Chinese Doctor: Bell – a madman on the way to the pit! / System 1

Of course, the 1000th round of the Formula 1 World Championship would have to be held at the traditional racetrack, at Silverstone (where the first round was held in 1950) or Monza. But it was Shanghai.

In 2019, Formula 1 displayed all kinds of memorabilia on the vast grounds of the Shanghai International Circuit: steering wheels, trophies, models of legendary racing cars, Formula 1 engines. However, sparks could not fly because The heart of Formula 1 beats in Europe, not China.

Who would have thought then that the Prime Minister’s class would not return to Shanghai for five years? The corona crisis and difficult negotiations with the organizers followed, and the Prime Minister class will not return to China until 2024.

The 1106th round of the World Championship at the Shanghai International Circuit offers all kinds of surprises.

When the Shanghai International Circuit opened in 2004, it was considered the most expensive racing facility in the world – with construction costs of (not officially confirmed) $500 million.

Racetrack architect Hermann Tilke spoke about the construction: “We had to find a completely new solution in China to be able to lay the foundation at all.”

In concrete terms, this means: Even today there is still a swamp under the race track, the track rests on more than 40,000 concrete pillars that were driven 80 meters deep into the ground, on top of which Tilke and his colleagues built the column. of Styrofoam. The environment of the model is plastic, with two meters of land on top.

Tilke continues: “The challenges of special terrain are one thing; We often face problems because construction in other countries cannot be compared to working at home. You have to adapt to local conditions or other construction methods.

The biggest enemy when building a race track is always time. “We have to finish by a certain date,” Tilke said, “we can’t afford delays.” Over twenty years ago, 14,000 to 15,000 skilled workers raced to get everything done on time.

From the bird’s point of view, the course layout is reminiscent of the Chinese character “shang”, which means high or high in German.

The Chinese Grand Prix has been held 16 times since 2004. Of these winners, eight drivers became world champions in the same year (Alonso in 2005, Räikkönen in 2007, Hamilton in 2008, Hamilton in 2014 and 2015, Rosberg in 2016 and Hamilton in 2017 and 2019).

The press center is located 140 meters above the ground, in one of two large, wing-shaped elements above the start/finish straight.

A quarter of an hour after the start of the second free practice session for the 2015 Chinese Grand Prix, a man dressed in black, apparently coming from the grandstand, ran towards the start/finish straight, roughly on the line of ending, and. it dived expertly over the pit wall towards the Ferrari.

The man made a beeline for the Ferrari pits, but was overpowered by security forces before entering the area of ​​Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Räikkönen.

According to those who witnessed the incident, the man said in Chinese that he wanted to drive a Formula 1 car. So far, the organizers have not revealed who or how the man was punished.

Chinese Grand Prix: The Golden Book

2004: Rubens Barrichello (BR), Ferrari
2005: Fernando Alonso (L), Renault
2006: Michael Schumacher (D), Ferrari
2007: Kimi Räikkönen (FIN), Ferrari
2008: Lewis Hamilton (GB), McLaren-Mercedes
2009: Sebastian Vettel (D), Red Bull Racing-Renault
2010: Jenson Button (GB), McLaren-Mercedes
2011: Lewis Hamilton (GB), McLaren-Mercedes
2012: Nico Rosberg (D), Mercedes
2013: Fernando Alonso (E), Ferrari
2014: Lewis Hamilton (GB), Mercedes
2015: Lewis Hamilton (GB), Mercedes
2016: Nico Rosberg (D), Mercedes
2017: Lewis Hamilton (GB), Mercedes
2018: Daniel Ricciardo (AUS), Red Bull Racing-Renault
2019: Lewis Hamilton (GB), Mercedes