European Grand Prix: An in-depth analysis of the Valencia Street Circuit
The fourth grand prix in the Valencia Street Circuit under the label of European Grand Prix is going to take place on Sunday, June 26, 2011 as the eighth event of the 2011 Formula 1 season.
The European Grand Prix is the name of an event which has been taking place in the Formula 1 history since 1923. The first event of this category was held in 1923 in Monza as the Italian Grand Prix. Apart from Monza, France, Belgium, Britain and now Valencia
have the honour of being named as the European Grand Prix.
The first Valencia Grand Prix was held in 2008 with an agreement to run for another seven years under Formula 1.
The Valencia Grand Prix will be held in Spain which already holds a national grand prix known as the Barcelona Grand Prix. The track is the third street circuit on the 2011 calendar with a beautiful combination of high and low speed turns.
The total track length is a little over 5 kilometres and the total number of laps contested on the track is 57 which take the total race distance to almost 310 kilometres. The track features 25 high and low turns.
The track constitutes of three chicanes on turns 2/3, 4/5 and the slowest of the three is on turn 12 and 13. Apart from that, the track features two very slow turns which are turn 10 and turn 17. The barriers on these turns have been modified to ensure the
safety of the drivers.
The first race held in Valencia was in the 2008 Formula 1 season which was won by Ferrari’s Felipe Massa. He also became the first driver to take a pole position in Valencia. With the win, the Brazilian became the first driver to win his first race in his
100th appearance.
The 2009 European Grand Prix was contested in August and was won by Brawn’s Rubens Barrichello. Lewis Hamilton took pole position and ended the race in second place. In the same season, Toyota’s Timo Glock posted a fastest lap time of 1 minute and 38.683
seconds in Valencia which holds to date.
The 2010 Grand Prix was somewhat more eventful from the last two races as Red Bull’s driver Mark Webber had an accident with Lotus’ Heikki Kovalainen after which his car took went airborne before hitting the track upside down and went into the barriers.
The first safety car was seen after that incident on the Valencia track which brought another twist in the tale of the race.
Hamilton passed the safety car and Fernando Alonso was struck behind when the duo was fighting for a win. Alonso appealed to the stewards about the incident after which the Brit was given a drive through penalty.
However, the Brit was able to maintain his position and finished second on the table behind Sebastian Vettel of Red Bull.
Altogether, the track is not familiar for its overtaking chances available. However, the 2011 season promises to change the history in Valencia. With two Drag Reduction System zones, it is expected that many overtaking moves will be seen in the 2011 Valencia
race. Let’s see how it transpires on Sunday.
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