Race Preview 2012 BRAZILIAN GRAND PRIX 23 – 25 NOVEMBER 2012 ão Paulo welcomes Formula One as the teams CIRCUIT DATA Sassemble at Interlagos for the 20th and final round of AUTÓDROMO JOSÉ the 2012 F1 World Championship. The Brazilian Grand CARLOS PACE Prix has been the scene of much drama since it moved (INTERLAGOS) from the beginning to the end of the F1 season and it has Length of lap: the opportunity to be so again as Sebastian Vettel and 4.309km Fernando Alonso go head-to-head around the famous Lap record: Autódromo José Carlos Pace, each seeking to become a 1:11.473 (Juan Pablo Montoya, Williams, 2004) three-times World Champion. Start line/finish line offset: Interlagos has never struggled to provide entertainment. 0.030km The roller-coaster configuration provides several excellent Total number of race laps: 71 overtaking prospects, while the off-camber corners and Total race distance: uphill/downhill braking zones provide ample opportunities 305.9km for error. The weather often plays a part and the safety car Pitlane speed limits: has seen action frequently in recent years. In short, it is the 60km/h in practice and perfect venue for a championship showdown. qualifying. 100km/h during the race Cut into a hillside, the circuit is a natural amphitheatre, CHANGES TO THE providing the huge and usually raucous crowd with superb CIRCUIT SINCE 2011 views of the action as the circuit drops from the heights ►New debris fences have been of the start-finish straight down to the Descida do Lago installed on both sides of the section at Turns Four and Five. It then winds back and track between turns 3 and 4. forth across the bowl before reaching the Junção corner ►A kerb has been installed on followed by the long full-throttle ascent back to the line. the apex of turn 15. Red Bull Racing wrapped up the Constructors’ ► Tube inserts have been Championship last weekend in Austin at the United placed in the tyre barrier on the end of the wall at the pit States Grand Prix, leaving the field clear for the Drivers’ entry. Championship to be the sole focus of attention in Brazil. Going to Interlagos, Sebastian Vettel leads Fernando Alonso by 13 points. With a superior win record in 2012, Vettel will take the title if the pair finish tied on points – meaning Vettel can afford to finish fourth and be guaranteed his third World Championship in three years with the 12 points that brings. Vettel has been on the podium for the last six races but will take nothing for granted. Interlagos tends to be rather more capricious than other circuits. 3 4 2 1 5 6 12 Pit Lane 11 9 7 13 8 10 15 14 SAFER BARRIER Key Speed Kmh Speed mph Lateral G-force Circuit Safety Car Marshals Racing Line Gear Grid Medical Vehicles Run-off Areas Tyre Walls Sector Time Lap Time Timing Sector Finish Marshal Lights Gravel Traps Fencing Brazilian GP Fast Facts ► Five Brazilian drivers have won their drivers to win in both cities are Prost of the final lap. Hamilton passed home grand prix: Emerson Fittipaldi and Carlos Reutemann. the Toyota of Timo Glock in the final (1973-74), Carlos Pace (1975), ► The shorter Interlagos circuit features seconds of the race and beat Massa Nelson Piquet (1983, 1986), Ayrton many sections carried over from its by a solitary point. Senna (1991, 1993), and Felipe predecessor. The back straight (Reta ► That has not been Interlagos’ only Massa (2006, 2008). Oposta) formerly ran in the opposite moment of drama. Between 2005- ► Alain Prost is the most successful direction. It is parallel to the original 2010 the Brazilian Grand Prix played driver in the history of the race with back straight, still in evidence behind a significant part in every Drivers’ six victories (1982, 1984-85, 1987- the spectator viewing areas. Championship battle. 2005 saw 88, 1990). Among the current field ► Altitude is a factor at Interlagos: the Fernando Alonso finish third to clinch Michael Schumacher (1994-95, 2000, circuit is 800m above sea-level. Cars the title with two races remaining. 