Bilster Berg

Modelled on the likes of the Ascari Resort in Spain, the entire circuit has been designed from scratch by Hermann Tilke, the industry’s most experienced circuit architect. He is best known for renowned F1 circuits such as Abu Dhabi, Bahrain, Malaysia, Istanbul, Shanghai and has now turned his hand to creating a New Nürburgring, “The natural ‘Nordschleife flair’ with high safety standards will continue to enthuse every driver. With various ideal lines, the corners allow for approximately identical lap times, while nature itself dictates the unmistakable signature of the test track.”

Downward gradient of 26 percent and the largest upward gradient of 20 percent. The overall difference in altitude amounts more than 70m on the whole track.

As you come up the start/finish straight, keep to the right side of the circuit, when you cross over the last of the starting grid slots on the asphalt, start moving over to the left. This will line you up perfectly for turn one, and allows you to brake in a straight line. Turn one is a very tight right hander, and therefor has a very late apex, all the way at the end of the inside curb. You can exit all the way to the outside curb. Don’t mind the small kink on the left up next as this is easily done full throttle and cross back over to the left for a right left combo.

The apex through here is just past the middle of the inside curbstone and then just stay center and straight in to the fast left hander which opens up a lot. After the right hander in this combo you can keep accelerating through the left hander. The curbs around this circuit are all very accessible and can be used in all corners.

Another quick succession of corners up ahead, starting with a tight right hander which requires a late entry, to line you up for fast left hander, where you will go through a dip, allowing maximal acceleration. Straight after there’s a crest into a right hander, really giving you a rollercoaster feel. After the crest it is again dipping down in to small left hand kink, which can be ignored, run over the outside curb and in to another right kink on a crest. You can let the car drift out wide until about the middle of the circuit, then cross back straight away for a 90 degree left hander which is again in dip, allowing you to really be on the throttle early, but be careful with the load change under braking as you are still coming over the crest from the previous right hander.

Now, for the most exciting bit if the circuit, the so called ‘mouse trap’. First you will pass a small right hand kink, which you can ignore, and then you have a left hander which drops about 30 degrees. The key is to straight line the 50 meters before and go over the crest whilst on the brakes, ignoring the first curb to your left. Let the car go slightly wide, and cut back across for a second apex.

Then you start climbing again, whilst also having to move from the right hand side of the circuit, back to the left. There’s two big bumps on this climb, and as you’re about to hit the second one, start turning in right for a blind right hander over a crest. Stay on the power through here as the track opens up a lot on the other side.

Before coming on to the first of three long straights in the final sector, there’ a sweeping left, right, left combination where it is key to have a late apex through the first left hander, and using the curbs through the other two corners to line you up for a long straight. There’s dips in all the right places through this last succession of corners to be able to use the curbs and maximize acceleration. Keep to the right on the straight and prepare for a fast, long, off camber left hander up ahead. Shortly, but hard on the brakes, there’s no real reference point here to determine the ideal turn in point, but go in quite early as it opens up a lot in the end and on to another long straight. The circuit weaves about a bit before the penultimate corner, but just ignore this, position yourself on the left of the circuit and cut across in a straight line to brake for an uphill left hander, carry as much speed through as possible, so that you will naturally end up on the right hand side of the circuit, as it is uphill, you can carry a bit more speed through here than you would think. And at the end of the outside curbstone, turn in for a 90 degree left hander on to the main straight away, which is again over a little crest, making the acceleration tricky sometimes. A tap of brakes before turning in is necessary as the crest will otherwise send you understeering way too far on to the outside curbstone.

Words kindly provided by Ward Vrancken.