Formula 1 drivers were in broad agreement in requesting that the Nord chicane on the Mistral Straight be removed at Paul Ricard after practice on Friday.
Once the deal was done that saw the circuit at Le Castellet bring the French Grand Prix back on the calendar for the first time since 2008, one of the main questions was which variant of the HTTT would be used.
With over 100 different configurations, the main focus was on whether to split the 1.8km Mistral Straight with a chicane and even then there was several options available
Eventually, the last apex turning left into the longer right was agreed on hoping that it would encourage overtaking, but there are doubts as to whether it will have the desired impact.
“I think the best race we’ve had up to now this year has been in Baku, and all the tracks should be taking some direction from that,” said Force India’s Sergio Perez. “The circuit is challenging, it pushes the drivers for mistakes.”
Of course, the main characteristic of Baku is the 2.2km run from Turn 16 to Turn 1 which allows drivers plenty of chance to slipstream alongside but also forces the cars to run lower downforce to achieve a better top speed.
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“I think a long straight line will potentially create more overtakes,” Toro Rosso’s Brendon Hartley, who was completed many WEC tests at Paul Ricard told Motorsport.com.
“I don’t think it will happen for tomorrow, but I’ve tested and raced without the chicane. It makes things interesting because it’s less downforce with the long straight line, Turn 10 becomes more of a corner, and so does the last sector with less downforce.
“Maybe it’s a discussion point for next year. The good news is here there are plenty of options.”
Any changes would indeed have to wait until 2019 with only the layout being used this weekend homologated by the FIA with tests, including the use of DRS needing to be considered with Turn 10 a flat-out right-hander.