F1 has announced that the second Bahrain GP will take place on the shorter outer ring layout and will see the fastest lap times in F1 history.
After it was announced that Bahrain would host two races speculation began as to which layout would be used for the second Sakhir GP race with the normal international layout, endurance and outer ring all on the table.
Unlike the previous back to back races in Austria and Britain, all options are Grade 1 and so can be used for an F1 event. F1 last raced on the endurance track in 2010 whereas the outer ring has never been used for an international event.
The track will be the second shortest after Monaco and simulations predict it will see the fastest lap times in the history of F1 with qualifying set to be under 55 seconds and race laps under 60. Additionally, the length of the track will see it have the most laps of any track on the current calendar with 87 laps needed to cover the 305km minimum race distance.
“We are excited to announce the outer circuit as the format for the Sakhir Grand Prix and want to thank our partners at the Bahrain International Circuit for their continued support,” said Ross Brawn (F1 Managing Director of Motorsport).
“We assessed a number of options for the alternative circuit layout and concluded the outer circuit will provide the best alternative and will provide a new challenge for all the teams and entertain all our fans with high speeds and fast lap times.”
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