The very president of the BRDC, former Formula One champion Damon Hill, was the first to disagree with the new changes, insisting that the Arena layout – which will make the famous 'Bridge' corner section disappear and bring two new infield straights in exchange – will make racing less exciting as compared to the previous action at Silverstone.
The new layout was initially projected to accommodate the MotoGP riders for this year's British GP, but will from now on be used in the F1 also. As said by Hill, the layout change is “destroying the essence of what brought fans to formula one in the first place.”
“If you are asking me to say it's fantastic, I'm afraid I am not going to do that. I am not satisfied that we will be providing the best facility we could,” said Hill, according to the Daily Mail.
While the new layout will help the Silverstone officials sell 20,000 more tickets for the Formula One race year in and year out, it will also help to the development of the entire Northemptonshire complex. However, all of this will be made on the expense of true values of racing, argued the former F1 champ.
“It is fast, exciting corners that drivers love. It is what fans love. So, it's illogical not to concentrate on developing the sporting challenge. I have the idea of my perfect, fantasy track and that's not what we are building,” added the Brit.
Google News