With its distinctive set of circumstances resulting from its altitude, the Hermanos Rodriguez monitor poses an unlimited problem for engineers to seek out the optimum cooling stage for F1 vehicles.
Mexico Metropolis is situated at over 2000 metres above sea stage and the rarified air has an affect on automobile efficiency, decreasing the aerodynamic downforce generated by the vehicles. One of many penalties of that is that high speeds reached are very excessive, regardless of a configuration that truly appears to be like typical of tracks that require most downforce – the pace report was set right here in 2016 when Valtteri Bottas within the Williams-Mercedes was clocked at 372.5 km/h.
Moreover, on the longest straights, the principle one and the one between turns 3 and 4, the floor temperature of the tyres tends to drop fairly shortly and the drivers need to be very cautious when braking, particularly at flip 1, to keep away from locking the wheels and subsequently damaging the tyres.
The Hermanos Rodriguez monitor is 4.304 km lengthy, with 17 corners and a floor that’s low by way of its severity on tyres. This yr the promoter has resurfaced the part between turns 12 and 15 within the third sector. The very easy asphalt and the actual fact the monitor is hardly used signifies that grip ranges are relatively low initially of the weekend and monitor evolution may be very marked, rubbering within the extra the vehicles run.
Requested to clarify what it means to drive in skinny air, US GP winner Charles Leclerc famous that it presents an enormous distinction, primarily by way of cooling.
“That makes clearly an enormous distinction for the downforce and for the cooling. So by way of downforce, you’ve got quite a bit much less downforce in comparison with a standard monitor at sea stage altitude, which signifies that you slide much more. After which for the cooling, it is much more troublesome to really cool the brakes, the engine. It’s extremely troublesome.
“And for us as properly, the guts fee goes a little bit bit larger in comparison with different races, nevertheless it’s not probably the most tiring and bodily racetrack on that aspect. It isn’t that a lot of an issue. Nevertheless, for the automobile, it is a very robust race for the automobile most particularly for the cooling. So this will probably be clearly the principle subject for this weekend.
“After which the very low grip however that’s I’ll say just like perhaps a monitor like Monza. Nevertheless, we’re driving with in all probability the utmost downforce that we will placed on the automobile however that leads to having the identical grip as on a monitor like Monza the place we run minimal downforce.
“So it is a bit unusual, as a driver, the primary time you drive right here as a result of it isn’t one thing that you simply anticipate to really feel that a lot. Nevertheless, it is cool. It makes it a little bit bit completely different and it is completely different challenges and as a group you have to adapt shortly,” the Monegasque concluded.
Explaining the variations between the circumstances in Mexico Metropolis and in “typical” occasions, Sauber driver Zhou Guanyu famous that overheating is the obvious problem.
“Yeah, I feel, you understand, the most important factor I felt was that in all probability from the primary yr I used to be driving right here, from FP1 to qualifying, the grip, really you are gaining a little bit bit, however in comparison with a lot of the tracks, for instance, you really would not actually really feel the monitor evolution that excessive.
“After which, like Charles talked about, firstly, with the cooling within the race, it’s an enormous subject for the engine, for the gearbox, for the brakes, that is very simple to be overheating.
“After which on the opposite aspect, with the large straight, DRS detection, you are really not getting that a lot tow impact and slipstream such as you anticipated at regular tracks. In order that’s in all probability the most important distinction. And yeah, the remainder is all fairly comparable, to be sincere,” Zhou added.
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