Shanghai Circuit turn with Renault Sport F1 and news 10.04.2016: F1 - CHINESE GRAND-PRIX 2016 Shanghai International Circuit

F1 - CHINESE GRAND-PRIX 2016
Shanghai International Circuit



Circuit notes


Turn 1

The first corner complex sees the track tighten back on itself, with the driver braking and shifting down through the gears.


The driver will be on the brakes for some 3secs in this complex, but the track can be bumpy and unsettle the car especially in the entry phase.


Turn 1 leads straight into turn 2 and can be viewed as a single, increasing radius corner which places a lot of load on the front tyres. Good tyre management here helps with tyre durability.
 


Turn 7

A high speed spoon curve taken in seventh or eighth gear. The g-forces here are around 4g as the driver accelerates while turning. Good high speed change of direction required from the car.



Turn 9

Braking into turn 9 is tricky – transition from high speed corners into heavy braking. Exit is important as it sets the car up for turn ten on to the following straight.



Turn 11

The Turn 11 to 13 complex is a mirror image of the first corner and the driver will again be on the brakes for another 2secs, giving another significant opportunity to recharge the battery.



Turn 13

The exit from Turn 13 is critical as the 1.3km back straight sees the ICE at maximum revs and wide open throttle for around 20secs, or approximately 20% of the lap. Getting a good exit is not easy though as the corner is banked.




Turn 14

The hairpin at the end of the straight requires the drivers to brake from over 320kph to just 60kph. The energy going through the brakes at this point will be massive – an average of 700kW over the 3secs braking distance.


Although this is one of a few heavy braking areas around the track, these are well spread over a lap so the brakes have sufficient time to cool – it’s not a harsh track on braking.






Shanghai Notes


We know Shanghai is large, but it is actually the biggest city in the world by population. It is also the largest container port. More than 24 million people live in the city.


Noel Coward wrote a play in Shanghai. Private Lives was written in the Cathay Hotel (now Peace Hotel) in 1930.


Since 1921, Shanghai has lost over 180cm in height due to growing skyscrapers and an ever-increasing population. Ironic considering Shanghai means ‘on top of the sea.’


Shanghai cooking is sweeter than other areas in China and they consume more sugar than any other part of China.


The Shanghai Maglev train has a top operational commercial speed of 431 km/h (268 mph), but it has been known to reach 501 km/h (311 mph). A current generation Formula 1 car in its lowest drag configuration with a long straight could probably hit 360 km/h (223mph), but it would obliterate the train though the corners.


Back in the 1930s, when the Foreign YMCA on Nanjing Lu was a popular leisure destination, men and women swam on alternate days, because the men insisted on swimming naked.


Hundreds of Shanghainese parents assemble in People’s Park every weekend for the Shanghai marriage market with the resumes of their unwed children to negotiate potential hook-ups.




Memory Lane

The 2005 Chinese Grand Prix, the race of that season, was won by the newly-crowned World Champion, Fernando Alonso, driving for Renault. His win meant Renault won the Constructors' Championship. It was the final race to be won by a car with a six-speed gearbox.




What we’ve been up to…


Jolyon has been spending time back in the UK after his two weeks in Australia integrating with the surfer community followed by his rather short Bahrain Grand Prix. He’s been at Enstone in the simulator and training hard.


Kevin’s been focused on his training back in Denmark since Bahrain as well as playing the traffic light recognition game.


Esteban left Bahrain before the Grand Prix to be in action in the DTM test in Hockenheim. Esteban drove on the first and second days of the test, Tuesday and Wednesday, in sometimes damp conditions ahead of the season start at the same venue on the weekend of May 6-8. 



What we will get up to this week


Wednesday in Shanghai sees the Shanghai Renault Sport Night taking place at Bar Rouge on The Bund where drivers and management will announce an exciting new initiative for motorsport in Asia as well as the plans from high profile partners. 


Jolyon will be looking forward to sweet and sour chicken with egg-fried rice whilst Kevin prefers to visit his favourite Japanese restaurant in Shanghai.



- Renault Sport F1 also photo Ubimet