01/07/2008
NEWS STORY
The Bridgestone-supported GP2 Series heads to Silverstone, home of British Grand Prix for the fifth round of the championship where 26 drivers will do battle to work their way to the top of the list of favourites for a drive in Formula One next season.
The 5.14km Silverstone track presents a tough challenge for competitors. A fast layout, with a slower complex just before the start finish straight, means that the tyres receive a harsh workout. Allied to this, the track surface is also one of the most abrasive encountered.
There is a change from last season for this round. In 2007 Bridgestone brought its hard compound Potenza GP2 tyre to Silverstone, but after analysing the data accumulated, GP2 will now run on the medium compound here. This will mean that teams and drivers have additional work to do, as they have less data, and will have to be vigilant regarding their tyre management.
In 2007, British driver Adam Carroll (FMS International) and UAE driver Andreas Zuber (iSport International) won a race apiece. Zuber is contesting this season's championship with Piquet Sports and will be hoping for a repeat performance.
Heading to Silverstone, Pantano leads the drivers' championship on 35 points ahead of Senna on 28. Buemi is in third position on 20 points. iSport International leads the teams' championship with 41 points from Racing Engineering on 38. Piquet Sports are in third place on 35.
Hirohide Hamashima - Director of Bridgestone Motorsport Tyre Development: Silverstone is an interesting circuit. The layout is very high speed over most of the lap, and the track surface is very abrasive. We have changed our tyre allocation from the hard compound we used last season, to the medium for this year. We are confident in this choice, however, teams will have to collect data from the Friday and Saturday running before the first race. This data will be very important for the tyre management in the races. Of course, the GP2/08 car has more downforce than the previous car, and combined with the softer tyre there should be faster laps. Around Silverstone there should be some good racing because of this.