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China 2011 - Race information - Back to back racing as Formula One heads to Shanghai

Published by Christine

The first of our back-to-back races occurs early in the season, with China following on from a pretty successful Malaysia Grand Prix last weekend. With the great and the good of Formula One descending upon the Shanghai International Circuit, we need to recap where we're going and what we're going to find there.

Event schedule

Sebastian Vettel made it two for two in Valencia, with Red Bull remaining dominant for both races in 2011 so far. Even more worryingly, they were on the road to getting their KERS working, although it wasn't a reliable process for them in Sepang.

The good news is that the competition seemed far more fierce in Malaysia, and the trend seems to be heading in the right direction. Both Renault and McLaren were on top form (well, at least half of each team, anyway), although Ferrari continued to struggle.

In the mid-field, Force India and Mercedes picked up a handful of points here and there, but further down the order, Virgin seemed to struggle. HRT qualified and although neither car made it to the end of the Malaysian Grand Prix, they appear to be on the way up. Virgin need to watch out.

Hopefully we will see more of the same excitement this weekend - a super close qualifying to keep us on the edge of our seats, and then plenty of competition as the weekend progresses.

Session Timetable
DateDaySessionTime (GMT+1)Time (Local)
15 AprilFridayFree Practice 103:0010:00
Free Practice 207:0014:00
16 AprilSaturdayFree Practice 304:0011:00
Qualifying07:0014:00
17 AprilSundayGrand Prix08:0015:00

Support racing for this event includes the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia Series.

The weather

The long range weather forecasts for Malaysia predicted rain throughout the weekend, and although there was plenty of precipitation, it missed the most important of sessions. This weekend there is more rain predicted, although it doesn't seem to be as heavy or as often as was forecast for Sepang.

Saturday seems to be the tricky day, with Sunday drying up. It looks like we won't see much of the sun, though.

showers

Shanghai International Circuit, Friday

28℃

  • Low 13℃
  • Humidity 62%

Light rain showers

rain

Shanghai International Circuit, Saturday

15℃

  • Low 11℃
  • Humidity 95%

Light rain

moderate

Shanghai International Circuit, Sunday

21℃

  • Low 10℃
  • Humidity 68%

White cloud

Circuit map

Shanghai International Circuit Map
Shanghai International Circuit MapCredit: FIA

The circuit

Circuit Data
NameShanghai International Circuit
LocationChina
TimezoneGMT +0700
First Race2004
Laps56
Length5.451 km
Distance305.066 km
Start / Finish Offset0.190 km

The Shanghai International Circuit looks impressive, the features were stunning when it first entered the F1 calendar in 2004. However, as the years pass, more wear and tear occurs. The track itself, designed by the infamous Hermann Tilke, has little to get spectators excited.

There are two super-long straights, so again we should see more action from the drag reduction systems. The braking can be tough, and with high speeds, levels of G can be higher than at other tracks.

After the high temperatures and humid air of Malaysia, China offers up some cooler ambient conditions, although it can still be a tough race of endurance.

2010 Results
SessionDriverTeamTimeLinks
Free Practice 1Jenson ButtonMcLaren1:36.677Live / Results
Free Practice 2Lewis HamiltonMcLaren1:35:217Live / Results
Free Practice 3Mark WebberRed Bull1:35.323Live / Results
QualifyingSebastian VettelRed Bull1:34.558Live / Results
Grand PrixJenson ButtonMcLaren1:44:42.163Live / Results
Fastest LapLewis HamiltonMcLaren1:42.061

Tyre compounds

Hard and soft compounds
Hard and soft compoundsCredit: Pirelli

Press conference schedule

Official press conferences are organised by the FIA and happen four times during the weekend. The qualifying and post race press conferences will take place after the television unilateral interviews.

Press Conference Schedule
DayTime (Local)AttendeeRepresenting
Thursday15:00Rubens BarrichelloWilliams
Lewis HamiltonMcLaren
Tonio LiuzziHRT
Michael SchumacherMercedes
Sebastian VettelRed Bull
Friday16:00Aldo CostaFerrari
James KeySauber
Paddy LoweMcLaren
Naoki TakunagaRenault
Geoff WillisHRT
SaturdayPost qualifyingThree fastest drivers
SundayPost raceFirst three finishing drivers

Race stewards

The FIA stewarding process was changed last year to include a former F1 driver to give added insight. These are the stewards overseeing this weekend's action.

F1 Stewards
NamePosition
Emanuele PirroFormer F1 driver and Le Mans winner
Garry ConnellyExecutive Committee Member of FIA Institute
Vincenzo SpanoPresident of Sporting Commision of the Automobile and Touring club of Venezuela

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