Formula 1 Circuit, Sao Paulo, Brazil > Reviews > Wrong way round.

Author's product rating:   

Advantages:	Produces great races .
Disadvantages:	Rough and ready circuit .

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

Interlagos is one of only two circuits in the Grand Prix season where the cars travel in an anticlockwise direction. The other is Imola in Italy and this year these two races follow each other.

Formula 1 drivers spend hours in the gym keeping fit and one of the main exercises they do is to put weights onto their helmet and keep moving their head around to strengthen their neck muscles. This is because during a race the “G” forces on the neck can be very stressful. As the majority of all the circuits are clockwise obviously the exercises are designed to build up their necks for those circuits. The anticlockwise circuits are therefore an extra challenge. It is not unusual to see drivers resting their heads against the side of the cockpit during a race in order to rest their necks, especially towards the end of the race.

Another feature of this circuit is that it is very bumpy. The Brazilian Grand Prix has been held at this circuit for ten years and five years ago the surface of the track was re-laid but this did not smooth out a lot of the bumps. At some parts of the track the drivers say that the vibrations from the bumps are so bad that their vision becomes blurred. Not bad when you driving at up to 200 mph. These bumps also play havoc with the aerodynamics of the cars, which sometimes lead to some spectacular “offs” at the corners.

The Brazilian fans are fanatical about F1 racing and it is second only to football as a major spectator sport in Brazil. There will be a full capacity crowd for the 71 lap race especially as there are currently four Brazilian drivers amongst the F1 drivers –

Rubens Barrichello.
Enrique Bernoldi.
Luciano Burti.
Tarso Marques.

The fans will travel mostly from Sao Paulo, which is about ten miles north of the track, but they may not have the facilities that are provided at most F1 tracks around the world. The track is owned by the Brazilian government and then rented by the race organisers for the duration of the race meeting. This means that often the surrounding area looks more like a building site than the location of a premier sporting event. This can also lead to a lot of dust in the air, and this combined with the movement of the huge crowd often makes the circuit very dusty at the start of the race. As well the reduction in grip for the tyres, the muck on the track can get into the engine sidepods and block the air intakes. As the circuit is at quite a high altitude the air is already thinner and the cars need all the air they can get to run smoothly and to cool the engines.

The whole circuit has a rough and ready feel to it and during the 2000 Grand Prix some advertising hoardings fell down during the race and led to the farcical sight of race marshals collecting the pieces of hoarding as the cars went round behind the safety car.

It is also not unusual for items to be stolen from the team’s garages or for a member of a team to be mugged or assaulted when away from the track. This is not what Formula 1 is used to, but the passion for the sport in South America is so great that everybody seems to accept the risks.

The circuit normally produces a great race, with many overtaking moves. There is also the risk of a rain shower that stretches the resources of the drivers even further.

This is not a track for the faint hearted and really sorts the men from the boys.