Renault, Sauber, HRT ready for Spa race
Renault has confirmed that they will debut their new F-duct at the Belgian Grand Prix next weekend at Spa-Francorchamps. The team was happy to announce they had hit their development target with the concept and feel confident that the technology is race ready.
Renault has been working on their blown-wing design for several months now, and was uncertain until recently if they would be able to get it ready in time for Spa and Monza. These tracts are known for their high speeds because of the long straights in the design, so it proves to be the perfect place for the update to succeed.
The Enstone-based outfit had to shut down their factory along with every other Formula One team for the mandatory two-week summer holidays, but felt that they had done enough positive testing in the wind tunnel that the break wouldn’t hinder their progress.
Renault intends to race the F-duct in the first event at Spa, rather than introducing it at the Friday practice. These plans could still change if Renault feels the F-duct hasn’t produced the step forward the team anticipates it does.
McLaren introduced the F-duct in the beginning of the season and was the first team to do so. Ferrari, Force India, Mercedes GP, Red Bull Racing, and Williams have also since introduced their own versions of the design. Renault driver Robert Kubica said the new F-duct was the most important improvement the team has made this year.
“If it is working properly, it's the F-duct. The longer straights you have, the more of an advantage you have,” said Kubica. The F-duct optimizes top speeds and can also be utilised to help create more downforce on the corners.
Sauber also has high expectations for Spa. The team celebrated their first two-car points finish at the last Grand Prix race in Hungary, and have been steadily adding improvements to their car since Valencia. “Certainly we want to continue with the recent form we have shown, and the package for Spa is based around the ongoing developments we have introduced since Valencia,” technical director James Key said in an interview Friday. He added that:
“We will need to leave our options open as regards car set-up and downforce levels to find the best possible compromise for the fast sectors one and three, where you benefit from low drag, and sector two, which favours a higher downforce level. As always in Spa, you need to be flexible and take the unpredictable weather conditions into account.”
Hispania Racing Team confirmed Friday that they will have Sakon Yamamoto racing alongside Bruno Senna at Spa. The Japanese driver got his first shot at racing for the team when he stepped in for Senna at Silverstone, and has since stood in for Karun Chandhok in the teams other car. Chandhook was expected to return to the car after the summer hiatus but Yamamoto is scheduled to race next weekend.
Of the Spa circuit, Senna hopes the HRT car will finish better than it has on other European tracks: “The downforce levels of the track are in line with what we have in our car and I have a good relationship with the circuit as well, so I am really looking forward to driving the car for the time."
Senna also said that “Spa is a medium downforce circuit and it demands a lot of high speed stability of the car, as the average speed of the corners is quite high," adding that, "It will be very important to find a confidence-inspiring car balance to extract the best lap time possible.”
Tags: