How to Improve Abu Dhabi

[Jimlaad43]

http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/92842
Oh Bum.

 

[Jimlaad43]

http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=5729162
After the 2012 GP once again showed that the chicane Massa spun at is stupid, It needs to be removed. The tarmac runoff means people can cut it easily a la Webber. There needs to be gravel in the area that a car wont hit if it goes straight on at the previous corner, or to remove the chicane completely.

 

[Imari]

http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=5729162
After the 2012 GP once again showed that the chicane Massa spun at is stupid, It needs to be removed. The tarmac runoff means people can cut it easily a la Webber. There needs to be gravel in the area that a car wont hit if it goes straight on at the previous corner, or to remove the chicane completely.

You mean the series of corners that provided most of the action during the race? The only reason Webber got away with that cut was that Massa spun. Had he not he would have had to give the place up or be penalised, you can't pass off track.

What you'd replace it with would be much less interesting. Braking down the inside would always make a pass. As it stands now there are possible attacking and defending options both inside and outside, and you also have the "error generator" of turn 14.

Frankly, I think it's one of the more interesting overtaking areas available.

 

[prisonermonkeys]

The chicane might look silly, but I think it does what it's intended to do. The first corner is the actual passing point. The second corner is designed to give the attacking driver the racing line, so that the pass might work. The third corner opens up so that they can accelerate out and onto the next turn. That's exactly how drivers were taking it during the race.

 

[homeforsummer]

The best, and easiest layout change I can see would be to eliminate the little kink prior to the hairpin onto the longest straight. That would instantly provide one more suitable passing zone.

The rest of the track is fine and really doesn't need changing. F1 cars don't need to pass at a dozen different corners - just two or maybe three good spots where they can get past a driver with the right run.

 

[Carlos]

There is nothing wrong with that corner, we had a good race.

 

[BlacqueJacques]

There is nothing wrong with that corner, we had a good race.

Are you part of a F1 Team?


Or do you mean 'we' the viewers if the race

 

[avens]

There is nothing wrong with that corner, we had a good race.

Same as Valencia? lol

Chicanes at the end of straights kill all international circuits. Monza is the best example.

 

[homeforsummer]

There is nothing wrong with that corner, we had a good race.

Well that corner isn't a disaster, but it does effectively reduce the number of potential passing spots on the circuit by one.

And they'd not even need to reprofile the circuit. The track is already there, they just dive onto a Mickey Mouse bit before reaching the hairpin instead.

If there's an option to improve a circuit, why not improve it?...

 

[Grand Prix]

Same as Valencia? lol

Chicanes at the end of straights kill all international circuits. Monza is the best example.

They need to grow some balls when it comes to hairpins TBH.

Seriously, modern F1 cars have such short braking distances and you want to keep a chicane in front of a hairpin, to make the braking distance to the hairpin even shorter? How are they supposed to out-brake each other then? I realize there is DRS they could use on the following straight, but what if there isn't DRS? DRS was only meant to be a stop-gap solution for overtaking anyway.

I'm not saying hairpins are the only place they can overtake, twisty sections and S curves are great for side-by-side racing too. You only need to watch this year's Silverstone race to see that. Somehow or other they manage to pass on the sweeping corners of Interlagos, too.

I guess what they could do is have a chicane, but have a bit of a straight in-between it and the hairpin. Chicane should also be faster and more like an S.

 

[Samus]

They do need to stop designing circuits with sections that are single file only on purpose. Most of Korea is like that, after turn 4 it's pretty much all single file through each corner with no hope for going two wide successfully. Abu Dhabi is the same with the last sector and some other parts.

I know it's unavoidable at times but it seems like they do it on purpose with the modern tracks. They also need to make the last corner before the long straight a challenging one allowing for a better change of passing at the end of it. A hairpin doesn't work, nobody is going to gain speed on a driver in front through there.