Full throttle ratio	70%
Top speed race	310 km/h
Longest flat-out section	24 sec / 1865 m
Right-/left-hand turns	9/10
Tyre wear	medium
Brake wear	low
Downforce level	low
Gearshifts per lap	52

Circuit Profile: Spa Francorchamps, Belgium

Making a comeback in 2007 after being left out of the championship in 2006, Belgium’s Spa-Francorchamps circuit is perhaps one of the most historic ones on the calendar. Its racing history dates as far back as 1924 when the circuit played host to a non-championship Grand Prix round.

Like the Nürburgring in Germany, the Spa-Francorchamps circuit was originally built on tight and narrow public roads and claims to possess a good rhythm as it follows the geographical boundaries of the land. Originally, the track layout was a whopping 14.9 kilometres in length and was as notorious as it was long. Though its length was eventually reduced over the years, it still measured at just over 14 kilometres when the original circuit held its final Grand Prix in 1970.

From 1970, the circuit was retired for almost 13 years before making a comeback in 1983 with a facelift when the track was halved to under seven kilometres. Miraculously, Spa-Francorchamps managed to somehow retain its allure to drivers and fans alike. The upgrade works ensured that the best parts of the old circuit along with the legendary and technically demanding Eau Rouge corner with its high speed and sudden elevation change were retained. The other changes included the revised and slower corners of the Bus Stop chicane and La Source.

Spa has since then held on to the title of being the longest circuit on the calendar. In addition to being challenging to engineers, the variety of corners and the high-speed nature of circuit is what has earned Spa-Francorchamps a reputation as a great race track and a favourite with most drivers. It continues to appeal to both veteran and rookie drivers though only the true greats can ever claim to have actually mastered it.

Only five men have actually ever won the race at Spa more than twice – Juan Manuel Fangio and Damon Hill with three wins each, Jim Clark with four wins, five race wins for the legendary Ayrton Senna and six for Michael Schumacher. Of the current crop of drivers, only the Finnish Iceman Kimi Räikkönen can claim the accolade joining Fangio and Hill with three Belgian Grand Prix titles to his name.

It also earns it reputation through its notoriously capricious and changeable weather conditions, making it impossible to predict what the condition would be like on any given race weekend as it could be simultaneously raining on one part of the track and completely dry on another.

Set in the Andreas Mountains, the Spa-Francorchamps circuit is situated in the Hautes Fagnes region in the south-eastern part of Belgium, 50 kilometres from Aachen and Liege. close to the German border, the circuit is approximately 150 kilometres by road from Brussels. 

 
Review of the Belgian GP:
 

The infamous Eau Rouge is one of the most spectacular corners in Formula One, which will now be more of a challenge for the drivers again with the reduction in the cars’ downforce. Spa requires less downforce than most of the other circuits in F1. The big unknown in the Ardennes is always the weather – it can change completely in a matter of minutes, but sometimes only on certain sections of the tracks. At seven kilometres, a lap of this rollercoaster track is very long and features some special corners.


PAST WINNERS:

Year	Driver	Year	Driver
2008	F. Massa (Ferrari)	1997	M. Schumacher (Ferrari)
2007	K. Räikkönen (McLaren)	1996	M. Schumacher (Ferrari)
2006	-	1995	M. Schumacher (Benetton)
2005	K. Räikkönen (McLaren)	1994	D. Hill (Williams)
2004	K. Räikkönen (McLaren)	1993	D. Hill (Williams)
2003	-	1992	M. Schumacher (Benetton)
2002	M. Schumacher (Ferrari)	1991	A. Senna (McLaren)
2001	M. Schumacher (Ferrari)	1990	A. Senna (McLaren)
2000	M. Hakkinen (McLaren)	1989	A. Senna (McLaren)
1999	D. Coulthard (McLaren)	1988	A. Senna (McLaren)
1998	D. Hill (Jordan)	1987	A. Prost (McLaren)

Other Circuits