2002), Massa and Mark Webber require more wing for a given level Alonso triumphed again the following (2009, 2011) are multiple winners. of downforce than they would at sea- year in a season-ending showdown Kimi Räikkönen (2007) and Sebastian level; however the thinner air does with Michael Schumacher. The 2007 Vettel (2010) have also won here. mean a corresponding reduction race was again a season finale and ► Sunday’s race will see the second in drag. For engines, the reduced saw the outsider Kimi Räikkönen retirement of Michael Schumacher. amount of available oxygen leads to a crowned after winning the grand prix, The seven-times World Champion decrease in power. finishing the season one point ahead first retired from Formula One after ► 2008 saw perhaps the most thrilling of both Alonso and Hamilton. In 2009 the season-ending Brazilian Grand championship climax of all time with Jenson Button clinched the title at Prix of 2006. the title not decided until half a minute Interlagos with one race to spare ► The 4.3km Interlagos layout has held after the winner had crossed the line. and in 2010 Sebastian Vettel went the F1 Brazilian GP since 1990. Prior In gloomy conditions Felipe Massa into the race fourth in the standings to this the race was held in Rio de won the race for Ferrari leaving, but won to pull himself back into Janeiro at Jacarepaguá (1978,1981- McLaren’s Lewis Hamilton the task of championship contention going to the 89) and on the longer 8km Interlagos finishing fifth. With rain falling he was final round in Abu Dhabi, where he layout (1973-77, 1979-80). The only running only sixth into the last sector duly won his first title. Brazilian GP Championship Standings (Drivers) Australia Malaysia China Bahrain Spain Monaco Canada Europe GB Germany Hungary Belgium Italy Singapore Japan Korea India Abu Dhabi USA Brazil POINTS 1. Sebastian Vettel 18 0 10 25 8 12 12 0 15 10 12 18 0 25 25 25 25 15 18 -- 273 2. Fernando Alonso 10 25 2 6 18 15 10 25 18 25 10 0 15 15 0 15 18 18 15 -- 260 3. Kimi Raikkonen 6 10 0 18 15 2 4 18 10 15 18 15 10 8 8 10 6 25 8 -- 206 4. Lewis Hamilton 15 15 15 4 4 10 25 0 4 0 25 0 25 0 10 1 12 0 25 -- 190 5. Mark Webber 12 12 12 12 0 25 6 12 25 4 4 8 0 0 2 18 15 0 0 -- 167 6. Jenson Button 25 0 18 0 2 0 0 4 1 18 8 25 0 18 12 0 10 12 10 -- 163 7. Felipe Massa 0 0 0 2 0 8 1 0 12 0 2 10 12 4 18 12 8 6 12 -- 107 8. Romain Grosjean 0 0 8 15 12 0 18 0 8 0 15 0 0 6 0 6 2 0 6 -- 96 9. Nico Rosberg 0 0 25 10 6 18 8 8 0 1 1 0 6 10 0 0 0 0 0 -- 93 10. Sergio Perez 4 18 0 0 0 0 15 2 0 8 0 0 18 1 0 0 0 0 0 -- 66 11. Kamui Kobayashi 8 0 1 0 10 0 2 0 0 12 0 0 2 0 15 0 0 8 0 -- 58 12. Nico Hulkenberg 0 2 0 0 1 4 0 10 0 2 0 12 0 0 6 8 4 0 4 -- 53 13. Paul Di Resta 1 6 0 8 0 6 0 6 0 0 0 1 4 12 0 0 0 2 0 -- 46 14. Pastor Maldonado 0 0 4 0 25 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 0 0 10 2 -- 45 15. Michael Schumacher 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 15 6 6 0 6 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 -- 43 16. Bruno Senna 0 8 6 0 0 1 0 1 2 0 6 0 1 0 0 0 1 4 1 -- 31 17. Jean-Eric Vergne 0 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 0 0 0 4 0 0 0 -- 12 18. Daniel Ricciardo 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 2 1 2 0 1 0 -- 10 19. Timo Glock 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 -- 0 20. Heikki Kovalainen 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 -- 0 21. Vitaly Petrov 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 -- 0 22. Jerome D’Ambrosio -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- 0 -- -- -- -- -- -- -- 0 23. Charles Pic 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 -- 0 24. Narain Karthikeyan 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 -- 0 25. Pedro de la Rosa 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 -- 0 Brazilian GP GP Championship Standings (Constructors) Australia Malaysia China Bahrain Spain Monaco Canada Europe GB Germany Hungary Belgium Italy Singapore Japan Korea India Abu Dhabi USA Brazil POINTS 1. Red Bull Racing 30 12 22 37 8 37 18 12 40 14 16 26 0 25 27 43 40 15 18 -- 440 2.