I find it a joy to drive, with the car sweeping around the bends at almost full speed. I have also beaten the lap record set by Montoya in 2004 which stands at 1:34:233, again, not a true representation but an achievement in my own fantasy F1 career.
My time was 1:32:826 in a McLaren, in hard mode of course, anyone faster? Answers on a postcard or comment below.
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Peter Haydon - Spa Francorchamps
There can only be one contender for my all-time favourite circuit, and that is Spa-Francorchamps.
Its setting in the dank and slightly sinister Ardennes Forest, which is named after the Celtic hunting goddess Arduinna, is the true European heartland of F1. The money men may think that the burning sands of Arabia and the sweaty jungles of Asia are appropriate stages for the pinnacle of motor sport, but I disagree.
The highly uncertain weather conditions of the European circuits like Spa test teams and drivers in a way that a cruise in the heat of Bahrain never can.
Rain is the great equaliser, and having the quickest car will only help a driver explore the off-track areas faster if he does not have a seat-of-the-pants feel for grip.
Is it a coincidence that seven-time World champion Michael Schumacher was known as the Rain Master? I think not.
Spa has a special magic; when the names of the circuit features roll off your tongue you are talking the very essence of Formula One: La Source, Eau Rouge, Raidillon, The Bus Stop, Blanchimont. Just say them and the smell of the forest is in the air, mixed with the acrid exhaust of racing engines.
If I were to think of one word relevant to motor racing, that word would be speed. Spa is a fast circuit. Now some may wax lyrical over intricate sequences of slow speed turns, but that’s the supermarket parking challenge, and it’s not for me.
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