Canadian Grand Prix

 

August 23rd 21:00 GMT - Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, Montreal

 

Originally named the Île Notre-Dame Circuit,the circuit was built and finished in 1978.In 1982, it was renamed in honour of Canadian Formula One driver Gilles Villeneuve, father of Jacques Villeneuve, following his death earlier in the year. A particularly famous part of the circuit is the wall on the outside of the exit of the final chicane before the start/finish straight. In 1999 the wall, which bears the name Bienvenue au Québec("Welcome to Quebec") giving it the nickname "Mur du Québec" (Quebec Wall), ended the race of three Formula One World Champions, Damon Hill, Michael Schumacher and Jacques Villeneuve along with FIA GT champion Ricardo Zonta. Since then the wall has been nicknamed "The Wall of Champions".

 

A lap in a Formula One car

There is a slight right kink before turn 1 and you have to brake roughly 50 metres from the apex, downshifting from seventh to third gear. Turn 2 (Virage Senna) follows immediately after – one more downshift is required for the slow right-hander and a late apex can be useful for a good exit. Turns 3 and 4 are quite tricky – a good line is key – riding the kerbs and going within inches of the wall is important for a fast time. The chicane itself is a right-left taken in third gear  Turn 5 is a flat-out right-hander which leads to turns 6 and 7. Again, a good line is vital and the kerbs need to be ridden well here. It is a left-right chicane taken in second gear and leads onto the backstraight. Turns 8 and 9 make up yet another chicane, and are very similar to turns 3 and 4 – a right-left taken in second gear where cars run as close to the barrier as possible to maximize exit speed. There is a slight left kink running into turn 10 (L'Epingle) which is a tight, first gear right-hand hairpin and taking a "V" line can be good to maximise speed down the following straight. Turns 13 and 14 are perhaps the most famous corners at the circuit – yet another chicane that requires plenty of kerb use and a line that takes you close to the wall, the corners are well known for catching out many drivers on the exit wall named the 'Wall of Champions'. To avoid this, you have to make sure you don't clout the kerbs too hard and if you feel like you are going to understeer into one, take to the escape road. The turns themselves, a right-left chicane, are taken in third gear after a heavy braking zone.