Atlas F1 Magazine: The 2004 Hungarian GP Preview

Despite the lack of barriers, the Hungaroring circuit bears an uncanny resemblance to Monaco in terms of requirements, as its tight, twisty nature emphasises strong aerodynamics and mechanical grip; great traction to maximise acceleration is vital, and tyres are worn very quickly so an excellent set-up is paramount; weak engines tends not to be exposed. Despite last year's changes to promote overtaking, it remains very difficult. Mistakes are not punished as severely as they would be in Monaco, as there are no barriers to run into, but reclaiming positions is a problem. The weather is expected to be stormy on Friday, with showers on Saturday and a dry Sunday.

Despite the changes to the circuit ahead of last season's race, intended to improve the overtaking opportunities, there is little doubt that a pass on the circuit is something of a feat. Despite the fact that Ralf Schumacher recovered from a spin that took him to the back of the pack, all the way to fourth place, there is little expectation for more of the same this year.

The circuit is tight and twisty, with the second slowest lap speeds of the year behind Monaco. The surface is smooth, offering the tyre manufacturers a chance to use softer tyres, but the relatively high heat and constant corners lead to issues with wear. Any team that fail to get their cars dialled in properly, no matter how fast their qualifying lap, they are going to struggle badly in the race. This might be interesting if the forecast thunderstorms for Friday and showers for Saturday interfere with proceedings � though you can expect more shenanigans like Silverstone from the pre-qualifying session if the weather-men predict a rain impacted qualifying!

Getting set up for a single hot lap, then banking on keeping cars behind as you struggle for pace, can net points: last season, Mark Webber put the car into third place on the grid, and held on for sixth place overall, and three hard won points. If qualifying well is important, landing an odd numbered slot is more so: the dirty side of the track is notoriously expensive here!

The better pit strategists are expected to be able to make some difference here, as being able to out-think the opposition can be expected to lead to some good places being made up during the pitstops: so whilst the obvious approach is for a three-stop race, it should not be entirely unexpected for a couple of drivers to opt for two, or unusual spacing of their three stops in an attempt to find clear track.

Last year, Bridgestone really did not look in good shape. Michelin had the run on them from beginning to end, as evidenced by Ferrari's poor showing. It is not looking quite so clear cut this year, however. Although Michelin do have an advantage over the first flying lap, their tyres wear faster, so the strategists at Ferrari might be able to make something of that during the race.

That this is not one of Michael Schumacher's best circuits doesn't help Ferrari's cause: the World Champion has been comprehensively beaten here by his teammate for the last two years, though he did win in 2001. Arguably, this is one place where Rubens Barrichello has to fancy his chances of winning on pure pace � whilst that might still leave a Ferrari on the top of the podium, at least a different anthem would make a pleasant change.

It is not expected to go all Ferrari's way this time, though. Renault are looking back on their performance in Monaco this year, and Hungary last, where they demonstrated that this type of circuit fundamentally suits their car. They have a very high torque engine, and their traction control is second to none, so accelerating out of slow corners is their forte � very useful on a circuit like this; furthermore, they are very good at leveraging the best out of their Michelin tyres, generally fairing better than their rivals in high wear situations. Similarly, BAR are coming away from Germany on a high, and despite the fuss being made over Jenson Button's now very public departure to Williams for the next season, they have a package that should be strongly competitive.

McLaren's revised car has shown an impressive leap forward that should at least threaten to make them competitive: seeing one on the front row from qualifying would be little surprise, but it would be interesting to discover whether the wing failure for Kimi Raikkonen in Germany turned out to be useful for hiding a drop in performance as their race progresses.

"As you cross the line at the Hungaroring, you reach some 181mph/290km/h in seventh gear as you power along the approach to turn one. As the downhill right-hander swings you round 180-degrees, your speed drops to 75mph/120km/h. On the power as you exit, you reach 140mph/225km/h in fourth gear along the short straight that leads to turn two, a long second gear left hander that is negotiated at 50mph/80km/h. The sweeping right of turn three follows immediately, and your speed increases to some 140mph/ 225km/h and takes you onto the back straight.

