10/11/2011
The Abu Dhabi track has an amazing appearance and it comes across very well on television. The hotel that is lit up in different colours looks spectacular and you can tell that a lot of effort has been put into this facility.
The race came in for a bit of criticism last year because the cars found it very difficult to overtake. Having lots of wide run-off areas definitely doesn’t help overtaking because it’s much easier to defend your position. You know that even if you miss your braking point, you won’t lose anything because you can cut the corner and stay ahead. Of course, you cannot do it every lap, but if there was a wall or a gravel trap instead, it might give the driver behind a better chance to overtake. But it can also work the other way, too, because the driver who is attacking can risk much more in the braking zones knowing that he has an escape path if the manœuvre doesn’t work out.
Last year’s Abu Dhabi race saw pre-event championship leader Fernando Alonso’s title hopes evaporate after he got stuck behind Vitaly for most of the race and could only finish seventh. But there are two DRS zones this year, with two activation points, and they should make a significant difference in that respect.
The first one will be on the long back straight between Turns 7 and 8, and the other on the following kinked straight towards the Turn 11/12/13 complex. Activation zones will be before the Turn 7 hairpin and just after the Turn 8/9 chicane.
One of the things about this track is the number of off-camber corners, such as turns 16 and 17. In these corners it’s very easy to get on the power and then lose traction and slide with the rear of the car, which can cost you a lot of time. So it’s a very tricky track.
The team’s hospitality area, which is basically a three-storey house is the base for everyone in the team from the engineers to the marketing team. There are offices, a kitchen, a dining area, bathrooms and a stunning roof terrace - we’re certainly not short of space.
The general paddock ambience is also wonderful because they’ve done such a good job giving the paddock a friendly feel. There’s shade if you need it, seating areas and beautiful lighting in futuristic surrounding. It’s a bit like sitting in your local park! It’s these little touches that help make Yas Marina such an enjoyable place to visit.
The world’s media are well looked after too, with one of the finest media centres in the business. There’s a dedicated floor for photographers and another area for the journalists. In all it’s capable of holding 430 media and there is even a roof terrace with bars and a canteen.
The race starts in the early evening, so Bruno and Vitaly have to change their visor strip to be ready for racing at dusk…
Credit: Lotus Renault GP (www.lotusrenaultgp.com)
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