2024 Formula One Belgian Grand Prix Preview

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Image: Red Bull Content Pool / Getty Images

WHO ARE YOU SUPPORTING THIS WEEKEND?

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Round fourteen of the Formula One World Championship takes us to Belgium at the sim racers favourite,
Spa-Francorchamps. After the thrilling and controversial event that was the Hungarian Grand Prix, Spa is shaping up to be another classic.

What did you think about Oscar Piastri's maiden victory? After the controversial finish, McLaren stayed very quiet and continued like nothing was wrong. Could it all boil over at McLaren in Belgium this weekend?

https://twitter.com/x/status/1815688885747265698

Esteban Ocon to Join Haas in 2025​

Haas has signed Alpine’s Esteban Ocon on a multi-year contract to partner rookie teammate, Ollie Bearman, in 2025. Ahead of the final race before the break, and at the track where Ocon made his F1 debut in 2016, Haas announced Ocon would take the vacant seat left by the departing Kevin Magnussen.

With Ocon joining the American outfit in 2025, Haas have a Grand Prix winner in one of their seats for the first time in the teams would become the first Grand Prix winner to race one of their cars since they entered the sport in 2016.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1816382961379598835

The Frenchman has driven for Manor (2016), Force India (2017–2018), Mercedes reserve driver (2019), Renault (2020), Alpine (2021–2024). Haas will be the sixth team Ocon has driven for since his debut in 2016, although Renault became Alpine in 2021.

Spa's Brand New Track Surface​

Spa's track surface has been replaced for this weekend's grand prix. In the past, new track surfaces have caused teams a lot of problems. From the slippery and greasy Istanbul circuit to the grainy and deteriorating state of the Las Vegas strip. How will teams cope at the new Spa?

Formula One places a heavy strain on the circuit's surface, especially in the braking zones and fast bends because of the power and speed at which they are putting the power down. Over a long period, the track surface will begin to deteriorate and will therefore require resurfacing.

The Pirelli tyre choices for this weekend:
C2 as P Zero White hard
C3 as P Zero Yellow medium
C4 as P Zero Red soft

https://twitter.com/x/status/1815696514120843354

Max Verstappen Takes 10-place Grid Penalty​

The Dutchman is set to receive a ten-place grid penalty at this weekend's Belgian Grand Prix. Verstappen has been on a knife edge ever since Canada when Red Bull had to introduce a fourth Honda powertrain. However, Verstappen has won the last two races at the circuit after similar grid penalties.

Unfortunately for Verstappen, his grid penalty is not the only reason his name is in the headlines. The Red Bull ace has had an official warning for his team regarding his sim racing antics before the Hungarian Grand Prix. Red Bull has officially banned him from competing in any events before a Grand Prix.

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Red Bull's Max Verstappen at last weekend's Hungarian Grand Prix. Image: Red Bull Content Pool / Getty Images

When to Watch the Belgian Grand Prix (UTC)​

Friday
Free Practice One - 11:30-12:30
Free Practice Two - 15:00-16:00

Saturday
Free Practice Three - 10:30-11:30
Qualifying - 14:00-15:00

Sunday
Race Starts - 13:00

Who are you supporting at this weekend's Belgian Grand Prix? Let us know in the poll above or down in the comments!
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About author
Connor Minniss
Connor Minniss
Website Content Editor & Motorsport Photographer aiming to bring you the best of the best within the world of sim racing.

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Comments

muzikant
jgf said:
When racing returns to the real Spa track I will be impressed. Cars of the sixties, on narrow tires that wouldn't even be deemed adequate for street use today, raced hundreds of laps at the original track; yet modern F1, with its massive downforce, high tech suspensions, and wide high grip tires, is not capable of negotiating the same circuit. The cars are decidedly better today, so the problem must be with the drivers.

www.everythingf1.com

The 1963 Belgian Grand Prix - Racing In The Rain & The Miracle Of Spa

Sixty years ago Jim Clark won the 1963 Belgian Grand Prix in circumstances so dangerous nobody would dream of racing in them today.
www.everythingf1.com www.everythingf1.com
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I don't really know what you're trying to say? Outside of romance, terrible accidents have happened at the old spa
 
jgf
muzikant said:
terrible accidents have happened at the old spa
Click to expand...

That can be said of every track. If you sanitize the sport to the point of removing all risk you also remove much of the interest. It wasn't the circuits themselves that were unsafe, it was the cars.

No one wants to see bullfighters decked out like hockey goalies, though they would certainly be safer.

But my point is the cars of today would be much safer on those old tracks than the cars of the sixties, yet they are still afraid of running at the original Spa, or Monza, or Silverstone (and they destroyed the original Hockenheim, leaving a dinky little club track bearing that name). And no direct comparison of the performance of today's cars with those of 20 or 30 or 50 years ago can be made because all that remains of the tracks is the name.
 