Powering up through the gears to some 178mph/285km/h in seventh, you dab the brakes as you enter the fast, left-hander of turn four. Changing down into fourth gear, it is taken at 125mph/200km/h. You then climb uphill, reaching some 135mph/217km/h, still in fourth, on the approach to turn five. This long, bumpy right hander is taken at 85mph/128km/h in third gear. You push hard on the throttle for the short straight that leads to the right-left chicane of turns six and seven, which is taken at 56mph/90km/h in second. The chicane leads you to turn eight, a third gear left hander, taken at 80mph/128km/h, which itself is immediately followed by the right flick of turn nine.

It is important to maintain your speed through the corner as you accelerate out through the slight left kink of turn ten, reaching 140mph/225km/h in fifth gear. Then softly on the brakes for turn eleven. The track tightens as you drive through the right hander. A short burst on the throttle takes you to the revised 90-degrees right of turn twelve. You brake from 147mph/235km/h to below 100mph/160km/h. On the approach to turn thirteen, you reach 135mph/217km/h in fourth before braking hard for the left-hander hairpin, which is taken at 50mph/80km/h in second. The final right-hander is negotiated at 84mph/136km/h in third gear and takes you back onto the start-finish straight."

Recent races have seen the gap to Ferrari apparently closed by Renault, BAR and McLaren � yet Michael Schumacher continues to dominate, and there is no indication he plans to stop doing so in Hungary.

Whilst Hungary traditionally suits Rubens Barrichello better, the reigning World Champion has been in astonishing form, with little indication that it will abate. Even without further development, the car is an excellent package that is really going to take some beating. The big question mark at the Hungaroring will be, will Bridgestone's tyres be on a par with Michelin's? If that answer is yes, then a Ferrari win must be favourite.

Ferrari themselves are expecting a tough weekend. Whilst Bridgestone have made considerable progress compared to last year, the Monaco weekend illustrated that Michelin still had a slight edge at this type of circuit: consequently, the Japanese manufacturer has been developing rubber specifically for this occasion� so whilst this is probably the best chance the other leading teams will see this season to deprive Ferrari of a winners trophy, they must still be considered marginal favourites to win.

If the PR battle over Button has provided any distraction for the Williams outfit, then they could be in for a long weekend. This is not a circuit that Juan Pablo Montoya gets on with especially well, and Antonio Pizzonia will only be seeing his second outing with the team � last year's impressive performance by Ralf Schumacher will not be repeated, as the German is out of commission for at least the next couple of races.

Williams have not the best of recent histories in Hungary, even though they were fast last year. The team are taking this opportunity to debut a massively revised car, dropping the 'walrus' nose for a more conventional model. Quite how long it will take to establish set-ups for this solution is unknown � as is the performance benefit when the car is properly dialled in. Under the circumstances, the team are more likely to pose a threat in Belgium, where their powerful engine is more relevant and they have had time to understand the new aerodynamics.

Whilst Silverstone demonstrated that their major revisions have clearly moved the team forward, it is not clear quite what the alterations will let them do in Hungary. This is a flat, set-up sensitive circuit � a characteristic shared by Magny-Cours, which proved less flattering to the revised car. However, the team now have far better understanding of their package, so they should be considered the dark horse this weekend.

Before his exit in Germany, Kimi Raikkonen was looking to be in excellent shape. Whilst it was not clear that he could have caught, let alone passed Michael Schumacher, it was obvious that the car was working extraordinarily well, and that McLaren were back in contention. David Coulthard's weekend was not so impressive, but he finished fourth on merit.

BAR and Renault are the most obvious challengers to Ferrari's dominance this weekend, but discounting McLaren would be unwise, particularly if you consider that the Finnish fans travel here, making it effectively a home race for Raikkonen!

Renault must be considered to be very strong at this race. Their performance in Monaco was simply outstanding, and the package has only improved. They have a balanced chassis, efficient aerodynamics, excellent braking and high torque. If Michelin let them qualify ahead of Ferrari, then they have the potential to win this race. The altercations between BAR and Williams over Button might distract the at least one of the team's bigger rivals for this race, which can only help their chances, as will the revised engine they are bringing.

Fernando Alonso, who won last year, is looking for a return to form, and this could provide that opportunity. With Jarno Trulli leaving, there is little doubt that whilst the team will be fair in terms of equipment, if they have a choice of who will win, then the nudge goes to Alonso. Trulli, meanwhile, has been in excellent form this year; a repeat of the performance he put on in Monaco should certainly bring him a win here.

