Now, as you may or may not know, I adore Formula One. I visited the British Grand Prix at Silverstone in 2004 and thoroughly enjoyed myself.
Silverstone has hosted the race regularly since the start of the F1 championship in 1950 and every year since 1987; it alternated with Brands Hatch between 1964 and 1986, and with Aintree between 1955 and 1962.
However, it was announced on 4th July 2008 that Donington Park will be the host to the British Grand Prix for 10 years from 2010.
At first glance, given the geography of our country, I should be delighted by this as it makes it more accessible for me. But the sheer amount of history that has taken place at Silverstone, its wonderful layout and passion that it fills people with will be missed.
Work has begun to alter Donington; £100 million worth of revamp is taking place:
- The pit lane will be moved from its current location to what is presently the Starkey’s Straight, with a brand new paddock constructed on the inside of the track at this point and Coppice corner being reprofiled to accommodate the new pit entry.
- The realignment of the straight means that the current Esses will be replaced by a slight left-hand kink, with the Melbourne Hairpin instead becoming the circuit’s first corner.
- The track will also be extended, with a new infield loop constructed. Rather than taking the current left-hand hairpin at the end of the Melbourne Loop, the revised circuit will continue straight on into a sweeping downhill left-hand bend and then a new hairpin, before climbing back towards the current pits straight.
Yesterday, the BBC released a simulation of the new circuit created on the racing game, rFactor. It looks like an old-style ‘proper’ circuit – not a Mickey Mouse one like Singapore, or Bahrain. One that fits into the traditional European view of what a racing track should look like.
You can view the BBC video here.
Time will tell if the alterations take away the character of Doninigton, or whether moving the British Grand Prix can save the famous name in the long run. But Britain, along with Monaco, Italy and France deserve a Formula One race to preserve the heritage of the World Championship, and it doesn’t matter whether it is held at a slightly run down, weather worn place or a brand spanking new establishment. It matters that it can produce some good racing. Silverstone has delivered that in spades over the years; can the new Donington do the same?
