According to simulations done by Sauber, Silverstone is not set to become the fastest circuit on the formula one calendar.
When the British track’s new Arena layout was launched, organisers indicated that Monza could lose its mantle as the F1 venue with the highest average speed.
While actually adding more slow bends to the layout, the new half-mile Arena section is indeed due to make Silverstone faster on average.
But to investigate the claim that Monza could be knocked off the perch as F1’s fastest, Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport commissioned a study with the help of the Swiss team Sauber.
A simulation lap of the revised layout processed by Sauber’s famous Albert II supercomputer projected a laptime of 1.31.0, resulting in an average speed of 233.4kph.
Monza’s average speed is about 248kph.
The Sauber simulation, however, shows that the new right-hander at the abolished Abbey chicane will be taken at 279kph, followed by a 281kph left sweep, making it the fastest chicane on the calendar.