Need to know ahead of the British Grand Prix
Round 10 of the 2023 FIA Formula One World Championship sees teams and drivers compete at the home of motorsport, the British Grand Prix. F1Technical's senior writer Balázs Szabó picks out the trivia ahead of the Silverstone round.
Track facts – The 5.891km-long track is one of the favourite with drivers and fans thanks to the sequences of fast and flowing corners that thrill both competitors and spectators alike. Drivers will cover a total of 52 lap today to complete the race distance of 306.198km. The fastest race lap belongs to Max Verstappen who set the fastest ever race lap with a time of 1’27.097 in 2020. Drivers will need to adhere to a speed limit of 80km/h in the pit lane when diving into the pits for fresh tyres.
Three – Over the 73-year-long history of Formula One, three different venue have hosted the British Grand Prix. Aintree has appeared four times on Grand Prix calendar, Brands Hatch on twelve occasions while Silverstone has given place to all the other races. Brooklands held the first two races, albeit it was ahead of the birth of the F1 championship.
Ferrari and Ferrari – The Italian manufacturer is the most successful marque both as a constructor and an engine supplier. They have claimed 16 victories so far in history of the British Grand Prix. McLaren is the second most successful constructor with fourteen wins followed by Williams with ten wins. Among the engine suppliers, Ferrari is followed by Ford with fourteen triumphs and Renault with twelve victories.
78 – Today’s race will be the 78th running of the British Grand Prix and the 74th FIA Formula One British Grand Prix. It was first held back in 1926, followed by three other races before 1950. The venue then became the birthplace for Grand Prix racing. Since then, the venue has never missed the calendar and will play host to the 74th Formula One British Grand Prix today.
First triumph - Silverstone is the venue where Scuderia Ferrari took its maiden F1 victory in 1951 courtesy of José Froilán González in a 375 F1.
Overtaking aid – There are two DRS zones at Silverstone. The first one has its detection point 25m before Turn 3 and its activation point 30m after Turn 5. The second zone has its detection point at Turn 11 and its activation point at Turn 14.
Ride onboard with @Max33Verstappen for his pole lap at Silverstone! 🤩#BritishGP #F1 @Pirellisport pic.twitter.com/KfJPpIpPF6
— Formula 1 (@F1) July 8, 2023
Hard compounds - With the British circuit placing the highest energy demands on tyres all year, Pirelli has nominated the three compounds of the more durable end of its range for this weekend: C1 as the P Zero White hard, C2 as the P Zero Yellow medium, and C3 as the P Zero Red soft.
Modifications – The 5.891km Silverstone track has gone through some changes for this year. The straight gravel part in the run-off in Turn 1 has been replaced with a 40x40m asphalt section. Between Turns 5 and 6 on the LHS new concrete walls with a debris fence have been installed. At Turns 6 and 9, the tyre barriers have been replaced with new tyres including new conveyor belts. Furthermore, between Turns 13 and 14 on the LHS barriers have been realigned for approximately 260m.
The home hero – Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton is the most successful driver in the history of the British Grand Prix, having won his home race eight times. The Stevenage-born driver scored his first win at Silverstone in challenging wet conditions in 2008, but needed to wait for his second win until 2014, and has won every British Grand Prix since then with the exception of the 2018 edition of the race that was won by Sebastian Vettel.
