10 Things You Didn’t Know About The Belgian Grand Prix

Formula 1 returns to the track this weekend at the Spa-Francorchamps circuit following a four-week summer break and 14-day mandatory factory shutdown, which has given everyone in the sport a chance to recharge their batteries ahead of the final eight races.

1. A historic venue

Spa-Francorchamps is a world-renowned venue drenched in racing history. This weekend’s race will be the 59th time the Belgian Grand Prix has appeared on the F1 calendar since the championship’s debut in 1950 – 45 of those have been held at the track. It has hosted motor races since 1921.

The current layout is very different to the one that F1 drivers competed on back in 1950 – the sport’s inaugural year. Previously, an 8.761 mile circuit through the Ardennes Forest used public roads around the towns of Spa and Francorchamps, with classic corners like Burnenville and the Masta Kink.

It was shortened considerably in 1979, with the first F1 race on the new layout taking place in 1981. Bar a few tweaks and modifications, it is largely the same today. It shares just three corners with the old layout – Blanchimont, La Source and the Eau Rouge/ Raidillon section.

3. Schumacher: the master of Spa

Michael Schumacher is the most successful F1 driver in the history of the Belgian Grand Prix. The German made his debut in the sport there in 1991 - subbing for the imprisoned Bertrand Gachot - and impressed despite retiring with clutch failure.

He went on to win the race six times, with his final 2002 victory moving him ahead of Ayrton Senna’s Belgian win tally. Kimi Raikkonen has the best track record from the current crop of drivers, having won the Belgian Grand Prix four times.

4. Ferrari at the top

In the constructors’ table, Ferrari has the most Belgian Grand Prix wins with 16 – two ahead of rivals McLaren. Lotus is third with eight, four more than Williams. Mercedes will be looking to score its fourth victory this weekend and its first in the race since 1955.

5. Track stats

The circuit is 4.352 miles (7.004 kilometres) long and features 19 corners – 10 left and nine right. There will be two DRS zones, situated on the pit straight and the Kemmel Straight. Pirelli will take the medium and soft compound tyres to the event. The race will last 44 laps.

6. Home heroes

20 drivers from Belgium have started a world championship Grand Prix, with Jacky Ickx being the most successful. He won eight races and claimed 13 pole positions from 116 starts. The most recent Belgian driver has been Jerome d’Ambrosio. He raced for Marussia Virgin Racing in 2011 and stood in for the banned Romain Grosjean at Lotus for the 2012 Italian Grand Prix.

The Belgian Grand Prix has produced some incredible and iconic moments in F1 history. Some of the most famous include the 1998 GP, where a huge first-lap crash involving 13 cars caused the race to be stopped. When it restarted, race leader Michael Schumacher collided with David Coulthard as he attempted to lap the McLaren driver, gifting Damon Hill the win – the Jordan team’s first.

Mika Hakkinen’s incredible pass on Schumacher in the 2000 race, which involved negotiating a backmarker, is also a highlight, as is Lewis Hamilton and Kimi Raikkonen’s 2008 duel and Romain Grosjean’s spectacular but scary first corner collision that took out three other drivers in 2012.

8. Eau Rouge

Spa-Francorchamps features one of the most well-known and exciting corners on the F1 calendar – Eau Rouge. This fast uphill turn will be particularly challenging this season due to the regulation changes, which include cuts to downforce levels.

The drivers have mixed opinions as to whether the famous corner will be taken flat this year. For example, Sauber driver Adrian Sutil thinks a lift will be needed, while the Swiss outfit’s reserve driver Giedo van der Garde (who will drive Esteban Gutierrez’s C33 in first practice) disagrees.

9. Wet and wild

Rain usually falls at some point over the Belgian Grand Prix weekend and there hasn’t been an entirely dry event since 2007. This doesn’t look set to change as wet weather is currently being forecast for Saturday. The track, situated in the Ardennes Forest, is the longest on the F1 calendar and because of this, it can often be dry on one side and wet on the other.

10. A change of line-up

32-year-old Andre Lotterer will make his F1 debut this weekend, after being confirmed as Kamui Kobayashi’s replacement at Caterham. For now, it looks like he will just be driving at the Belgian Grand Prix, as Kobayashi remains part of the team.

Lotterer was previously Jaguar’s F1 test driver back in 2002 and has since won Le Mans three times for Audi Sport and the 2012 World Endurance Championship. He has plenty of single-seater experience and has raced in Japan’s Super Formula series since 2003, taking the 2011 title.

Meanwhile Alexander Rossi will become the first American since 2007 to compete in F1. He replaces Max Chilton for this weekend at Marussia while contractual issues are resolved.