Did You Know: Formula 1?

 by Nathaniel G

Formula One or F1 is a sport in which different car racing teams compete in Grand Prix races across the world.

Famous teams that compete include Red Bull Racing, Ferrari, Mercedes and McLaren.

Max Verstappen, who races for Red Bull, is the 2023 champion.   He also won the championship in 2021 and 2022.

Lewis Hamilton and Michael Schumacher hold the record for the most Formula 1 World Championships in history, with both drivers winning seven world titles each.

Formula 1 cars have just a single seat for the driver.

A typical Formula 1 car can go from zero to 160 kph in just four seconds.

Formula 1 teams can have up to 600 people, including drivers, mechanics, engineers and designers.

The average car is worth seven million dollars.

There is currently production of a Formula 1 film called Apex. It wil star the American actor Brad Pitt and is produced by the British driver Lewis Hamilton. It is hoped to be released in late 2024 or early 2025.

The Singapore Grand Prix is considered the most difficult race in Formula 1.  

The hottest race ever was in Bahrain in 2005 where temperatures reached 42.5 degrees celcius.

The coldest race was the Canadian Grand Prix where the temperature was only 5 degrees celcius.  

The temperature for the tyres of a Formula 1 car is critical. If they are too cold, they will slide and wear out quickly. If they are too hot, they could blister, even before the end of a single lap.

The drivers have to warm up the tyres, often by first driving around the track in a zigzag way.  

There  is a domestic cat called a F1 cat.  The F stands for’filial rating’ which means how many generations removed  from the African wild serval cat it is : ie only one generation; 50% wild.  It refuses to race cars.