GP2

 

GP2 Hungary Preview from Esteban Gutierrez:

Budapest, Hungary – Round 9 of the 2012 GP2 Series championship sees Esteban Gutierrez and his Lotus GP team head the Hungary GP. The Mexican is currently third in the drivers’ championship.

The drivers enjoy the Hungaroring because it’s like an overgrown go-kart track. Each corner leads into the next, and there is very little chance to pause and catch one’s breath. Basically, it’s Monaco but without the buildings.

The constantly changing gradient makes the track interesting to race on, and precision is of key importance because the car is turning for a large part of the lap. It can be hard on tyres, and the cars require mechanical grip and a torquey engine. Most of all, the emphasis is on downforce and teams will run maximum wing.

The track runs along one side of a valley, drops down into the sweeping Turns 1 and 2, and then rises up again. It’s at this first corner that the only real chance of a passing move lies. The final section of spoon curves allows cars to bunch up tightly behind each other, all looking to catapult themselves past on the straight.

Esteban has been successful here in the past, finishing second in both GP3 and GP2 last year.

Lotus GP is the team to beat. They have 245 points compared to DAMS 229. Third-placed Esteban is sitting on 129 championship points, while leader Luiz Razia and second-place Davide Valsecchi are on 171 and 161 points respectively.