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A skid block is a common term for a mandatory attachment to the underside of a racing car. Initially applied to Formula One cars in 1994, it has also been used in other categories including Formula 3000 and Formula 3. It is a flat rectangle, usually made of fiberglass or a wood composite, designed to impose a minimum ground clearance and to limit the use of ground effects to enhance handling.
According to the technical specifications governing F1, a rectangular skid block must be fitted beneath the central plane of the car. This skid block may comprise up to three pieces but must:
The skid block was introduced in F1 as part of the safety changes that followed Ayrton Senna's death. It has been made of a light, strong and non-flammable fiberglass called permaglass since the late 90s. [1]
The block used to be made of a material called Jabroc. Jabroc is made of beechwood and built in a composite process. Veneers are layered and a high strength resin is used in each layer. It is pressurized and pressed, and brought to a certain and very consistent material density. [1] As a result, each Jabroc skid plank is all but identical in terms of wear rate and material density. This material is still used in other motorsports. [1]
The plank does not in itself restrict airflow under the car. It is used as a gauge which restricts the minimum ride height attainable by the car. The closer the car is to the ground, the more efficient the front wing and rear diffuser. The higher the down force levels, the faster a driver may corner. Cornering loads can push the car down much lower to the road, which can be dangerous and so the skid block was introduced to counteract this. The thickness of the plank is one of the parc fermé tests. If it is found to be worn beyond the allowed limit, the car is disqualified.
Michael Schumacher in a Benetton was disqualified for an excessively worn plank in the 1994 Belgian Grand Prix. Schumacher spun out across the curb at Pouhon corner. Although the curb carved a pattern out into the plank, it was deemed by the FIA to have not been the cause for the excessive wear.
Jarno Trulli in a Jordan was initially disqualified for plank wear after the 2001 United States Grand Prix but the Jordan team successfully appealed the decision to the FIA International Court of Appeal because a steward was absent when the original decision was made, and Trulli's 4th-place finish was allowed to stand. [2] [3]
André Lotterer, Benoît Tréluyer and Marcel Fässler, driving the #7 Audi Sport Team Joest R18 e-tron, were excluded from the 2016 6 Hours of Silverstone after finishing in first place. Post-race scrutineering determined that the skid block was less than the 20 mm dictated by FIA World Endurance Championship rules. The ruling was a blow to Audi's hopes in the first round of the WEC season, handing victory to the defending champion Porsche team. [4] The team chose not to appeal.
Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc were disqualified for excessive plank wear in the 2023 United States Grand Prix after being randomly selected for a post-race inspection. Hamilton had originally finished in second place and Leclerc in sixth after starting on pole. [5]
Silverstone Circuit is a motor racing circuit in England, near the Northamptonshire villages of Towcester, Silverstone and Whittlebury. It is the home of the British Grand Prix, which it first hosted as the 1948 British Grand Prix. The 1950 British Grand Prix at Silverstone was the first race in the newly created World Championship of Drivers. The race rotated between Silverstone, Aintree and Brands Hatch from 1955 to 1986, but settled permanently at the Silverstone track in 1987. The circuit also hosts the British round of the MotoGP series.
The 1994 Belgian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on 28 August 1994 at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, near the village of Francorchamps, Wallonia. It was the eleventh race of the 1994 Formula One World Championship.
The 1998 British Grand Prix (formally the LI RAC British Grand Prix) was a Formula One motor race held at the Silverstone Circuit, England on 12 July 1998. It was the ninth race of the 1998 FIA Formula One World Championship. The 60-lap race was won by Michael Schumacher driving a Ferrari car after starting from second position. Mika Häkkinen, who started from pole position, finished second with Eddie Irvine third in the other Ferrari. Schumacher's victory was his fourth of the season, and his third consecutive victory having won both the preceding Canadian and French Grand Prix, but was under controversial circumstances: there was dispute whether he had avoided a stop-and-go penalty by entering the pit lane to serve it on the final lap, crossing the finish line in the pit lane to win the race before reaching his pit box, although the penalty, which was actually merely a time penalty, was later rescinded.
The 2000 Brazilian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on 26 March 2000 at the Autódromo José Carlos Pace in São Paulo, Brazil. The race, which was the second round of the 2000 Formula One World Championship and the 29th Brazilian Grand Prix, drew 72,000 spectators. Michael Schumacher, a Ferrari driver, won the 71-lap race after starting third. Benetton's Giancarlo Fisichella finished second, and Jordan's Heinz-Harald Frentzen was third.
The 2000 British Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on 23 April 2000 at Silverstone Circuit, England. It was the fourth race of the 2000 Formula One season and the 55th British Grand Prix. The 60-lap race was won by McLaren driver David Coulthard after starting from fourth position. His teammate Mika Häkkinen finished second with Michael Schumacher third for the Ferrari team.
The 2000 French Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race contested on 2 July 2000 at the Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours in Magny-Cours, Burgundy, Central France, attended by 112,112 spectators. It was the 86th French Grand Prix and the ninth round of the 2000 Formula One World Championship. McLaren's David Coulthard won the 72-lap race after starting second. His teammate Mika Häkkinen finished second with Ferrari's Rubens Barrichello third.
