Action, reaction. When the paddock last visited Albert Park in 2024, the drivers were divided over Turn 6. It must be said that since the redesign of the second sector of the Australian Grand Prix circuit, the speed of passing through it has increased considerably while the following part is like a fairly long almost straight line that is negotiated at full speed.
« It's a very, very fun turn., confided the local Daniel Ricciardo at the time. In qualifying, you have to drop down to sixth and go full throttle again, so it's a corner that doesn't lack nerve. »
However, this famous turn 6 was the subject of two major accidents during the previous edition. There was that of George Russell on the penultimate lap, surprised by the braking of Fernando Alonso in front of him, and Alex's Albon during the first free practice on Friday which left Williams with only one car for the rest of the weekend.
It was in the case of George Russell that this turn caused a lot of talk because the Englishman, after hitting the protective barriers, found himself thrown right into the middle of the track. The scene was also striking with the driver Mercedes panicked, demanding that the red flag be raised immediately to prevent a pile-up as other drivers came racing up behind him.
George Russell's radio after his crash 😨
Big scare for the Mercedes driver who found himself in the middle of the track, with no visibility 😳#AusGP #F1 pic.twitter.com/RGrV7ypMsN
— CANAL+ F1® (@CanalplusF1) March 24, 2024
New vibrators, the reworked TecPro
« The only thing I don't like is that, as we've seen, when you have an accident, you come back on the track. So yeah, I don't like that scenario., " added Danny Ric'. A speech shared by other drivers on the grid and which pushed the FIA to immediately think about an improvement for the 2025 edition, while Niels Wittich, race director at the time, had indicated in his report that it was necessary to look into this issue.
So, for the upcoming Australian Grand Prix (March 14-16), which will kick off the 2025 season, the organization has made some changes. The kerbs at the exit of the corner have been modified, the artificial grass behind the kerb has been removed while the barriers have been moved and realigned. Finally, the TecPro wall has also been widened.
« There is a curb of about 90 meters along this bend, explains Tom Mottram, head of events at the Australian Grand Prix Corporation, from Speedcafe.
In the past, about fifty metres of it was bevelled, and a little more at the entrance to Turn 7. We agreed with the FIA to lower this kerb over the entire length, so that there is no acceleration on the kerb once we have reached the highest part of it.
We added half a metre of concrete shoulder before the gravel trap, again to give some room to manoeuvre. We also moved the barrier line back by two metres, the tyre rows, the TecPros, and added more TecPros at the end of the line. We also reduced the gradient of the slope to try to avoid the backtracking we have seen before. »
These changes aim to reduce the speed of drivers entering Turn 6 while improving track safety. A change of apex had been discussed but the promoter ultimately decided to make these changes so as not to alter the characteristics of Turn 6, which has been the new version of Albert Park since 2022. As for the track limits, there should not be any problems as only 1,5 metres separate the tarmac from the gravel.
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