Russia – Presentation: Betting on the Right Horse for the Race
For this 16th round of the Championship, F1 sets its stage on the shores of the Black Sea. Since its debut on the calendar in 2014, the Sochi Autodrom has been a hunting ground guarded by Mercedes. Sebastian Vettel will have to defy the statistics while Lewis Hamilton could already glimpse a part of the Drivers' title, five Grand Prix before the end.
« Having a home race is always nice, even though, like all things in life, there are advantages and disadvantages. I am obviously very happy to race in front of my home crowd. I have received a lot of support from people all over the country, but it will also be a very busy weekend for me. There will be a lot of work, much more compared to other race weekends, so it’s going to be intense. It won’t be easy to manage my energy and time while being at my best. That said, it’s always something I look forward to, but I know it’s going to be tough! »
Like Daniil Kvyat before him, Sergey Sirotkin will experience his first home Russian Grand Prix. The Russian is the fourth and final rookie to face this challenge this season after Charles Leclerc in Monaco and Pierre Gasly and Esteban Ocon in France.
His remarks convey a great deal of realism and pragmatism. No outpouring of joy, even if you can sense that the Muscovite is eager to race in front of his home crowd. He obviously doesn’t expect to be flamboyant due to the poor performance of his Williams, but on Sunday, he could be the first rookie to finish his first home race this season.
A tour of the property
For the 2018 Russian Grand Prix we’re swapping our #Fit4F1 Reds for Pinks! https://t.co/qzFKwGSW66 pic.twitter.com/gcV63IMbNX
— Pirelli Motorsport (@pirellisport) 24 septembre 2018
For posterity
Tarmac and mistral
Just how many #Fit4F1 pink shoes do we fit in our #RussianGP bound luggage? Time to find out. https://t.co/UVHbWZXhQf pic.twitter.com/xyXFdwHB8y
— Pirelli Motorsport (@pirellisport) 18 septembre 2018
More than ever, the tires will see life in pink on the Sochi track. The low-abrasion and soft surface with the tires allow teams to maximize the hyper-soft tires with pink sidewalls. Mercedes remains the most conservative team with only seven sets of hyper-soft and four sets of ultra-soft tires. Tire management over a lap will remain crucial in qualifying with a final technical sector featuring right-angle turns that are very demanding in terms of grip and traction.
It’s an azure blue sky that will reign over the Black Sea this weekend in Sochi. The sun is expected throughout all the sessions. For Free Practice 1 and 2, drivers will have more than mild conditions with temperatures close to 20°C all day.
Saturday, the sun will still be shining, and temperatures will rise to 25°C for the qualifications. The wind won’t exceed 10 km/h in gusts, allowing the drivers to remain relatively undisturbed in their hunt for the fastest lap.
The race will take place in the warmest conditions with 26°C in the air. You can already forget about the rain as the sky will be clear all day.
The TV program!
