Is this the hirsute solutions and Japanese GP thread now?
Tech Talk: Suzuka’s crucial curves
This weekend’s Japanese Grand Prix will be crucial for Ferrari with Red Bull expected to reign supreme - but can the new title contenders avoid losing out in Suzuka’s challenging curves?
This fast but curvy figure-of-eight track is expected to be a banker for Red Bull as they aim to fend off Ferrari’s recent challenge - but the Italian giants are fast turning their car into one that works on all circuits and that could lead to a different story at Suzuka.
The once classic 130R corner is now a tamer beast but Suzuka still retains some extremely fast flowing sections and the 1.2km part between Spoon Curve and 130R is an area where Ferrari could actually enjoy a bit of an advantage - a 16-second section of the lap that is taken a pretty much full throttle.
This kind of section, however, is not where the most benefit can be gained as the difference between cars that can handle it and cars that struggle is less significant than it is in sections where there are more twists and turns to cope with.
Which is why the most important section for this weekend’s race is likely to be the twisty ‘S’ curves between turns three and seven.
This fast section of just 850m in length has constant direction changes that make it vital for the car to be well balanced and predictable - because if a driver gets it wrong early on he will be fighting the car through the entire section and it could cost him heavily.
Engineers claim it is possible to lose half a second if a driver makes just one small mistake in this section - even though it lasts for just 14 seconds. The same can be said if a team struggles with finding the right car set-up (something extremely challenging at Suzuka) because if it is not quite suited to this section the result can be critical not only on the lap time but, if a driver is under pressure in the race, it can be easier to make a mistake that would hurt his exit speed and create a possible overtaking opportunity.
On top of that, the Suzuka track has the highest number of fourth gear or higher corners on the calendar and, coupled with an abrasive surface, the high cornering loads through this section and the other fast corners will cause more significant tyre wear than normal.
Alonso believes that by winning on two dramatically different types of circuit in the last two races (the fast low downforce circuit of Monza and the slower high downforce Singapore track) shows that Ferrari can now cope with whatever is thrown at them.
But neither of these circuits offers the mid-speed direction changes that are offered between T3-T7 at Suzuka - the sort of corners seen at Silverstone or Barcelona, where Red Bull were impressive.
Times have certainly changed since those earlier races, and Ferrari have promised further upgrades as the title battle heats up. But they still need to prove they have a handle on this kind of section too if they are to stop Red Bull pulling away again in the title race.
Will Gray / Eurosport
http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/05102010/58/tech-talk-suzuka-s-crucial-curves.html
