Summer break is officially over and we are ready to resume racing at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps for the 2015 Belgian Grand Prix. The drivers and teams are fully recharged from their vacations and are ready to tackle one of the fastest tracks on the season calendar. Last year’s event saw the conflict between the Mercedes drivers at Les Combes. It is a wonder what big drama the Grand Prix will provide us with this year.
At 7km in length, the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps is the longest track in the 2015 calendar. The circuit is most famous for the section of track known as Eau Rouge, which is one of the most difficult and entertaining corners in the motor racing world. The cars can reach a top speed of close to 340km/h and the drivers are spending 67% of the lap with their foot all of the way to the floor. Downforce is important at this circuit, but it is vital that the car doesn’t lose time because of that. There is a high chance of rain for the race, which will make the track a little more interesting, but cause a loss of the speeds that make this track so appealing.
Because speed is so important here, the over powered Mercedes engine will more than likely take victory. Each of the Mercedes drivers have set three fastest times of the weekend, which makes them pretty even going into the race. Lewis Hamilton will start on the pole, with Nico Rosberg alongside of him. It is likely that we will see the Mercedes drivers fall back as they get off the grid, due to the changes to the start procedures. Both cars have struggled in the last two starts, so having new regulations won’t help the situation. At the end of it all, I think that Rosberg will be our race winner. Although the pole sitter, Hamilton, topped two out of the three qualifying sessions, Rosberg was extremely close and even topped the other session. As long as we avoid an incident of last year’s nature, Hamilton should be on the second step of the podium.
Once we start to work our way down the grid, we find that things have changed a bit. Both of the Ferrari drivers are near the tenth grid spot, instead of being in the second row like normal. Valtteri Bottas finds his Williams car in the third grid spot. However, he doesn’t appear to have the pace required to keep this position, having an average finish of eighth from the rest of the sessions in weekend. Although he had a poor qualifying and will be way back in sixth on the grid, Daniel Ricciardo appears to be the best choice for third position. His Red Bull car has performed very well at the circuit and should continue to do so on race day. He has already proven that he has what it takes to overcome a lower starting position and he should be able to overtake the three cars required to get the bottom step of the podium.
With Bottas dropping to fourth by the finish, that leaves the final position on the top five predictions open. I believe that this position will go to Sergio Pérez in the Force India. Pérez had a fast car during the practice and qualifying sessions and has placed the car on the fifth grid spot. His big competition will be Romain Grosjean, who will be working hard to capitalize on a spectacular starting position of fourth. Overall, the Force India car has been slightly more competitive than the Lotus car this season. Plus, the new nose upgrade has vastly improved the performance of the car. Pérez should have the ability and tools necessary to clench the fifth spot.
The Belgian Grand Prix is surely one of the crown jewel events on the Formula One calendar. It is great to have such an entertaining event upon us, having been suffering from Formula One withdrawal for the past month. Hopefully this year’s event won’t disappoint those that have been waiting for Formula One for so long.
