Kevin Magnussen says the Qatar Grand Prix is prone to be the toughest race of the 12 months because of the nature of the circuit and potential climate circumstances.
Final 12 months was Components 1’s second go to to race in Qatar, however the first time with the brand new era of vehicles. The high-speed circuit is already a bodily problem however racing in October made for top temperatures and humidity that led to plenty of drivers struggling to finish the race. This 12 months the temperatures are set to be decrease, however Magnussen says the schedule and monitor structure mix to essentially check the drivers.
“Qatar is the toughest race of the 12 months, in all probability,” Magnussen mentioned. “It’s tremendous high-speed, and distinctive within the sense that it’s extra like a motorcycle monitor reasonably than a Components 1 monitor. It’s obtained a really explicit movement to it — you’re by no means actually braking in a straight line, you’re extra sort of crusing.
“It’s the ultimate Dash of the 12 months, in order that’s all the time one other factor to consider, and the time zone change goes to be a problem. Final 12 months it was the other approach round — we went from Qatar to America — and truthfully it’s arduous to determine all of it out because it’s fairly arduous to regulate. You possibly can’t discover a approach round it, it simply takes time, so we’re going to be jet-lagged!”
Nico Hulkenberg’s efficiency coach Martin Poole admits there may be little that may be performed in regards to the vital time zone swing, with the race at Lusail beginning at 7pm native time — the equal of 8am on the final race venue in Las Vegas.
“Qatar is without doubt one of the most bodily demanding tracks we go to,” Poole mentioned. “The ambient temperature could be very scorching, which we noticed final 12 months, however as we’re returning a couple of weeks later hopefully it is going to be a bit cooler. It’s nonetheless going to pose a giant bodily problem for the drivers; it’s bodily anyway, however with the warmth it’s very tough.
“It’s going to be essential to remain very nicely hydrated and we’ll be utilizing all of the cooling strategies that we now have obtainable to us, corresponding to the normal ice tub, iced towels, ensuring he’s ingesting a number of cool drinks and staying out of the warmth each time doable.
“Transferring from Vegas to Qatar timing-wise will probably be tough — there’s no straightforward strategy to do it so we’ll do the most effective job we will to get into a very good sleep sample as quickly as we get to Qatar. Nico’s fairly good at sleeping nicely and discovering time within the day to nap if he must, so I’m positive we’ll get by means of it.”
