► F1 will go to Mugello
► A classic MotoGP track
► September 11th - 13th
F1 is finally here, but with a very different calendar to the one we’re used to. The first eight events of the 2020 season will be in Europe, crammed back-to-back in most cases – and a couple of the races will even take place at the same venue; Austria and Great Britain will see two races each.
But today, Mugello has been revealed as a new fixture for the F1 season, and it's fantastic news.
The circuit should be well known to MotoGP and sports car fans, because it’s arguably one of the best tracks in the world. It’s been the host of some incredible duels between MotoGP royalty; Marquez, Lorenzo and Rossi amongst others have all had titanic dogfights there, and the track itself is hugely challenging. Just check the MotoGP YouTube if you want to see yourself.
A 1.1km straight leads to a massive braking zone which is great for overtaking, and then the track plunges into a sequence of highly technical S-bends. Think of it like a Suzuka remix that goes slightly downhill instead of uphill.
After Arrabiatta 1 and 2, two sizzling right handers that are a bit like the Degner corners’ Mediterranean cousins, there’s more of the same before a last corner catapults you back on to the straight. It’ll be interesting to see just how much modern F1 cars will be able to exploit it.
Mugello is owned by Ferrari and sometimes used for testing, though there hasn’t been an F1 race there. That will change in 2020 – and it's about time – especially with a calendar that already includes excitement-voids like Sochi and Magny-Cours regularly on the calendar.
Below you can watch a classic F1 car tackle the track. It’s a 1995 412T2 as driven by Gerhard Berger, but now thrashed by Marc Gené in 2015. You can also try the track out for yourself in some of the best racing games.