The Magyar NagydĂ*g at the Hungaroring in Budapest hosts the eleventh round of this twenty-one round 2016 season.
The first Hungarian Grand Prix was pre-Formula 1 world championship, in 1936 in Budapest and held in NĂ©pliget, the largest park in the capital. It was won by Alfa Romeo and Tazio Nuvolari.
The first race of the modern incarnation was in 1986 and the Grand Prix has become more highly regarded as time has gone by, somehow surviving on the calendar where some may have expected it wouldn’t. This will be the circuit's thirty-first consecutive Grand Prix; only Monte Carlo and Monza have hosted more consecutive races. It can be tremendously difficult to pass here, but it has nonetheless thrown up some enthralling races.
High downforce and therefore sometimes simplistically described as ‘like Monaco without the houses’, it actually has some long, winding corners, which lend it a relentless nature; in Sector 2 particularly, there is little respite for the drivers. Some drivers love it for this reason and have talked about how it is great to be able to get into a groove here.
The Hungaroring is also considered one of the better races for spectators, with the hillside banking providing a good view of the circuit.
The downhill Turn 1 plunges tight-right, with another straight the critical preparation for a sort of hairpin at Turn 2, several approaches to it meaning that passes are possible here on the opening tour. After then shooting around 60 degrees right, a straight takes the drivers uphill before the quick left, Turn 4, is soon halted by a tight right, Turn 5. The track then heads into a quick chicane with a 90 right and a much more open left on the exit, daring drivers to push harder to gain more time through there.
After a left at Turn 8 and the 90-right Turn 9, the track sweeps through 10, goes 90 right at 11 and 12 and then goes into two long hairpins to end the lap, a constant test of balance and throttle control as drivers wait to eagerly stamp on the throttle again. The DRS detection zone is just before the final of these and there is activation on the start-finish straight and just coming out of Turn 1.
In the last ten years, only three drivers have won from pole and the last driver to win the race and also take the drivers' championship that year was Michael Schumacher in 2004.
In the inaugural race, Williams's Nelson Piquet put a great pass around the Lotus of Ayrton Senna at Turn 1 on opposite lock. After a wheel nut came off Nigel Mansell's car the following year on Lap 70, he took that one too. Derek Warwick took the final point in sixth despite driving with flu and conjunctivitis. Jonathan Palmer cams seventh and won the Jim Clark Cup that year for normally-aspirated cars.
In 1988, Alain Prost made an audacious move on Ayrton Senna and the drivers they were lapping, Gabriele Tarquini and Yannick Dalmas. However, he ran wide at Turn 1. Senna went on to win from Prost and Thierry Boutsen, who seemed to figure well at this circuit. Nigel Mansell retired, feeling unwell with chicken pox and then missed the next two Grands Prix.
The next year, Mansell made a decisive move on Ayrton Senna exiting Turn 3 as they caught Stefan Johansson's Onyx. Boutsen was once again third for Williams. He had scythed his way through from 12th on the grid.
In 1990 Thierry Boutsen held Ayrton Senna at bay for lap after lap to provide himself with his final win and many people, rather unfairly, with fodder to say it’s too difficult to overtake here, instead of congratulating him on a decent defensive drive.
The following two years, Senna won and Nigel Mansell took his championship here in 1992.
First-time winners at the Hungaroring include McLaren’s Fernando Alonso and Jenson Button, Heikki Kovalainen (his only Grand Prix win) and Damon Hill.
Damon's first win was in 1993, following two races he had led and had failures in. As he usually did, Michael Schumacher won in 1994 in his Benetton-Ford and was followed home by Damon Hill and Jos Verstappen.
In 1995, Damon Hill won from pole position in a race in which Taki Inoue was hit by a marshal's car as he tried to put a fire out on his Footwork.
Going forward two years, it was, in fact, Damon who was the star of the slightly bizarre 1997 race, which he so nearly won for Arrows before lugging the car home runner-up. There were few Bridgestone-shod teams in that first year for the Japanese manufacturer and that day the Bridgestones were the tyres to have. Damon came within a whisker of a win, a hydraulic pump failure three laps before the chequered flag giving him an intermittent throttle and only third gear at his disposal.
1998 was another notable race, where Michael Schumacher was ordered by Ferrari to build an enormous lead (24 seconds) in order to emerge from his final splash-and-dash stop ahead of McLaren’s David Coulthard. He managed 27 seconds.
Going forward to the last decade, Button’s first Hungarian Grand Prix win in 2006, and first Grand Prix win overall, was from 14th on the grid, the furthest back anyone has won at the circuit.
In 2014, one of the stars of the season, Daniel Ricciardo came through from 4th on the grid to take the last of his three 2014 wins. It’s quite a different picture this year, as Red Bull have been struggling.
As with the previous year, in 2015 Mercedes did not have a successful Hungarian Grand Prix, both drivers having scrappy runs. Daniel Ricciardo collided with both Mercedes drivers and Sebastian Vettel took the victory.
We can expect to see Red Bull have another strong run this weekend. A high-downforce track should suit the car and Max Verstappen in particular has been coming on strongly of late. Can Daniel Ricciardo strike back or is Verstappen set to establish himself over his teammate?
To join in our predictions contest on Ten-Tenths, go here:
http://tentenths.com/forum/showthread.php?t=147500
Our Fantasy F1 contest is here:
http://tentenths.com/forum/showthread.php?t=146625
Constructors’ championship standings:
http://www.formula1.com/content/fom-...standings.html
Drivers’ championship standings:
http://www.formula1.com/content/fom-...standings.html
Hungarian Grand Prix tyre selections:
http://www.fia.com/news/f1-tyre-choi...ian-grand-prix
Circuit length: 4.381km
Number of laps: 70
Race distance: 306.63km
Dry weather tyre compounds: Medium, Soft and Supersoft
DRS detection zone: just before Turn 14 (final corner)
DRS Activation Zone 1: Start-finish straight
DRS Activation Zone 2: Just after Turn 1
Lap Record: 1:19.071 (2004 – Michael Schumacher – Ferrari)
First World Championship Grand Prix: 1986
