But then, has it ever occured in our mind what's going on behind the F1 scenes? How much money they've spent in assembling these cars? How much efforts they have contributed in making it the greatest? What does Kimi Raikonnen do before getting into an F1 car? Who is the greatest F1 driver?
I have 20 interesting facts...well...so far.....that I'm pretty sure will make you think that impossible is possible!
Fact #1 - The first person to ever win a Formula One World Championship was Giuseppe Antonio ‘Nino’ Farina. Noted for his ‘straight-arm’ driving style, Nino Farina dominated the Formula One World Championships in the once impeccable 158 Alfetta car. He won three of the seven races in the 1950’s season to win the championship.
Fact #2 - Ayrton Senna holds the record for most Pole Positions won by any driver with 63 first place qualifying laps. The next closest driver is Michael Schumacher with 63. Well, no offense Schumi but you have enough records already and will have more chances to make more this season in 2010. Afterall, Ayrton did it first anyways.
Fact #3 - At a mere 160 km/h, Formula One cars can generate enough downforce through their aerodynamics to equal the car’s weight. Theoretically, this means that at 160 km/h, Formula One cars can generate enough downforce to drive on the ceiling.....upside down like we used to watch it in the Petronas advertisement. This is yet to be tested however, mainly because no one’s been brave enough to do it.
Fact #4 - Fancy this. A Perodua Kancil weighs in at roughly 700 kilograms. However, an F1 car weighs in at an average 600 kilograms which...of course...way lighter than the little Kancil.
Fact #5 - The brake disc on F1 cars are made from carbon fibre composite which could save weight and able to operate in high temperature which are often in excess of 1000 degrees Celsius; almost enough to cut through diamonds.
Fact #6 - The Monaco Grand Prix is famous for its tight technical turns and short bursts of straights that cars must endure. Throughout the course of the entire race, the gearboxes in these cars are known to shift approximately 3500 gears as they go around the infamous Monte Carlo circuit. Magically, it’s done almost seamlessly to the untrained eye.
Fact #7 - An F1 car has the ability to accelerate from 0 km/h to 200 km/h and immediately brake to 0 km/h again in under eight seconds. Well...it is about the same time you took to read the previous fact. This is achieved from its awesomely powerful 2.4 litre V8 engine and a braking system that can withstand anything up to 1000 degrees Celsius.
Fact #8 - The Kinetic Energy Recovery Systems, or KERS, used on various F1 cars last 2009 season is a privilege that allows cars an additional boost of up to 80 horsepower. KERS systems operates by harnessing the wasted energy generated from the car braking process, stores and reused that energy by providing additional engine power which made available to drivers via a ‘boost button’. This short burst of power supplies an additional 80 horsepower for a limited amount of time during a lap, usually up to six seconds per lap.....enough to facilitate drivers in overtaking. It has however been agreed by the FOTA that no one would use the KERS system in 2010. It will most likely return for use in 2011 when the rest of the world is ready for it.
Fact #9 - An eight man F1 pit crew can change a Formula One car’s tires in less than 4 seconds. It probably took you twice that long to read through this fact.
Fact #10 - Kimi Raikkonen, former Formula One World Champion used to sneak in 20 minutes nap just before getting into his car for a race. He was first spotted doing this in his first ever grand prix, where he sneaked in for a 20 minutes power nap, got up, and got straight into his Formula One car to race.
Fact #11 - The re-fuelers used in Formula One cars found in today’s pit garages, have the capacity of supplying 12 litres of fuel per second into cars. This technically means that refueling a Formula One car to the brim requires just about four seconds to complete.
Fact #12 - Formula One tyres are normally filled with a special, nitrogen-rich air mixture, designed to minimise variations in tyre pressure with temperature. The mixture also retains the pressure longer than normal air would. Regular compressed air like normally used in our car tires can often carry varying amounts of water which can hamper the handling performance and characteristics of Formula One cars.
Fact #13 - In a single grand prix, Formula One drivers can drivers can sweat off anything up to 3kg of their body weight during the course of a race.
Fact #14 - Parc Ferme: Literally translated, it simply means ‘closed fence’. In Formula One terms however, Parc Ferme is a restricted-access area which Formula One cars driven into after a qualifying session. No team members are allowed into the Parc Ferme. This is where the race stewards scrutinize cars and keep them under strict supervision until race day the next day.
Fact #15 - In order to deliver its optimum performance, tires need to be up to 900 degrees Celsius to 1200 degrees Celsius. This is why it is common for Formula One cars to be seen with tire warmers before they hit the road.
Fact #16 - Jody David Scheckter is the first South African to win a Formula One World Championship. He did so back in 1979 when he won 10 grand prix races. To this date, he is credited with having 113 grand prix starts in his career and four pole positions.
Fact #17 - McLaren Mercedes conducts approximately 1,260 pit-stop practise throughout the course of an F1 season.
Fact #18 - Almost-legendary Ferrari test driver Luca Badoer has never scored a single point in Formula One despite his many attempts to do so. He has made a total of 58 starts in Formula One races but has never been able to get into a point scoring position. His latest attempt to score Formula One points came when he was announced as a replacement for the injured Felipe Massa, but failed to win any...still.
Fact #19 - It is estimated that a Formula One is made up of approximately 80,000 components. Considering that even if 99.9 percent of the car works to perfection, there is still a remaining estimated of 80 things that could go wrong with the car at any time.
Fact #20 - Street courses like Monaco, Singapore and even Australia have to have their manhole covers welded shut. Why? Because the downforce created by the Formula One cars that go over them create such a suction that would otherwise blow them right into the sky every time a Formula One car goes over it.
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