The changes to the aforementioned part of the circuit consist of a 1.5-meter raise of the rear of the gravel trap, aimed to slow down the cars that could run off the track. In addition, the gravel trap was also updated, while the kerb and artificial grass behind the track at Turn 9 have been extended by 10 metres.
During last year's race, the Finnish driver was the victim of a high-speed crash in Turn 9, as a failure on his McLaren MP4-23's front wheel caused the car to spear off the track and head right into the barriers. Fortunately for the McLaren driver, he escaped the crash without major injuries and was ready to race from as early as the next event.
Nevertheless, the International Automobile Federation (FIA) had then urged the Spanish organizers to make the necessary adjustments to the aforementioned run-off area in order to prevent incident such as these from happening again.
In addition to the Turn 9 changes, further safety-related updates were set up in Turns 1 and 10 (tire barriers). Also, the gravel section in Turn 3 has been replaced by asphalt.
Overall, the organizers have added 4 km of new tire barriers around the entire Catalonian track.
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