All eyes are on McLaren this weekend as Formula 1 journeys to legendary Silverstone. Looking for another 1-2, McLaren brings a much talked about upgrade to their MP4-25. Initial practices aren't quite indicative of a substantial performance boost, but we'll have to wait and see how they perform against the powerful duo of Vettel and Webber, the latter who has shaken off a horrendous crash with Kovalainen at Valencia.
New to Silverstone is a change in the layout of the track. Some drivers have struggled with the Arena addition but we can certainly expect them to adapt by the time of the race.
The British Grand Prix is a race in the calendar of the FIA Formula One World Championship. It is currently held at the Silverstone Circuit near the village of Silverstone in Northamptonshire. The British and Italian Grands Prix are the oldest continuously staged Formula One World Championship Grands Prix.
Grand Prix motor racing was first established in Britain by Henry Segrave at Brooklands in 1926 after his winning of the 1923 French Grand Prix and the San Sebastián Grand Prix the following year, which raised interest in the sport. The first ever British Grand Prix was won by the French team of Louis Wagner and Robert Sénéchal driving a Delage 155B. The second British Grand Prix was held at Brooklands in 1927. It was designated the European Grand Prix five times between 1950 and 1977, when this title was an honorary designation given each year to one grand prix race in Europe.
Silverstone has hosted the race regularly since the start of the F1 championship in 1950 (in which it was the first race of the first ever official World Championship) and every year since 1987; it alternated with Brands Hatch between 1964 and 1986, and with Aintree (better known as a horse-racing course) between 1955 and 1962.
Before it was heavily modified in 1991, Silverstone was one of the fastest tracks on the Formula 1 calendar. The drivers loved the challenge of the sweeping and extremely demanding Copse, Stowe and Club corners. 1982 World Champion Keke Rosberg held the all-time Formula 1 qualifying lap record for 16 years after posting fastest time for the 1985 British Grand Prix with an average speed of 258.983 km/h (160.92 mph).
In recent times Silverstone has produced many race wins by British drivers, such as John Watson (1981), Nigel Mansell (1987, 1991, 1992), Damon Hill (1994), Johnny Herbert (1995), David Coulthard (1999, 2000) and Lewis Hamilton (2008).
A dispute between Silverstone's owners, the British Racing Drivers' Club (BRDC), and the Formula One authorities in 2003 over the funding of necessary improvements to the track's facilities led to doubts over the future of the race.
In October 2004 the British Grand Prix was left off the preliminary race schedule for 2005 because the BRDC refused to pay the race fee demanded by Bernie Ecclestone. However, after months of negotiation between the BRDC, Ecclestone and the Formula One constructors, a deal was made for the Grand Prix to be held at Silverstone until 2009.
Despite the controversy and political bickering that has surrounded the future of the race in recent years, the British Grand Prix at Silverstone remains one of the world's premier motor racing events.
On 4 July 2008, it was announced that Donington Park had been awarded the contract to host the British Grand Prix for 10 years from 2010. However, Donington failed to secure the necessary funding to host the race, and its contract was terminated in November 2009. On 7 December 2009, Silverstone signed a 17 year contract to host the British Grand Prix from 2010 onwards. The 2010 race will see a new circuit configuration being used, using the brand new "Arena" layout.
Onboard Lap
Onboard Lap of the previous Silverstone Circuit layout courtesy of former Jaguar-Cosworth driver Johnny Herbert.
Take a closer look here.
Fastest Lap
Sebastien Vettel - Red Bull-Renault - 1:20.735
Most Wins
Jim Clark and Alain Prost - 5
Most Wins for Constructor
McLaren and Ferrari - 14
Highlights from Previous Years
Summary of British GP 1950 part 1
Summary of British GP 1950 part 2
Highlights from British GP 1958 (Article discussing this race below)
Previous Winners
Championship Standings
Last Minute News
Silverstone '58 - Hawthorn & Collins' all-English affair
McLaren have Red Bull in their sights
British Grand Prix: Bruno Senna to return to Hispania
Webber talks up Button and Hamilton rivalry
Friday Practice - Selected team and driver quotes
In for the long haul - Exclusive Robert Kubica Q&A
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Sorry for getting this posted so late. I think from now on, I'll be posting these on Wednesday so I can create a space for practice and qualifying results.