P
jgf said:
When racing returns to the real Spa track I will be impressed. Cars of the sixties, on narrow tires that wouldn't even be deemed adequate for street use today, raced hundreds of laps at the original track; yet modern F1, with its massive downforce, high tech suspensions, and wide high grip tires, is not capable of negotiating the same circuit. The cars are decidedly better today, so the problem must be with the drivers.

www.everythingf1.com

The 1963 Belgian Grand Prix - Racing In The Rain & The Miracle Of Spa

Sixty years ago Jim Clark won the 1963 Belgian Grand Prix in circumstances so dangerous nobody would dream of racing in them today.
www.everythingf1.com www.everythingf1.com
Click to expand...
Hundreds of laps? A Spa GP was 28 laps long in the days when Grand Prix races had to be of 400 km instead of 300 km, which were shortened more than 50 years ago.

Safety aside, a modern F1 would spend +90% of the lap flat out and breezing through all corners bar La Source, Eau Rouge, Les Combes and Stavelot. That's 4 corners in a 14 km track.
 
Richard Wilks
jgf said:
That can be said of every track. If you sanitize the sport to the point of removing all risk you also remove much of the interest. It wasn't the circuits themselves that were unsafe, it was the cars.

No one wants to see bullfighters decked out like hockey goalies, though they would certainly be safer.

But my point is the cars of today would be much safer on those old tracks than the cars of the sixties, yet they are still afraid of running at the original Spa, or Monza, or Silverstone (and they destroyed the original Hockenheim, leaving a dinky little club track bearing that name). And no direct comparison of the performance of today's cars with those of 20 or 30 or 50 years ago can be made because all that remains of the tracks is the name.
Click to expand...
The old Spa would be a piss easy track to do in a modern F1 car, because most of it would be basically flatout. The same with the original silverstone, they would barely lift if they would still race it. Hell many of the corners in modern spa are flatout now when they didnt used to be.
 
Turk
jgf said:
That can be said of every track. If you sanitize the sport to the point of removing all risk you also remove much of the interest. It wasn't the circuits themselves that were unsafe, it was the cars.

No one wants to see bullfighters decked out like hockey goalies, though they would certainly be safer.

But my point is the cars of today would be much safer on those old tracks than the cars of the sixties, yet they are still afraid of running at the original Spa, or Monza, or Silverstone (and they destroyed the original Hockenheim, leaving a dinky little club track bearing that name). And no direct comparison of the performance of today's cars with those of 20 or 30 or 50 years ago can be made because all that remains of the tracks is the name.
Click to expand...
None of those old tracks exist anymore. Having raced them in sims they aren't particularly complicated tracks either. They were going for a high speed spectacle back when fast cars were a novel thing to most people.

Modern cars are going faster than those old cars, modern tracks are more technical than older tracks. The safety measures haven't really affected racing that much.

I'm interested in racing as a sport, not a spectacle. I want to see people racing each other fairly, I'm not in it to watch cars crash or people take stupid risks, life threatening risks for a trophy. F1 is still very dangerous and it's only down to all the safety procedures that we haven't had more deaths. There's only so much safety a car can add.
 
markg88
Premium
My only comment about racing F1 cars today compared to the 60's, say, is that it is possible the order of fastest drivers of today may change somewhat if they raced the F1 cars of the 60's on 60's tracks. This is because bravery was a massive component of the requirements to be a really fast driver in those days.
 
D
comparing old tracks to newer, safer tracks, Grand Prix Legends had many difficult tracks. Rouen was one in particular because of it's uphill/downhill sections with sharp turns near the end of each area. When it first became available for GTR2 I rushed to try it out with a modern GT car......BORING...... Flat out all the way down. A little braking, then flat out again all the way back to the turn that begins to bring you back to the pit straight. Never drove it again.
 
jgf
pai said:
Hundreds of laps? A Spa GP was 28 laps long
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Ten cars doing a 28 lap race equals 280 laps run, in ten years that is 2800 laps run at that track. Just for that series, add in other series also running there and the number multiplies.
 
  • Haha
Reactions: pai
jgf
Turk said:
The safety measures haven't really affected racing that much.
Click to expand...

Then why are modern F1 cars such behemoths? As one article pointed out, the largest car Mercedes makes is not their S series sedan but their F1 car. FIA wants 2m of crumple zones all around the drivers. Who is displaying more talent, the drivers of years ago pushing those cars to their limits at Hockenheim or Nordschleife or the modern drivers safe in their perambulators on flat smooth tracks surrounded by acres of kitty litter. They've "idiot proofed" racing.
 
jgf
davehenrie said:
comparing old tracks to newer, safer tracks, Grand Prix Legends had many difficult tracks. Rouen was one in particular because of it's uphill/downhill sections with sharp turns near the end of each area. When it first became available for GTR2 I rushed to try it out with a modern GT car......BORING...... Flat out all the way down. A little braking, then flat out again all the way back to the turn that begins to bring you back to the pit straight. Never drove it again.
Click to expand...

Of course, due to massive downforce; but back off the downforce for more speed and hit the track again. They could run road course wings at the Indy 500 and it would be a snooze fest ...much like modern F1.
 
