What changes did the Sao Paulo circuit go through before the weekend?
The 4.3km long Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace went through a few key changes before the weekend in order to improve track conditions both in dry and wet weather.
The circuit named in honour of Brazilian racer José Carlos Pace, is 4.309 kilometres long. It was built between 1938 and 1940 and takes much of its inspiration from three classic circuits: Brooklands in England, Roosevelt Raceway in the United States and Montlhery in France.
The layout at Interlagos is interesting, with hints of an anti-clockwise oval circuit, which the drivers deal with 71 times in the race. It boasts 15 corners with relatively balanced lateral and longitudinal forces that do not put any undue strain on the tyres, as they are subjected to loads distributed equally between the front and rear axles.
The combination of several straights and much twistier sections offers plenty of overtaking opportunities, although it also means there’s a higher risk of Safety Cars and incidents.
A further peculiarity of Interlagos is the bumpy nature of the track, as a result of it being built on relatively unstable ground: just one more challenge for drivers and teams to deal with in terms of set-up and tyre management.
The track received a new asphalt last year, albeit it had not entirely convinced drivers. Reigning champion Max Verstappen had even noted that some areas were so bumpy that lines had to be altered to protect the tyres, even in wet conditions.
As a result of this, the organizers of the São Paulo Grand Prix decided to resurface large portions of the first and third sectors of the track for this year's race.
Moreover, last year's wet race also highlighted the poor effectiveness of drainage, with multiple drivers suffering from aquaplaning incidents. To imrpove the situation, the drainage has also been revised, with additional channels cut into the asphalt to allow water to flow more efficiently across multiple points of the circuit.
"The track has been resurfaced from Turn 12 to Turn 1 and from Turn 3 to Turn 4. Grooving has been undertaken at Turn 2, from the pit exit to Turn 4, on the straight after Turn 5, on the straight between Turns 11 and Turn 12, and from grid position 21 all the way to the starting line.
"The hatched zone between the pit exit road (on the right-hand side) and the track edge has been removed," the FIA's pre-race document read.
