Formula 1

British Grand Prix

The British Grand Prix is one of the jewels on the schedule and home race for most of the teams, 7 of the 10 are based within 110 km of the course. The circuit is very fast and free flowing and offers lots of demands on the tires.  The corners are very fast and the average lap speed of about 225 km/h (140 mph) is one of the quickest on the calendar.  The power circuit sees drivers on full throttle for almost 70% of the lap.  The corners are mostly medium or high speed, car setup is huge around Silverstone. 

While Silverstone features similar top speeds to those seen at other power tracks, the British track does not favor horsepower over downforce to the extent that will be seen at the Red Bull Ring next week for example. Drivers will still require a car that is fast in a straight line – but also one with a strong aerodynamic package to cope with the high-speed corners and swift changes of direction.  Silverstone is all about lateral energy rather than traction and braking, although there are also some slower and more technical parts in the Arena complex. Consequently, some degree of compromise is needed when it comes to set-up. It’s a circuit where overtaking is definitely possible, but this requires a lot of commitment. Quick, high-energy corners such as the Maggotts and Becketts complex aren’t the only challenge that Silverstone has to offer: the weather can be extremely variable. This is a circuit that puts a lot of stress on the tires due to the lateral demands. On the Pirelli rating scale both Tire Stress & Lateral Energy are at the maximum rating of five. 

Typically for England, the weather is very hard to predict. Both bright sunshine and torrential rain have been seen in the past for the British Grand Prix – sometimes during the same weekend – so teams will need to be prepared for anything.

Speed Points:

  • We have seen a safety car at every British GP since 2012
  • Silverstone is the 2nd longest track on the schedule 5.891km/3.661 mi (Spa is 7.004)
  • In the past 13 years the pole sitter has only won six times, but five of the last eight.
  • Since 2000, only seven winners have come from pole position.
  • 7 winners in the last 16 years have come from 2nd on the grid & 2 from 3rd.
  • Since adopting the new start/finish straight in 2011 the driver starting from pole position has won five times. 
  • Hamilton’s win from 6th in 2014 was the lowest start for a winner since Carlos Reutemann won from 8th in 1978 at Brands Hatch. 
  • For a lower winner at Silverstone you have to go back to Emerson Fittipaldi in 1975 from 7th.
  • This is the 57th time Silverstone has hosted the British Grand Prix
  • This is the 73rd British Grand Prix. It is one of only two ever-present races on the F1 World Championship calendar, the other being the Italian Grand Prix. 
  • Lewis Hamilton has not been beaten by a team mate at Silverstone in the hybrid era
  • Lewis Hamilton has finished 1st or 2nd in 9 of the last 10 races at Silverstone. The exception is his third last year.
  • This season Max Verstappen has led 419 laps, 75.1% of the 558 laps raced.
  • Prior to his win last year, Carlos Sainz had scored an F1 record 638.5 points without getting a race win.
  • For perspective on the run Max Verstappen is on, he has won 21 races over the last 14 months. Kimmi Raikkonen–a world champion, won 21 races during his 19 year career.  

Tires:

Pirelli will bring the three hardest tires in its range – C1, C2 and C3 – as the White hard, Yellow medium, and Red soft respectively at Silverstone. This is to cope with some of the highest energy demands of the year, thanks to the British circuit’s famous fast corners.. Tread temperatures can peak in excess of 110C/230F.  The succession of fast and sweeping corners load the tires with sustained forces that peak at 5g. The teams will use high levels of downforce, which will lead to  big vertical as well as lateral forces acting on the tires at the same time.  You will see the highest lateral energy loads of the season, very demanding of the tire compound and structure. The straights and braking areas are reasonably short, allowing the teams to run a lot of aero without too much time loss.  The very high lateral loads shorten the life of the tire and could make the one stop strategies we have seen recently difficult in Britain.  

Min PSI /starting pressures:  26.0 (front)  23.0 (rear) 

EOS Camber Limit:  -2.75° (front)  -1.50 ° (rear)

British GP Quick Facts: 

Tire Allocations: C1 (White), C2 (yellow) and C3 (Red)

Location:  Silverstone Circuit. Permanent circuit. 18 Turns (Northamptonshire, England)

Lap Length: 5.891 km/3.661miles 

Race Length: 52 laps

Fastest Lap: 2020 Max Verstappen – 1:27.097 in a Red Bull

Qualifying Record: 2020 Lewis Hamilton – 1:24.303 in a Mercedes 

Most wins by Constructor: Ferrari has 18 wins in the British GP, McLaren has taken 14 & Williams has 10 victories to their credit.   