If Germany saw BAR at their best, the spin-laden PR that is taking place over Jenson Button's signing by Williams has to be from the bottom drawer. The outfit have clearly been firing on all cylinders this season, so it may have come as a shock that their star driver is off at the season end, but this should be part of the normal running for a team. This distraction could cost them vital momentum � and this weekend will be a good indicator of what is to come for the remainder of the season.

The car is in good shape, and whilst Renault possibly have better traction out of corners at slow speed, the BAR is clearly no slouch either, and more impressive at the top end. It is unlikely that even Takuma Sato � who is an optimistic and opportunistic overtaker � would be able to pass a Renault here without a considerable advantage, so they must be aiming to run a strategy that allows them to compete without getting stuck behind the French outfit.

If Button can maintain his form from Germany, then he has to be one of the favourites for this race: the Englishman was electrifying there in his recovery to second, after the ten spot penalty for an engine change. Whilst less is expected of Sato, he could be exciting to watch, as his is more likely than most to attempt � and pull off � a difficult overtaking manoeuvre.

Sauber are going to be something of an unknown in Hungary. They have some recent updates that improve the aerodynamic efficiency of the car, and they are clearly benefiting from an up to date specification Ferrari engine. Their pace has clearly improved, but quite how much remains a mystery: Silverstone saw Giancarlo Fisichella put in an impressive drive, but Germany wasn't really anything to write home about. They struggle to qualify well, so Hungary can certainly be expected to be a problem � but it is possible that they will be able to make something of the better life in Bridgestone's tyres to work up some places with pit strategy.

That said, there scoring points would be very hard, and as a prerequisite, the team must work out how to get the best from their tyres in qualifying. Then they might just upset the likes of Williams, and at least be involved in the race. The odds are against it, though.

Jaguar have been making some slow progress as the season progressed, giving Mark Webber the chance to score them some points on merit: his hard won sixth place in Germany has vindicated the team's claim that they are on the way to sorting themselves out. They might not get properly competitive this year, but at least they can start snapping at the heals of the establishment and keep them honest.

Last year, Webber put in an impressive display, qualifying third then resolutely preventing anyone from passing, in as much as it was possible. He came home with a very respectable sixth place. Realistically, the car is not a match for any of the front five teams, but with a couple of retirements, especially if Webber can demonstrate that electric qualifying pace again, they stand a realistic chance of scoring points.

The major revisions Toyota revealed to their car in Germany really left the jury out. They had trouble dialling the car in to the new aerodynamic package, and never really demonstrated the kind of step forward that Williams, Renault and McLaren showed with their major revisions. Consequently, with the testing ban preventing them from getting more work into finding a good baseline, they are going to start by struggling to find the right balances.

This is not especially going to be helped by dropping Cristiano da Matta mid-season, even to put their test driver, Ricardo Zonta, into the seat. On the other hand, the team have little more to gain from the season, so getting a head start on evaluating a potential driver for next season, in genuine race conditions, is probably a good idea. The outfit can be expected to beat Jordan, and probably hope to be ahead of Jaguar, but will be lucky to do so in the race.

Jordan are not expected to bring anything new of significance to this race � whilst they have been working, they are too far back to do more than look at the new car, and use this one as a test bed for developments that the next version might need.

That said, this is a circuit that Nick Heidfeld likes, so if they can get the car dialled in properly � something that has been an issue all season � then there is some chance he will be able to show some pace. Giorgio Pantano actually has some experience of the circuit from his F3000 days, too, so it offers the youngster a chance to close the gap on his experienced teammate.

Prospects for the race are not too good, though � the team are on Bridgestone tyres, so they can expect Michelin shod rivals to be faster in qualifying, and doing much better in the race is going to be tough at best.

As usual, Minardi are expected to do little more than make up the numbers on the grid. Even Jordan has managed to put some developments onto their car this season, so the minnows are falling further behind. Unless Bridgestone happen to produce a particularly impressive tyre, or the skies pick an opportune moment to open, this is going to be another tough weekend for the team.

Last year, the Hungarian Grand Prix saw the youngest winner in Formula One history, as Fernando Alonso took Renault to the top of the podium again. Not only was he the eighth different winner of the season, his strong result helped to keep the Championship battle tight.

