The 2016 GP2 season comes to end this weekend at the Yas Marina circuit in Abu Dhabi and the two Racing Engineering drivers, Norman Nato and Jordan King, will both want to add to their tally of two victories each and to finish as high as possible in the Drivers’ Championship. Additionally Racing Engineering, who have always run well at this track winning the Sunday race in 2014 and scoring five other top four finishes, will want to secure the runner-up position that they currently hold in the Team standings.
The 5.554km Yas Marina circuit with its 21 corners is popular with the drivers for the challenge it presents but it is vital for a team to provide a setup that allows the driver to get the most from his car on the different sections of the track and for Racing Engineering the priority for this weekend is to work with Norman and Jordan to ensure they start from the front of the grid and that they have a car that allows them to fight for race wins. For this weekend Pirelli will be supplying the P Zero White medium and P Zero Red supersoft compounds to all the teams.
Timetable:Practice: Fri 25 Nov 2016, 11:15 (GMT+4)Qualifying Session: Fri 25 Nov 2016, 19:10 (GMT+4)Race 1: Sat 26 Nov 2016, 18:40 (GMT+4)Race 2: Sun 27 Nov 2016, 14:20 (GMT+4)
FactsLength of lap: 5.554 km
2015 best Racing Engineering: P7 in Qualifying – P4 in R1
Tyre Wear: Medium
Brake Wear: Medium
Downforce: High
Throttle Average: 65%
Fastest turn: T3
Hardest Braking Point: T8
Gear shifts per lap: 56
Top Speed: 300 km/h
Average Speed (Qualifying) 2015: 185.530 km/h
Average Speed (Race) 2015: 162.472 km/h
Pole Position Time 2015: 1:47.769
Facts1. The Yas Marina Circuit is located on Yas Island, about 30 minutes from Abu Dhabi, the UAE capital.2. At Yas Marina, GP2 qualifying and the first race are taking place at dusk. This causes a drop in temperature, which changes the tyres’ performance and degradation levels.
3. The circuit was designed by Hermann Tilke and the track carries his personal stamp because it is made up of three sectors very different from each other.
4. The track has long straights and a mix of fast corners and hard braking, which requires good traction.
5. The three fastest corners are an assembly of turns 2, 3 and 4 reminiscent of Eau Rouge at Spa.
6. The pit-lane exit is a tunnel, which goes below the first corner and leads cars to the third corner.
7. The second sector begins with two connected corners which are very slow, giving way to two long straights, which require full throttle and hard braking.
8. In 2015, the last race had to be red flagged due to a serious accident on the first lap which involved five cars, luckily no one was hurt.
9. Abu Dhabi has always treated Racing Engineering well. In 2013 Fabio Leimer won the Championship here, while in 2014 Stefano Coletti won the Sprint Race.
10. Last year, Racing Engineering secured second position in the driver and team championships at the Yas Marina Circuit.Facts1. F1 top speed peaks at over 336 km/h down the pit straight just before the first chicane, whereas in GP2 the top speed reaches 310 km/h.2. Pole position in F1 was set in 2015 at 1:40.237 – Pole position in GP2 was set in 2015 at 1:47.769.
3. The average speed in F1 is 200 km/h in F1 and 185 km/h in GP2.
4. F1 throttle usage is 60% vs 65% of the lap that the engine spends at full throttle in GP2.
5. F1 drivers will change gear 68 times per lap against the 56 times that a GP2 driver will have to do so.
6. Race distance is not so different: F1 goes around the circuit for 55 laps and GP2 does a total of 53 laps in two days- 31 laps in Feature Race and 22 in the Sprint Race.
