Romain Grosjean has labelled Formula 1’s most recent new circuits as “not exciting”, suggesting the theory behind them is flawed.
During his decade-long stint on the grid, the Haas driver has seen several brand new and updated old venues join the calendar, from the short-lived stints of India and Korea to Paul Ricard and the Red Bull Ring.
The latest brand new track F1 will visit is the Hanoi street circuit for the Vietnam GP in 2020, and something that has often been cited looking at its layout is the inspiration it has been taken from other circuits from around the world.
However… “Replicating one track somewhere else is not the best solution, I believe,” F1i.com quoted Grosjean as saying.
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“It’s much harder than it looks to build a track, but some of the recent ones have been a bit not exciting, especially with the run-offs.
“It’s not what we want.”
Another circuit that has come in for the same criticism is the Circuit of the Americas, which features near carbon copies of corners from Silverstone and Turkey to name just two.
However, after first being raced on in 2012, the home of the US GP has become a favourite among drivers.
“Austin did a good job creating that first corner hill,” Grosjean said, noting its most unique feature. “It’s quite cool, the tarmac is breaking in Austin, it’s quite nice. It gives some character to the track.”
However, factors like bumps and kerbs are being increasingly erased from circuits as they look to accommodate multiple different racing categories, the most notable clash coming between F1 and MotoGP.
“There’s always a disagreement between what MotoGP wants and what we want,” Grosjean acknowledged. “That makes it harder.
“Some of the kerbs we don’t want to change, but MotoGP would like the kerbs to be made a certain way.
“It’s always going to be tricky but I believe there is room for improvement. Even looking at the designs of the tracks, you think: ‘Ah, I don’t think it’s going to be good, just because it looks that way, that way and that way.
“[Some changes could] make the racing better, and even the track better. There are always a few small bits that you can try to modify to improve.”