Spa-Francorchamps, the temple of speed, is preparing to host the new chapter of Formula 1. On Sunday, July 28, the Belgian Grand Prix will be held, the fourteenth round of the championship, on one of the most legendary circuits in the world.
The circuit was created in the early 1920s based on a design by Jules de Their (owner of the newspaper La Meuse) and the president of the Belgian Automobile Club, Henri Langlois Van Ophem. The original track was made by joining the three state roads that connected the towns of Malmedy, Stavelot and – precisely – Francorchamps; a route of about 14 km, very fast due to the long straights.
This characteristic of speed was further emphasized by the designers with the creation, in the late 1930s, of the Eau Rouge-Raidillon section, the most legendary complex of curves in F1. The Ancienne Douane section was replaced by a very fast sequence of right-left curves on a steep uphill (raidillon, in fact) that “climbed” a height difference of 24 meters over 240 meters of track. The section represents a unique challenge in the world, which tests the cars' road holding and the drivers' courage. It is said that Ayrton Senna once said: «If you remove Eau Rouge, you take away my reason to race».
During the 1960s and 1970s, cars, increasingly powerful and aerodynamic thanks to the introduction of wings, raced on a circuit that showed the limitations of a track made from public roads. The frequency of accidents, some of which had fatal outcomes, forced a radical rethinking of the circuit's configuration. Jackie Stewart's commitment to safety was decisive, as he was involved in an accident on the first lap during the 1966 Grand Prix. "I was trapped in the car for 25 minutes (...) There was something wrong with the tracks, the cars, the doctors, fire prevention, and the rescue teams. There were also bumps on the grass that were takeoff ramps, objects you crashed into, unprotected trees and so on. Young people today wouldn't understand. It was simply ridiculous."
The new track retained sections of the old public roads but was almost halved in length: just under 7 kilometers, which then became a total of 7.004 meters following more recent modifications. Opened in 1979, the circuit has since been adapted to new safety standards, especially with the widening of the run-off areas.
Long straights and fast corners, 19 in all. The most challenging braking point is at turn 5: from 320 km/h on the Kemmel straight, it drops to 167 km/h in just 1.62 seconds to enter the Les Combes chicane. A force of 135 kg on the brake pedal is required, a challenge to be repeated 44 times, which is the number of laps needed to complete the 308.052 km course.
The fastest race lap was by Valtteri Bottas in a Mercedes in 2018 (1:46.286), but the absolute circuit record is 1’41″252, set by Lewis Hamilton in a Mercedes during qualifying for the 2020 Belgian Grand Prix. The driver who has won the most times? Michael Schumacher, with 6 victories.
This year, who will be the first to cross the finish line?