The 2000 Belgian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on 27 August 2000 at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Francorchamps, Wallonia, Belgium with a crowd of 83,000 spectators. It was the 13th race of the 2000 Formula One World Championship, and the 58th Belgian Grand Prix. McLaren driver Mika Häkkinen won the 44-lap race from pole position. Michael Schumacher finished second in a Ferrari, and Williams driver Ralf Schumacher was third.
The 2001 British Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on 15 July 2001 at Silverstone in Northamptonshire, England. It was the eleventh race of the 2001 FIA Formula One World Championship.
The 2001 United States Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on September 30, 2001, at Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Speedway, Indiana in the United States. The 73-lap race was the sixteenth and penultimate round of the 2001 Formula One season and was won by Mika Häkkinen. It was the first international sporting event held in the United States since the September 11 attacks, which had occurred less than three weeks earlier. The race was both the last win and podium of Häkkinen's career, and took place two days after his 33rd birthday. It was also the last Formula One race to feature TV commentary by longtime English-language broadcaster Murray Walker.
The 2004 FIA Formula One World Championship was the 58th season of FIA Formula One motor racing. It was the 55th FIA Formula One World Championship, and was contested over eighteen races from 7 March to 24 October 2004.
The 1997 FIA Formula One World Championship was the 51st season of FIA Formula One motor racing. It commenced on 9 March and ended on 26 October after seventeen races. The Drivers' Championship was won by Jacques Villeneuve and the Constructors' Championship was awarded to Williams-Renault.
The 2005 San Marino Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on 24 April 2005 at the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari in Imola, Italy. The 62-lap race was the fourth round of the 2005 Formula One season, and the 25th running of the San Marino Grand Prix.
The RAC Tourist Trophy is a motor racing award presented by the Royal Automobile Club (RAC) to the overall victor of a motor race in the United Kingdom. Established in 1905, it is the world's oldest automobile race. The 18-carat gold trophy is based on Giambologna's sculpture of the Greek god Hermes. Series to have featured the trophy include the World Sportscar Championship, the FIA GT Cup, the World Touring Car Championship, the European Touring Car Championship, the FIA GT Championship, the British Touring Car Championship, the FIA GT1 World Championship, and the overall winners of the British GT Championship in the 1999, 2000, 2003 and 2004 seasons. It has been presented to the overall winners of the Silverstone Circuit round of the FIA World Endurance Championship from 2013 on.
Allegations of cheating were made throughout the 1994 Formula One World Championship. Several Formula One teams were involved, with the main allegations surrounding Benetton Formula. Initially, Benetton was alleged to have been using illegal traction control software to their advantage in races; however, this could not be sufficiently proven by the FIA. A refuelling fire on Jos Verstappen's Benetton car at the German Grand Prix led to renewed allegations and an investigation by Intertechnique at Benetton's team factory. Following the investigation, the FIA revealed Benetton had been using a fuel valve without a fuel filter, which allowed fuel into the car 12.5% faster than a legal fuel valve.
The Toyota TF109 was a Formula One racing car engineered by Toyota for the 2009 Formula One season. The chassis was designed by Pascal Vasselon, Mark Tatham and Mark Gillan with the engine being designed by Luca Marmorini and Noritoshi Arai overseeing the entire project. It was revealed online on Toyota's website on 15 January 2009 and made its track debut on 18 January at the Autódromo Algarve. This was the last Formula One car to be developed by Toyota, as after the 2009 Formula One season was completed Toyota Motor Corporation announced their decision to withdraw from Formula One. As far as performance went, the car was extraordinarily inconsistent. It started the season well with three podium finishes in the first four races as it got the jump on rival teams with the "double-decker" diffuser. In the span of only two races however, the TF109 went from locking out the front row in Bahrain to locking out the back row in Monaco. The car from then on was uncompetitive despite a few glimmers of hope in Singapore when Timo Glock finished 2nd and Japan when Jarno Trulli also finished second. The TF109 was the last F1 car to run on Esso fuel along with the Williams FW31 until the McLaren MP4-30 in the 2015 FIA Formula One World Championship, as well as last non-British based F1 car to run on Esso until Toro Rosso STR12 in the 2017 season.
Charles Marc Hervé Perceval Leclerc is a Monégasque racing driver, currently racing in Formula One for Scuderia Ferrari. He won the GP3 Series championship in 2016 and the FIA Formula 2 Championship in 2017.
The 2016 6 Hours of Silverstone was a six hour endurance sports car racing event held for Le Mans Prototype and Le Mans Grand Touring Endurance cars at the Silverstone Circuit in Northamptonshire, England on 15–17 April 2016. Silverstone served as the opening round of the 2016 FIA World Endurance Championship, and was the fifth running of the event as part of the championship. A total of 52,000 people attended the race weekend.
The 2022 FIA Formula One World Championship was a motor racing championship for Formula One cars, which was the 73rd running of the Formula One World Championship. It is recognised by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA), the governing body of international motorsport, as the highest class of competition for open-wheel racing cars. The championship was contested over twenty-two Grands Prix, which were held around the world, and ended earlier than in recent years to avoid overlapping with the FIFA World Cup.
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