I can’t wait for the largest motor racing event in UK, the British Grand Prix at Silverstone! If you are one of those going you should be able to leave the brolly at home, as it’s looking like a 22 degree cloudy and dry day, contrast to last year’s torrential downpour!
Paul Hembrey, Motorsport Director of tyre manufacturer Pirelli commented about the weather... “It’s quite hard to predict the number of pit stops on race day. Last year we saw a two-stop strategy in dry conditions after two wet days but this year the compounds are softer, so if it stays dry we could have between three and four stops. We should be in a position to make a more precise forecast after free practice.” Which leads me onto...
My 2013 British Grand Prix Race Prediction
1st Sebastian Vettel 2nd Fernando Alonso 3rd Kimi Raikkonen
Wanting to avenge last years third place (to Mark Webber’s win), and following a win from Canada three weeks ago, Seb will take top spot, with an equally consistent Alonso and Raikkonen following. What do you think? …whether you agree or disagree, let me know in the comments below! This year hasn't been without a little controversy. The numbers attending tomorrow’s race are expected to be a lot lower as petrol-head fans have rebelled against the increasing ticket prices. You see, the cheapest tickets started at £145 – among the highest of any Grand Prix in this 2013 season. This is all in comparison to last year where on race-day a record 127,000 fans attended, but were left stranded when cars were stuck in the muddy car parks! There are four British drivers competing in the 2013 Formula 1 season, which so far is being led comfortably by three-times World Champion, Sebastian Vettel.
Current 2013 Championship Standings
1 Sebastian Vettel - Red Bull - 1322 Fernando Alonso - Ferrari - 963 Kimi Raikkonen - Lotus - 884 Lewis Hamilton - Mercedes - 775 Mark Webber - Red Bull - 696 Nico Rosberg - Mercedes - 577 Felipe Massa - Ferrari - 498 Paul di Resta - Force India - 349 Romain Grosjean - Lotus - 2610 Jenson Button - McLaren - 25
It's safe to assume the Jenson Button won't be featuring too much in the race. He is a lot futher down the points table, who claims hasn’t had the best of luck (or car!) for the last two seasons. He has never reached the podium of the British Grand Prix - in his 13 years in the sport and 49 podiums in total, but promises that McLaren will bounce back next season, hmmm.
Bruce Facts - Did You Know?
- On average the amount of TV cable laid out around Silverstone for the British Grand Prix would stretch from Dover to Calais and back
- Approximately 50,000 hot drinks will be purchased from the fast food stalls on Sunday and 10,000 litres of tomato sauce will be used
- If all of the sausages eaten over the Grand Prix weekend were to be lined up, they would measure 1.08 miles, a third of the race track itself
A Step Back In Time...
Did you know that Silverstone was first opened as a World War 2 airfield in 1943?! …But once the war had ended Britain was left with many redundant airfields and without a major race track. Donington Park was still a military vehicle storage depot, Brooklands had been sold off, Crystal Palace was in a state of disrepair and Brands Hatch was still under-developed.Then in 1948 The Royal Automobile Club, now known as ‘RAC’, met with the Air Ministry and converted it into a race circuit. After the permission was granted, local farmer James Wilson Brown was commissioned to build the circuit, and only given 2 months to do it!And so it was born, on October 2nd of that same year Silverstone's first event took place, the RAC Grand Prix…!
A 1936 ERA R5B races at Silverstone Classic 2011 by David Merrett (reproduced under Creative Commons 3.0)
It’s not just F1 races that Silverstone prides itself with hosting, they cater for all motorsports from Classic cars to Moto GP, and Superbikes to Touring Cars! …I know ECO Karter wants to introduce electric kart racing at the race circuit!
Lotus John Player Special races at Silverstone Classic 2012 by Daniel Herrick (reproduced under Creative Commons 3.0)
No stranger to racing different classifications of motorsport is upcoming F1 driver from Surrey, Max Chilton.Chilton started his racing career at the age of 10 in karts where he spent 2 years learning the ropes in cadet karting before stepping up to junior TKM. He started to make a name for himself with J.I.C.A Karting where he made regular appearances on the podium. I wonder how he would have performed in the annual TeamSport Kart Champs 2013? I’m guessing he would have liked the chance to win some brand new race kit and a Mini Challenge race day!Whatever happens tomorrow I'm sure it's going to be a great race. Tune into BBC1 at 12:10 for coverage, with the race starting at 13:00.Right, after all this talk of racing I’m keen for some karting after the race. Every Sunday evening the TeamSport tracks host Unlimited Karting for a 50 minute adrenaline fix. See you there!