A Guide to the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort
Formula 1 Dutch GP at Circuit Zandvoort on September 04, 2022. Netherlands. Photo courtesy: Red Bull Content Pool/Peter Fox/Getty Images.

Formula One returns from summer break this weekend as the second half of the season gets underway at Zandvoort, host to the Dutch Grand Prix, home race to two-time Formula 1 world champion Max Verstappen, bidding to claim a third consecutive victory at the challenging circuit.

On Sunday, Round 14 of the FIA Formula One World Championship 2023 calendar, the F1 Heineken Dutch Grand Prix will resume Formula One action in the Netherlands, the homeland of championship leader Max Verstappen, who won the last two races of Zandvoort in 2021 and 2022.

Located between the sand dunes on the Dutch North Sea coast, the town of Zandvoort is the home to the permanent track, which returned to host a Formula One GP after a 36-year hiatus.

The track layout, spanning 4.259km (2.646 miles), kept its old-school rollercoaster nature while adjusting to the series’ modern era, poising a fierce challenge to the drivers across 72 laps.

According to the FIA, in 2023, the circuit features a series of changes, focussing on improving track safety. The fencing has been upgraded on the right-hand side of T7 and T8 and in the run-off at T12.

In addition, bumps have been removed on the start/finish straight before T1 and on the right-hand side between T5 and T6.

The narrow circuit consists of 14 corners, 10 to the right and four to the left, a sequence that makes overtaking a tricky business.

Moreover, the banked corners at T3 and T14 see the cars tackle 18 degrees of banking.

In that regard, Mario Isola - Pirelli Motorsport Director, explains: “It’s a very twisty track with two banked corners Turn 3 and 14 steeper than Indianapolis, by comparison. On corners like this, the stress on the tires is greater than it would be through normal corners, as the vertical forces increase with the much higher speeds due to the banking.”

We have brought the same tires as 2022, at least as far as the names are concerned: C1, C2, and C3. However, the current C1 is actually a new compound for this year, positioned between the C2 and the previous C1, which is now called the C0.

Last year, in a race characterized by two neutralisations, no fewer than 14 drivers - including the top three - used all three compounds, underlining the wide variety of options available to the strategists on the pit wall.”

Tradition and History

The original circuit became part of the pinnacle of motorsport in 1952, with Alberto Ascari taking victory for Scuderia Ferrari, the most successful constructor at Zandvoort, recording eight wins.

The Grand Prix, a regular to the Formula One calendar, saw its last race being held in 1985 as the organizers followed to cease operations.

Niki Lauda crossed the finish line first to clinch his last career victory at the wheel of the McLaren MP4/2B.

Overall, Lauda won the race on three occasions, one victory short of Jim Clark.

Since its return to the calendar in 2021, the event has become a favorite for Dutch fans and spectators worldwide.

Last December, Formula One announced the extension of the original three-year contract until 2025.

Cecilia demartini
Sports Pundit staff writer @ceci_2812
Cecilia is a writer and journalist, passionate about motorsport and tennis.Her articles are published in newspapers and international online publications.

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