Richard Wilks
jgf said:
Then why are modern F1 cars such behemoths? As one article pointed out, the largest car Mercedes makes is not their S series sedan but their F1 car. FIA wants 2m of crumple zones all around the drivers. Who is displaying more talent, the drivers of years ago pushing those cars to their limits at Hockenheim or Nordschleife or the modern drivers safe in their perambulators on flat smooth tracks surrounded by acres of kitty litter. They've "idiot proofed" racing.
Click to expand...
They are big because more surface area = more downforce. It has nothing to do with driver safety.
 
Last edited:
K
jgf said:
Then why are modern F1 cars such behemoths? As one article pointed out, the largest car Mercedes makes is not their S series sedan but their F1 car. FIA wants 2m of crumple zones all around the drivers. Who is displaying more talent, the drivers of years ago pushing those cars to their limits at Hockenheim or Nordschleife or the modern drivers safe in their perambulators on flat smooth tracks surrounded by acres of kitty litter. They've "idiot proofed" racing.
Click to expand...
The friends and family of Jules Bianchi and Anthoine Hubert would like to have a word...
 
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P
jgf said:
Ten cars doing a 28 lap race equals 280 laps run, in ten years that is 2800 laps run at that track. Just for that series, add in other series also running there and the number multiplies.
Click to expand...
What a compelling argument.
 
Turk
jgf said:
Then why are modern F1 cars such behemoths? As one article pointed out, the largest car Mercedes makes is not their S series sedan but their F1 car. FIA wants 2m of crumple zones all around the drivers. Who is displaying more talent, the drivers of years ago pushing those cars to their limits at Hockenheim or Nordschleife or the modern drivers safe in their perambulators on flat smooth tracks surrounded by acres of kitty litter. They've "idiot proofed" racing.
Click to expand...
Longer cars are more stable in high speed corners. The drivers cell is a pretty small part of the overall car.

They are planning to make the cars smaller in the future as far as I know.
 
D
Turk said:
Longer cars are more stable in high speed corners. The drivers cell is a pretty small part of the overall car.

They are planning to make the cars smaller in the future as far as I know.
Click to expand...
yes, they will be SLIGHTLY shorter, and SLIGHTLY narrower. Still huge compared to Senna's last Mclaren.
1722306908793.jpeg
 
E
Damage Inc said:
yeah that bit me on the arse big time...luckily not a massive Lando fan. He doesn't seem to be able to put everything together in a race much. I wonder if years running low to mid pack can dull the senses for being at the sharp end?
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All in good fun. I think it will be close back and forward all season, not knowing who is taking fresher power units etc week to week and managing the pool, could be anyone's guess. It's not like Red Bull where they might as well have one car.

Oscar might get faster it is his second season and Lando might mature and be less compromised by his emotions. They are both very young and have room to develop, it will be down to who grows more.

If in Hungary they got the strategy right and didn't needlessly undercut the lead car, or helped Lando along with the smart move of doing the swap in time to fight him later they would have saved everyone from looking like clowns. Or told him the correct tyre to take in Silverstone, why leave it to him, its clearly not a strength. Or told him about the penalty coming in Austria so just take the P2 and bank the points. People talk about the 5 points in Hungary...

That said, Piastri gets murdered with strategy with monotonous regularity too, so I don't know...
 
Turk
davehenrie said:
yes, they will be SLIGHTLY shorter, and SLIGHTLY narrower. Still huge compared to Senna's last Mclaren.
View attachment 772609
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Which you could say about any modern car. The older cars weren't better in any way though, any of the tech that was in those cars and survived to this day is probably smaller, lighter and has way better performance in every measurable way. All those gains were used to cram extra technology into the car.
I don't like the modern ethos either, I prefer simple cars, but we can't really argue with the results, modern cars thrash older cars.
 
Damage Inc
eetcake said:
All in good fun. I think it will be close back and forward all season, not knowing who is taking fresher power units etc week to week and managing the pool, could be anyone's guess. It's not like Red Bull where they might as well have one car.

Oscar might get faster it is his second season and Lando might mature and be less compromised by his emotions. They are both very young and have room to develop, it will be down to who grows more.

If in Hungary they got the strategy right and didn't needlessly undercut the lead car, or helped Lando along with the smart move of doing the swap in time to fight him later they would have saved everyone from looking like clowns. Or told him the correct tyre to take in Silverstone, why leave it to him, its clearly not a strength. Or told him about the penalty coming in Austria so just take the P2 and bank the points. People talk about the 5 points in Hungary...

That said, Piastri gets murdered with strategy with monotonous regularity too, so I don't know...
Click to expand...
Yup Mclaren are missing a vital piece of the jigsaw, they have two excellent drivers, now have an excellent car, but strategy is letting them down (and Lando's starts).
 
K
davehenrie said:
yes, they will be SLIGHTLY shorter, and SLIGHTLY narrower. Still huge compared to Senna's last Mclaren.
Click to expand...
Senna's last McLaren is now 31 years old. Technology has changed so much that it seems pointless to compare a car from 1993 to a car from 2024 (or 2026 in the case of the Audi). That would be like comparing Senna's McLaren to Graham Hill's 1962 championship winning car.
 

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