F1 in Zandvoort test with DRS through the banked back corner

F1 will once again allow DRS to be used through the final corner of the track, which allows for high speeds due to its oval-like slope, in free practice this weekend at Zandvoort.

The Dutch circuit underwent some changes before last year's F1 race, which returned to the legendary track for the first time since 1985, including the final corner of the Arie Luyendyk Bocht, which is now inclined by 18 degrees and allows for very high speeds.

Last year, it was planned that the DRS zone would extend from the beginning of the fast right-hand corner to the end of the start-finish straight, but for safety reasons, the FIA ​​moved the start of the DRS zone to the exit of the corner. But ahead of this year's race, drivers will once again test the longer DRS zone as Formula 1's leading men want more overtaking. "We want to start the DRS area before the last corner, in order to improve the racing," said Nikolas Tombazis.

Tombazis said that after the first practice, teams that have already tested the longer DRS zone in their simulators will ask for feedback and if there is any danger, the DRS zone will be adjusted accordingly.

After training, they will also have their say at Pirelli, where Mario Isola explains that it is still too early to be able to predict how the longer DRS zone will affect the tires. "When the racer opens the DRS, the load is transferred to the front tires, which at the moment are much more loaded than the rear," he said. "After the test, we will check the data and see how the tires behave and whether the rear wheels slide. Overheating of the top layer of the tires could occur, but it is difficult to properly assess before we do the track test.”