Catalunya
Denmark’s Marco Sorensen gave us the lowdown on Catalunya, which regularly hosts testing sessions and is well-known by all the drivers.
1] The first part is very interesting and determines how much pace you’ll have for the rest of the lap. You have to make sure you come out of the first right/left-hander in the right shape so you can go flat out on the long right-hander, which is a very typical turn. I love it. You then need to trail brake for the next right-hander, which opens out a lot as you exit, so you have watch the racing line.
2] The second sector is fast. The first problem comes at Turn 5 because there’s grip as you go in and then none at all on the exit. The left/right turn that sets you up for the climb is a challenge because the lie of the land means you can’t see the apex. You need to play with the kerbs here and stay loose or you’ll lose speed.
3] The last sector is less interesting and not as quick, but as is often the case, it’s in parts of the track like this that you can lose time. The ground goes up and down again and the biggest problem here is the last chicane. You have to brake late and hard but make sure you don’t slow down too much because the last turn and the very long straight that follows it all depend on how you exit. It’s a real tester.
Official Renault Sport Press Release.