit stop windows for a one-stop-strategy is between laps 30 and 42. In the case of a two-stop-strategy, the windows would be between laps 19 and 25 for the first stop and between laps 39 and 43 for the second stop. Tyre degradation is classified medium to high for Silverstone
 
 
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