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Life / Sport / Motor
Motor sports in the UK
     
Sections:
Introduction
Motor racing
  Rally racing
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INTRODUCTION


A brief guide to motor sports in the UK.

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MOTOR RACING


British Grand Prix, Silverstone

Racing driver

The annual international Formula 1 competition is popular in the UK. The winner of the the drivers' championships in recent years were:
2008: Lewis Hamilton (UK)
2009: Jenson Button (UK)
2010: Sebastian Vettel (Germany)

The 2011 races will be as follows:

Number Grand Prix Location Date
1 Bahrain Sakhir 13 March 2011
2 Australian Melbourne 27 March 2011
3 Malaysian Kuala Lumpur 10 April 2011
4 Chinese Shanghai 17 April 2011
5 Turkish Istanbul 8 May 2011
6 Spanish Barcelona 22 May 2011
7 Monaco Monte Carlo 29 May 2011
8 Canadian Montreal 12 June 2011
9 European Valencia 26 June 2011
10 British Silverstone 10 July 2011
11 German Nürburgring 24 July 2011
12 Hungarian Budapest 31 July 2011
13 Belgian Spa-Francorchamps 28 August 2011
14 Italian Monza 11 September 2011
15 Singapore Singapore 25 September 2011
16 Japanese Suzuka 9 October 2011
17 Korean Yeongam 16 October 2011
18 Indian Greater Noida 30 October 2011
19 Abu Dhabi Yas Marina 13 November 2011
20 Brazilian São Paulo 27 November 2011

There is a qualification session on the day before each Grand Prix. The drivers try to complete a lap in the fastest time, and this determines the order in which they start on the grid.

The top eight finishers in each Grand Prix score points according to the following scale:
1st: 10 points ; 2nd: 8 points ; 3rd: 6 points ; 4th: 5 points ; 5th: 4 points ; 6th: 3 points ; 7th: 2 points ; 8th: 1 point
The driver with the highest number of points at the end of the season wins the drivers' championship.
Similarly, the construction team with the most points wins the constructors' championship.

The British Grand Prix takes place in the summer at Silverstone race track (in Northamptonshire, about 1 hour from London by car). The location is shown on this map. For details of the race calendar at Silverstone this year, see: http://www.silverstone-circuit.co.uk.

For up-to-date grand prix news, see:
BBC: http://www.bbc.co.uk/formula1
ITV: http://www.itv.com/f1

For further information about the sport, see: http://www.formula1.com/inside_f1/understanding_the_sport


Lewis Hamilton: My Story
(British Formula 1 driver)
Author: Lewis Hamilton
Publisher: HarperSport
Date: November 2007
Lewis Hamilton - Life In The Fast Lane (DVD)
Studio: Warner Music Entertainment
Date: October 2007

Vocabulary

If English is not your first language, here is some vocabulary which may help you to understand a grand prix race on television:

general: formula one (F1), drivers' championship, constructors' championship, track, straight, turn, corner, a hairpin bend, lap number
the race: front row of the starting grid, to be in pole position/on pole, to have a good/bad getaway, to go through, to let through, to pass, to overtake, to make a move, to gain a place, to impede, to be on someone's tail, to close the gap, to close in on, to catch, to cut across, to lead, to be back in contention, to run wide, to be in someone's slipstream, to fall back, to spin, to crash, to retire from the race, to lap someone, to pass the chequered flag, to stand on the podium
the car: pit crew, to make a pit stop, mechanics, engineers, garage, nose, back, rear, wing, inside, outside, cockpit, gearbox, gears, hydaulics, engine, throttle, tyres [soft tyres, intermediate tyres, full/extreme wet weather tyres], traction, grip
problems: a lock-up, engine cut-out, burst tyre, collision, suspension failure, safety car, debris, to spin off

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RALLY RACING

See: http://www.britishrallying.com

(c) Wales Tourist Board. All rights reserved
Network Q Rally

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LINKS


London-Brighton veteran car run: Ideas/Album/VeteranCarRun
Sport in the UK: Life/Sport
Monthly guide to events in the UK: Ideas/Events

Home page: Home

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