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2018 Belgian Grand Prix – Preview

2018 Belgian Grand Prix – Preview
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Battle continues with Round 13 of the 2018 season from the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps

  • Toto Talks Belgium
  • Stat Attack: Belgium and Beyond

Toto Talks Belgium

After five races in six weeks before the summer break, the shutdown came at just the right time. It gave us the opportunity to recharge a little and return energised for what will certainly be a hard-fought second half. Both the Drivers’ and the Constructors’ Championship are extremely tight and I expect it to be a close battle all the way through to Abu Dhabi.

Our first stop after the summer break is Spa – an historic circuit that has been the venue of some of the most spectacular races in F1 history. Corners like Eau Rouge are known to race fans around the world and the race always attracts a huge and very enthusiastic crowd. From a team’s perspective, the circuit is quite tricky, as it is not easy to find the right set-up for a track that has long straights, considerable changes in elevation and high-speed corners. You want to have enough downforce to be quick through the corners, but at the same time not carry too much drag for the long straights.

It’s very difficult to make any predictions for Spa. If this season has taught us one thing, it’s that there are no clear favourites for specific tracks anymore and that it’s not always the fastest car that wins. Instead, the competitive balance seems to swing back and forth from circuit to circuit. What is clear is that our competitors are pushing extremely hard and put up a very tough fight. So we need to keep our heads down, work hard to eliminate our weaknesses and further build on our strengths, and take the season race by race. 2018 promises to be a season that we will still be talking about in years to come and we can’t wait to get out there and start racing again.

Stat Attack: Belgium and Beyond

2018 Belgian Grand Prix Timetable
Session Local Time

(CEST)

Brackley

(BST)

Stuttgart

(CEST)

Practice 1

Friday

11:00-12:30 10:00-11:30 11:00-12:30
Practice 2

Friday

15:00-16:30 14:00-15:30 15:00-16:30
Practice 3

Saturday

12:00-13:00 11:00-12:00 12:00-13:00
Qualifying

Saturday

15:00-16:00 14:00-15:00 15:00-16:00
Race

Sunday

15:10-17:10 14:10-16:10 15:10-17:10
Race Records – Mercedes F1 at the Belgian Grand Prix
  Starts Wins Podium

Places

Pole

Positions

Front Row

Places

Fastest

Laps

DNF
Mercedes 9 4 9 5 9 4 2
Lewis

Hamilton

11 3 6 4 7 2 4
Valtteri

Bottas

5 0 1 0 0 0 0
MB Power 23 10 24 12 22 7 17
Technical Stats – Season to Date (Barcelona Pre-Season Test 1 to Present)
  Laps

Completed

Distance

Covered (km)

Corners

Taken

Gear

Changes

PETRONAS

Fuel Injections

Mercedes 5,071 24,385 80,442 239,096 202,840,000
Lewis

Hamilton

2,483 11,953 39,212 116,858 99,320,000
Valtteri

Bottas

2,588 12,431 41,230 122,238 103,520,000
MB Power 14,280 68,451 225,619 668,861 571,200,000

 

All-Time Records – Silver Arrows in Formula One
  Starts Wins Podium

Places

Pole

Positions

Front Row

Places

Fastest

Laps

1-2

Finishes

Front Row

Lockouts

Mercedes 180 81 168 94 169 60 42 54
Lewis

Hamilton

220 67 126 77 125 39 N/A N/A
Valtteri

Bottas

109 3 27 5 14 6 N/A N/A
MB Power 450 167 436 177 349 155 67 89

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