The qualifying session demonstrated that Renault's performance in Monaco had been no accident � Fernando Alonso qualified on pole, a third of a second clear of Ralf Schumacher's Williams. The Williams driver was clearly on form at the circuit, being quick all weekend before putting in a very smooth, fast lap that gave him the edge over a very fast Mark Webber � the Jaguar driver had tied Ralf for third place in Friday qualifying.

Webber's form in Hungary was a huge surprise: the Australian had been consistently performing well with Jaguar in qualifying, but had been slowly falling back as the season progressed. Claiming third on the grid was a huge fillip for the team, and one of the key performances that put him to the high on Williams driver shopping list.

Montoya's performance was off the pace of his teammate, but still an improvement on previous years. Collecting fourth place, ahead of Raikkonen and Schumacher, offered the Colombian a chance to fight for a podium and continue to close down the Schumacher and Raikkonen in the Championship.

Ferrari had an off weekend with Rubens Barrichello qualifying in fifth place, well ahead of Michael Schumacher whose eighth spot was representative of his generally poor form. It put the German directly behind Championship rival Kimi Raikkonen, who didn't seem to have a handle on the circuit all weekend, and Jarno Trulli, who was not quite able to duplicate his impressive Friday qualifying pace.

Other notables include David Coulthard in ninth, who had just been confirmed with the team for another year, and Jenson Button in fourteenth: BAR struggled with their cars all weekend.

The dirty side of the track was a real headache for half the grid at the start: by the end of the straight, Alonso had a comfortable lead, whilst both Williams struggled to get moving. Alonso was followed into the corner by Webber, Barrichello, Raikkonen, Trulli, Coulthard and Michael Schumacher � Montoya had dropped to eighth, with Ralf further back. The German's race was about to get tougher, however, as he spun the car whilst taking evasive action into the second corner to avoid running into his teammate, dropping to eighteenth.

Alonso made the most of his lead to stretch twelve seconds away from the pack in five laps. Webber, meanwhile, whilst clearly off the Renault's pace, was almost impossible to pass so he held up the pack effectively. It did mean that the cars remained close, allowing Ralf Schumacher to make up places fairly rapidly: he was back in eleventh place by the tenth lap.

Alonso pitted on lap 13, with twenty seconds in hand over Webber. Raikkonen and Trulli stopped a couple of laps later, whilst Ralf continued his fight to be back up to seventh, and was just behind Montoya. Barrichello and Montoya pitted shortly after, with Michael and Ralf Schumacher stopping a lap later, the World Champion leading his brother. Coulthard was the last top running to stop, returning between the Schumacher brothers.

Montoya now pressured Barrichello, but on lap twenty the Ferrari suffered a failure, leading to the left rear wheel coming adrift at the end of the straight. The Brazilian ploughed into the tyre wall at high speed, but escaped unscathed from the incident. Ralf passed Coulthard on the same lap, moving back behind his brother. Montoya now pushed Trulli, who was not on the pace of his teammate, and losing ground to Webber, who had lost his place to Raikkonen in the stops.

Alonso continued to run flawlessly, extending his lead over Raikkonen to 27 seconds by lap 25: enough to make his second stop without giving up the lead, whilst Ralf passed his brother. All the leaders stopped again over the next four laps, except Michael Schumacher and David Coulthard � the German holding off on stopping for a further eight laps. However, he returned to the track in eighth behind Trulli, who had lost out to the Williams duo during the pitstops.

Ralf tracked Webber until Coulthard stopped on lap 43, before sliding inside the Jaguar for fourth place.

The final round of stops was uneventful, seeing all the leaders maintaining station. Alonso maintained his 20 second lead over Raikkonen, who was tracked by the Williams drivers. Coulthard moved ahead of Webber by not stopping � he was on a different strategy � and Trulli lapped shortly ahead of Schumacher. Adding insult to injury for these two drivers, they were shown the blue flag as Alonso came around to lap them before the end of the race�

It was a tour de force for the youngster, who won the race cleanly and in dominant style.

Points paying positions - pitstops

1. Alonso    Renault 3
2. Raikkonen     McLaren-Mercedes 3
3. Montoya     Williams-BMW 3
4. R.Schumacher Williams-BMW 3
5. Coulthard     McLaren-Mercedes 2
6. Webber      Jaguar-Cosworth 3
7. Trulli      Renault 3
8. M.Schumacher Ferrari 3

Classified: 13 from 20 starters

Fastest lap: Montoya, 1:22.095

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