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5 of Hermann Tilke’s greatest tracks
He has his critics, but let’s look at the times the F1 track designer has got it absolutely right.
The Red Bull Ring in all its glory
© GEPA pictures/Red Bull Content Pool
Formula One circuit designer Hermann Tilke and his team have designed, modified and updated almost every circuit on the F1 calendar.
The German designer has created 10 new circuits that have appeared on the Formula One calendar since 1997 – including the tracks for the Korean, Chinese and Bahrain Grands Prix – and six of his originals appear in the current championship.
He's also made updates to many others, including the Hungaroring, Spa, Monza and Mexico's famous Hermanos Rodrigues circuit.
It's safe to say he's drawn his share of criticism, particularly for his moderations to classic tracks, most famously shortening the classic Hockenheimring, which saw the iconic forest section totally removed.
Look at the track on satellite below and you can still see a faint outline of the original circuit.
Then there's the accusation that his new tracks with their trademark straights and hairpin bends represent a cookie-cutter approach to design. And even Jackie Stewart says the tracks are too safe. But while there’s been a few dull Tilke tracks, when he gets it right, he absolutely nails it.
How about this epic corner at the Sochi Autodrom?
2 minuta
Nikita Shikov performs first ever drift of Sochi
Watch Russian racer Nikita Shikov’s spectacular drift around the epic Turn 3 of Sochi at 170kph.
So let's take a look at five of the best Hermann Tilke-designed tracks…
The Red Bull Ring, Spielberg, AustriaBest corner: Rindt
Daniel Ricciardo tackles the Red Bull Ring
© GEPA pictures/Red Bull Content Pool
Call us biased, but we think the Red Bull Ring is awesome. Yes, people get all misty-eyed about the former Österreichring, which Tilke started reworking into the A1-Ring back in 1995, two years before its grand prix debut. But let’s make no bones about it – the original Österreichring was one dangerous racetrack. Check out the video below of Andrea de Cesaris crashing his Ligier at the circuit in 1985 if you don't believe us...
Housed in the beautiful hills around Spielberg, the modern Red Bull Ring features big elevation changes, a great long run into the tight Remus corner that allows for some great overtaking and the awesome blind right-hander of Rindt, a corner that’s definitely worthy of the name (Austrian Jochen Rindt remains Formula One’s only posthumous World Champion).
Circuit of the Americas, Austin, USABest corner: Turn One
The Circuit of the Americas is a driver favourite
© Getty Images/Red Bull Content Pool
Austin’s Circuit of the Americas has wormed its way into the hearts of Formula One's drivers (and MotoGP's riders) more than any other Tilke track. Daniel Ricciardo is a huge fan of Austin and the Texan circuit. "When they picked this place for the US Grand Prix, they absolutely nailed it," he said on his way to the podium last year.
The 2012-built circuit is arguably Tilke's magnum opus, with corners that encourage great racing while testing the limits of any car or bike’s handling to the maximum.
The run of esses from Turns Five to Eight is right up there, if not better than, Suzuka’s similar sequence, while the gut-punch swoop up to the magnificent Turn One has provided F1 and MotoGP fans with some of the best overtaking action in recent years.
Marina Bay Street Circuit, SingaporeBest corner: Turn Six
The Singapore Grand Prix is spectacular
© Getty Images/Red Bull Content Pool
The Singapore Grand Prix on the Marina Bay Street Circuit has become one of the highlights of the Formula One calendar. That’s partly thanks to the fact that it’s run under 1,600-odd floodlights that bathe the track in a day-like glow.
But the circuit is also pleasingly tight, allowing the drivers to regress to their karting days and nudge each other up close to the barriers for a large part of the 5km lap. Our favourite part? The blast down Raffles Boulevard from Turns Five to Seven. Mega!
Buddh International Circuit, Delhi, IndiaBest corner: Turn 10
The 1,060m straight in India
© Paul Gilham/Getty Images
Sadly deleted from the Formula One calendar after 2013, the Buddh International Circuit outside Delhi is a real rollercoaster ride of a track, featuring 8 percent descents and 10 percent inclines. Our favourite corner is Turn 10 (which morphs into Turns 11 and 12), a seemingly never-ending right-hander flanked by a spectacular Indian flag-coloured run-off zone that makes it as much a photographer’s dream as it is a challenge for the drivers. Four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel absolutely dominated in India, winning all three F1 races held there.
Istanbul Park Circuit, Istanbul, TurkeyBest Corner: Turn Eight
David Coulthard pounding Istanbul Park
© GEPA Pictures/Mathias Kniepeiss
One corner dominates the conversation when you mention the former Turkish Grand Prix circuit. Istanbul Park’s Turn Eight is arguably the only Tilke-designed corner that can be mentioned in the same breath as ones like Suzuka's 130R, Spa-Francochamps' Pouhon or Silverstone's Maggots-Becketts complex.
The triple-apex left-hander is as good a test of a car’s aerodynamic capabilities – and a driver's commitment – as any corner out there, with a Formula One car averaging 270kpm for around eight seconds before being spat out onto a short straight.
Bernie Ecclestone once called Istanbul Park “the best circuit in the world”. The Turkish Grand Prix hasn’t been included on the F1 calendar since 2011, but the track is sorely missed.
