Scuderia Ferrari British Grand Prix- Silverstone, British Racing Evergreen 29.06.2022: The Formula 1 World Championship returns to Europe after the back-to-back races in Azerbaijan and Canada, to tackle a series of real classic races, starting with the British Grand Prix at Silverstone, where the Formula 1 World Championship began 72 years

The Formula 1 World Championship returns to Europe after the back-to-back races in Azerbaijan and Canada, to tackle a series of real classic races, starting with the British Grand Prix at Silverstone, where the Formula 1 World Championship began 72 years ago.

The circuit is based on the layout of three runways at what was once a World War II aerodrome and it has staged the British Grand Prix 55 times. Along with the Italian Grand Prix, it is the only event to have always featured on the calendar. In 2020, Silverstone was also one of two circuits to host two races, one of them being the 70th Anniversary GP.



Over the years, the track has undergone several modifications, going from a somewhat square shaped layout to one incorporating a variety of different corner types, while always remaining a very fast and tricky track. Copse, originally the first corner after the start and the high speed esses made up of the Maggotts-Becketts-Chapel sequence are still firm favourites with all the drivers.



The last radical change to the layout came in 2010 when the section after Abbey corner was changed and the start-finish line was moved to after Club corner.




Abrasive asphalt.


Silverstone is traditionally tough on tyres, with a very abrasive asphalt track surface and several high speed corners that subject the tyres to substantial lateral forces. On top of this, the cars are usually run with a high level of aerodynamic downforce to deal with these quick corners and that all adds to the stress on the tyres, with a risk of wear and overheating.


The brakes however are only used for 8% of the lap and are therefore not a cause for much concern. In the corners, the lateral acceleration can get up to 5g, which makes itself felt on the driver’s neck.




Programme.


The race is run over 52 laps of the 5.891 kilometre-long track, equivalent to 306.198 kilometres. There are two DRS zones, between turns 5 and 6 and after 14, down the Hangar Straight.



On Friday, free practice takes place at 13 and 16 local, (14 and 17 CEST), while the third session is the following day at 12 local (13 CEST). Qualifying then follows at 15 (16 CEST), with Sunday’s race getting underway at 15 (16 CEST).

 



Ferrari Stats

GP entered 1039
Seasons in F1 73
Debut Monaco 1950 (A. Ascari 2nd; R. Sommer 4th; L. Villoresi ret.)
Wins 240 (23.10%)
Pole positions 236 (22.71%)
Fastest race laps 258 (24.83%)
Total podiums 787 (25.25%)

 



Ferrari Stats British GP

GP entered 69
Debut 1951 (J.F. González 1st; L. Villoresi 3rd; A. Ascari ret.; P. Whitehead 9th)
Wins 17 (24.64%)
Pole positions 15 (21.74%)
Fastest race laps 21 (30.43%)
Total podiums 58 (28.02%)


 

British GP: facts & figures



1. The number of British Grands Prix attended by a reigning British monarch. It happened just the once in 1950, at what was the first Formula 1 World Championship race, here at Silverstone when King George VI was in the royal box. While other members of the royal family have attended events since then, the current Queen Elizabeth never has.



8. The minimum age at which one can race karts in Great Britain, although there is no restriction as to when you can actually start driving a kart. The United Kingdom is the country that has produced the highest number of Formula 1 drivers, with no fewer than 261. They are responsible for 307 wins, 290 pole positions, 251 fastest race laps, 725 podiums, 20 Drivers’ world titles and 33 Constructors.



1975. The year in which the traditional use of the national flag to start a Formula 1 Grand Prix was replaced with traffic lights – at the time, going from red to green. The first time it was used was at the British Grand Prix at Silverstone, which was a crazy race that year, run in heavy rain with many retirements. The race was red flagged after 56 of the scheduled 67 laps and the winner was Emerson Fittipaldi in a McLaren.



38500. The number of people in the UK working in the motorsport industry. The turnover of this business, according to a 2019 survey is around five billion pounds sterling.



351000. The record number for the highest number of spectators over the three days of a race weekend was established in 2019. This figure takes into account the General Admission ticket holders and those seated in one of Silverstone’s 28 grandstands. The organisers are hoping to beat the record this year.

 




At Ferrari 75 years ago


In June 1947, Scuderia Ferrari made its maiden appearance at the Mille Miglia which was back on the calendar for the first time, having not been held during the war years. The gruelling race which went from Brescia to Rome and back again had never before provided such a stern challenge, given the pitiful state of Italian roads following the war.


Enzo Ferrari entered a 125 S with enclosed bodywork, entrusting the driving as usual to Franco Cortese, paired with Adelmo Marchetti, an engineer who could also fill the role of mechanic for the Maranello marque. Unfortunately, the cylinder head gasket failed and the Ferrari had to retire not far from Fano. The win would eventually come the following year with the 166 C.



In preparation, in the last week of June, Ferrari worked on rebuilding the car for the race at the Varese circuit on the 29th. There was strong opposition starting with Luigi Villoresi in a 2 litre Maserati, along with many entries in the 1100cc class, led by Vincenzo Auricchio in the tubular chassis Stanguellini.


It was the latter who led from the start, but Cortese knew the track like the back of his hand, having already won here in 1938 and managed to pass Auricchio, who in a desperate bid to keep the lead, crashed into the straw bales. Cortese and the 125 S won once again, with Auricchio second, followed in third by Francesco Nissotti in another Stanguellini S1100.






- Ferrari also photo