You have got to let the Brits have something to cheer about...the football was a shambles for England and Andy Murray played extremely well but could not deliver at Wimbledon, so it's a good job that we have the British Grand Prix this weekend – surely that can give us all something to raise our spirits.
At the British Grand Prix last year, we were all feeling sentimental as we prepared to head to the final Silverstone Grand Prix – how things change! But this is F1 and we should all know to expect the unexpected! In 2009 at the old airfield, the atmosphere was electric with people packing in to say farewell to an old friend ‘The home of British motorsport’. This year the atmosphere should be even better with so much to celebrate in British motorsport, both on and off the track.
Now maybe I am a little biased but Silverstone is where I grew up watching car racing and I am delighted to be going back there to a revamped circuit, which most of the drivers are raving about.
Add into the party the all-British McLaren team, who sit at the top of the Constructors’ Championship. Jenson Button, always the crowds’ favourite, is coming into his home Grand Prix as the World Champion and currently is second in the Drivers’ Championship. He has never won this race and is desperate to add it to his growing list of achievements.
But one person who does know what it is like to win in front of his home crowd is Lewis Hamilton, who has finished on the podium in two of his three British Grands Prix, including the victory in 2008.
It is always dangerous to get too excited about an event – the opportunity to be let down hits harder but F1 this season likes to surprise. Take Valencia for example – now most people expected the European Grand Prix to be a bit of a procession. In the end it threw up a pretty exciting Grand Prix. Much of that was due to Mark Webber and his Red Bull giving him wings, and to be honest I would rather watch a dull race than have accidents like that, but he was fine and it certainly did add to the excitement. The great news is the Aussie is okay and also cannot wait to get to Silverstone. It is like a second home race for him, living pretty close to the track.
Britain seems to have a habit of adopting foreign drivers, all claiming this race is like a “home” GP. Many moved here when they were young, competing in British F3, and some have never left. Many motorsport series test a lot at the Northamptonshire track, so the drivers tend to know it better than other circuits.
Some other “local” drivers are Karun Chandhok, who is so famous in his adopted home of Brackley that you can even go into the local Indian restaurant and choose from a section of ‘Karun Specials’ on the menu!
Oxford can claim Nico Hülkenberg as a resident; he moved there last year to be near to the Williams factory. Renault’s Vitaly Petrov has also moved there this week.
Jamie Alguersuari says Silverstone is his third home Grand Prix of the year, having enjoyed two in Spain already. He went to school in Ipswich and won the British F3 championship, so he knows the track very well. Bruno Senna and Lucas di Grassi lived in London for the last five years before heading to the sun and sea of Monaco. And I live in the same block of apartments that Fernando Alonso lived in during his time in the UK! It is a small world!
We might not always have great weather at the British Grand Prix but even that looks good for this weekend.
Really, it is not just me who loves Silverstone; the drivers do, the teams do and the 100,000 fans who stand out, rain or shine, have a great time too. I must apologise if you are reading this and are not from the UK but come on, as I said at the beginning, let us enjoy one sporting event this summer. Please!
Lee
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