Most wins by a driver: Lewis Hamilton has won 8 times in Britain, Jim Clark and Alain Prost have all  won the British GP 5 times each.  All of Prost’s & Hamilton’s were at Silverstone.  Clark won 3 Silverstone, 1 at Brands Hatch & 1 at Aintree.

Winners at the British  Grand Prix

DriverConstructorCircuit
2022Carlos SainzFerrariSilverstone
2021Lewis HamiltonMercedesSilverstone
2020Lewis HamiltonMercedesSilverstone
2019Lewis HamiltonMercedesSilverstone
2018Sebastian VettelFerrariSilverstone
2017Lewis HamiltonMercedesSilverstone
2016Lewis HamiltonMercedesSilverstone
2015Lewis HamiltonMercedes
2014Lewis HamiltonMercedes
2013Nico RosbergMercedes
2012Mark WebberRed Bull-Renault
2011Fernando AlonsoFerrari
2010Mark WebberRed Bull-Renault
2009Sebastian VettelRed Bull-Renault
2008Lewis HamiltonMcLaren-Mercedes
2007Kimi RäikkönenFerrari
2006Fernando AlonsoRenault
2005Juan Pablo MontoyaMcLaren-Mercedes
2004Michael SchumacherFerrari
2003Rubens BarrichelloFerrari
2002Michael SchumacherFerrari
2001Mika HäkkinenMcLaren-Mercedes
2000David CoulthardMcLaren-Mercedes
1999David CoulthardMcLaren-Mercedes
1998Michael SchumacherFerrari
1997Jacques VilleneuveWilliams-Renault
1996Jacques VilleneuveWilliams-Renault
1995Johnny HerbertBenetton-Renault
1994Damon HillWilliams-Renault
1993Alain ProstWilliams-Renault
1992Nigel MansellWilliams-Renault
1991Nigel MansellWilliams-Renault
1990Alain ProstFerrari
1989Alain ProstMcLaren-Honda
1988Ayrton SennaMcLaren-Honda
1987Nigel MansellWilliams-Honda
1986Nigel MansellWilliams-HondaBrands Hatch
1985Alain ProstMcLaren-TAGSilverstone
1984Niki LaudaMcLaren-TAGBrands Hatch
1983Alain ProstRenaultSilverstone
1982Niki LaudaMcLaren-FordBrands Hatch
1981John WatsonMcLaren-FordSilverstone
1980Alan JonesWilliams-FordBrands Hatch
1979Clay RegazzoniWilliams-FordSilverstone
1978Carlos ReutemannFerrariBrands Hatch
1977James HuntMcLaren-FordSilverstone
1976Niki LaudaFerrariBrands Hatch
1975Emerson FittipaldiMcLaren-FordSilverstone
1974Jody ScheckterTyrrell-FordBrands Hatch
1973Peter RevsonMcLaren-FordSilverstone
1972Emerson FittipaldiLotus-FordBrands Hatch
1971Jackie StewartTyrrell-FordSilverstone
1970Jochen RindtLotus-FordBrands Hatch
1969Jackie StewartMatra-FordSilverstone
1968Jo SiffertLotus-FordBrands Hatch
1967Jim ClarkLotus-FordSilverstone
1966Jack BrabhamBrabham-RepcoBrands Hatch
1965Jim ClarkLotus-ClimaxSilverstone
1964Jim ClarkLotus-ClimaxBrands Hatch
1963Jim ClarkLotus-ClimaxSilverstone
1962Jim ClarkLotus-ClimaxAintree
1961Wolfgang von TripsFerrari
1960Jack BrabhamCooper-ClimaxSilverstone
1959Jack BrabhamCooper-ClimaxAintree
1958Peter CollinsFerrariSilverstone
1957Sterling Moss & Tony BrooksVanwallAintree
1956Juan-Manuel FangioLancia-FerrariSilverstone
1955Stirling MossMercedes-BenzAintree
1954José Froilán GonzálezFerrariSilverstone
1953Alberto AscariFerrari
1952Alberto AscariFerrari
1951José Froilán GonzálezFerrari
1950Giuseppe FarinaAlfa Romeo

Driver Standings