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F1 Brazilian GP: Button: No run-offs at Interlagos how tracks should be

Jenson Button has highlighted the lack of tarmac run-off areas at the Interlagos circuit as a track which suitably punishes drivers for running wide and feels it is a place drivers can really attack with F1 cars.

With a host of tracks on the F1 calendar receiving recent updates a number have seen the introduction of large tarmac run-offs for safety reasons.

However, the changes have had the side-effect of allowing drivers to run wide and not lose speed on corner exits. The issue has come to a head on a number of occasions in 2016, with the introduction of sausage kerbs which have damaged cars and Bernie Ecclestone suggesting '40cm walls around track edges' to deter drivers.

The venue for the Brazilian Grand Prix holds special memories for Button as the place he claimed his 2009 world title with a dramatic battle up the field after a tricky qualifying session in what he calls 'his best drive of his F1 career'.

The British driver, who has won the Brazilian race once in 2012 plus two further podiums in 2006 and 2011, says Interlagos holds on to its old school feel and challenging layout due to its grass run-offs in the outfield section and high walls on the long pit straight while still allowing drivers to 'attack' the track.

"The Interlagos circuit has a bit of, how can I put it, 'muscle'," Button said. "It's a place that you really attack and it's really enjoyable, particularly when the front-end is properly nailed.

"A corner like Ferradura is really satisfying when you get it right; you really commit at the corner entry, barely scrubbing off any speed, and then sort of guide the car through until it rolls out of the second apex up onto the apex kerb. It's great.

"Even the hairpins require a really attacking style, you can take lots of kerb, and there's no run-off at the exits. It's how a racetrack should be, really." 

Zdroj: crash.net