Track: Hungaroring
Number of Laps: 70
Circuit Length: 2.7 miles (4.4km)
Race Length: 190.6 miles (306.7km)
Start Time: 13:00 BST
Fastest Lap: 1:18.436 (Rubens Barrichello, Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro, 2004, Pre-Qualifying)
Fastest Race Lap: 1:19.071 (Michael Schumacher, Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro, 2004)
2015 Pole Position: Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes AMG Petronas, 1:22.020, Soft Tyres
2015 Race Winner: Sebastian Vettel, Scuderia Ferrari
Tyre Compounds: Supersoft, Soft, Medium, Intermediate, Wet
First F1 Championship Grand Prix: 1986
Most Wins: Lewis Hamilton, Michael Schumacher (4)/McLaren (11)
The Hungaroring. One of the most boring tracks on the calendar. The tight, twisty corners make it “Monaco without the yachts” and overtaking is impossible, right?
Well, not if the last two years are anything to go by.
In 2014, Lewis Hamilton fought back from a pit lane start to finish third – with Daniel Ricciardo taking the victory after a safety car affected Rosberg’s strategy. Last year, Sebastian Vettel won for Ferrari after a lightning start gave him the lead and the Mercedes duo suffered accident damage.
Mercedes have only taken on win at Hungary – Lewis Hamilton’s first for the team in 2013 – and know that the resurgent Red Bull will be right behind them. Ricciardo has gone nearly two years without a victory and, having harshly lost two already this season, will be desperate to end his drought.
McLaren will be expecting a strong result this weekend. They took fifth place here last season due to the track having short straights and this year’s car is undoubtedly stronger. The team also have a record 11 wins around this track. Whilst they won’t be taking one on Sunday, could they possibly sneak a podium if the Mercs hit trouble?
Haas once again are the only team to differ their tyre choice between the two drivers, with Gutierrez bringing an extra set of medium tyres compared to Grosjean’s extra softs. Ferrari have gone very aggressive, bringing nine sets of the supersoft tyre for both Vettel and Raikkonen – the highest number of any team.
Force India have once again sacrificed a set of the softest compound for a set of the hardest. That could turn out to be a masterstroke. The Hungaroring, like Austria three weeks ago, has been completely resurfaced and the tarmac is extremely aggressive – potentially favouring a harder tyre on race day.
The championship could hardly be closer coming into this race. Nico Rosberg leads Lewis Hamilton by just one point – meaning that the Brit just needs to finish above his teammate (and in the top ten) to take the lead of the championship for the first time this season.
