Tilke will have to meet the American challenge according to Coulthard

Five years after the last United States Grand Prix, held on the legendary Indianapolis circuit, and seven years after the fiasco of the 2005 race that saw all teams equipped with Michelin tires withdraw at the end of the formation lap, Formula One is expected to return to the United States next season, a necessary step, according to David Coulthard, to be able to fully claim the World Championship title.

The Scotsman, however, believes that Formula One must return across the Atlantic with the goal of reconciling with the American public, and that, in the absence of a driver or team representing the stars and stripes, this must be achieved through a guarantee of spectacle. This season, the tires, DRS, and KERS have significantly contributed to the spectacle, but for Coulthard, Hermann Tilke – whose circuits are often criticized – must offer a spectacular track: « He is himself a touring driver – he has driven at the Nürburgring – so we can expect someone like Hermann, who has driven on one of the most challenging and terrifying circuits in the world, to come up with something more exciting. In Turkey, he went in the right direction with turn 8, bumpy and with multiple apexes. If you miss the first one, you must lift, and you lose time. […] Overtaking and fast corners are needed. Fast corners give drivers the sensations of their lives, and if the drivers speak positively about them, then fans will be positive and want to see that. »

The BBC consultant indeed believes that Formula One needs driver circuits and doesn’t hesitate to mention the name of the Watkins Glen circuit, reputed to be one of the most beautiful circuits in the world: « I went to Watkins Glen earlier this year. I had heard about it but had never been there, so I took a lap and thought it was the scariest place I had ever driven, but isn’t that what makes you feel alive in a race car? You need turns where drivers feel they are truly on the edge. »

In June last year, when he swapped cars with the double NASCAR champion, Tony Stewart, Lewis Hamilton was full of praise for the circuit that hosted Formula One from 1961 to 1980 without interruption: The track itself is fantastic. It’s really a very nice circuit to drive on: they don’t make tracks like that anymore these days. The way they design the camber of the corners, the various undulations, going up, going down… it makes it so enjoyable. Although it is much shorter, it slightly reminded me of the Nordschleife in Germany.

Indeed, the main challenge Hermann Tilke will face with the Austin circuit is that, unlike India, China, or Korea, the American public has many points of comparison such as Watkins Glen, Barber’s road circuit, Surfers Paradise urban circuit, or the iconic Laguna Seca with its famous corkscrew turn. However, in Motorsport Total, Hermann Tilke claims that the Austin track is a super circuit: In the United States, we had hilly terrain—not as much as the Österreichring—but an area with hills. We took that into account, so there will be places where the load of the cars will change depending on where they are, at the hilltop or in the valley. These will also be very safe facilities.

The German also ensures that the upcoming circuits of Buddh, in India, and Sochi, in Russia, should meet the expectations of both fans and the drivers themselves: « The New Delhi circuit has very fast sections. There are also two or three turns where overtaking is possible. It’s a spectacular track and I’m looking forward to being there. [Sochi] is partly an urban circuit through the Olympic village and along the Olympic stadium. There is also a stretch along the water with palm trees on the side, it will certainly offer beautiful images, with fast sections. »