Welcome back Formula One. And welcome to a new venue.
The Turkish Grand Prix could be the watershed of the F1 season. With six races remaining, a victory tomorrow by standings leader Fernando Alonso of Renault would be a large step toward bringing the 24-year-old Spaniard his first season title.
"I am refreshed after the break, and ready to attack the final races of the year," said Alonso, who leads McLaren-Mercedes' Kimi Raikkonen by 26 points, and seven-time series champion Michael Schumacher of Ferrari by 32.
PHOTO: EPA
"The approach for this weekend is try to beat McLaren. It's not an easy goal because we see how competitive they [McLaren] are in the last two or three months."
After a three-week break, F1 resumes at the sport's newest venue -- the US$150 million (123 million euros) Istanbul Park race circuit. The 135,000-seat layout is located about 50km from the Bosporus -- the waterway that bisects Istanbul -- on the Asian side of the city.
The race could be one of the warmest of the season, though there's a chance of weekend rain. Combine that with the hilly new layout designed by Hermann Tilke, and the outcome is hard to figure.
Like most of the drivers, Schumacher got his first look at the 5.3km course on Thursday. As he checked it out, workers were still putting up signs, planting trees and grass and laying slabs of concrete on the road leading to the racetrack.
"It's a beautiful landscape and you can judge the corners because you see them properly," Schumacher said, comparing it favorably to new venues designed by Tilke in China, Bahrain and Malaysia.
"If you go to China, it's very difficult to judge some of the apexes, some of the exits and that makes it a little more complicated to learn and get the line correct. Here it's more straightforward."
It's difficult to know who has the momentum. Raikkonen won the last race three weeks ago in Budapest, his fourth victory of the season and a key triumph as both Renaults failed to score points.
"It was a great result in Hungary," said Raikkonen, who is also seeking his first season title.
"I have seen graphics and it looks like a good layout with a mix of challenges, such as slow and fast corners, long straights and elevation changes, and I am looking forward to the challenge."
F1 engines have to last two consecutive races. Alonso and teammate Giancarlo Fisichella will be using the same V10s they ran in Budapest.
Fisichella had problems with a fuel cell, which caused the engine to misfire. Alonso was slowed after a collision early with Toyota's Ralf Schumacher, which forced him to pit. He never caught up.
"It was a bit of a surprise for us that we had problems in Hungary," said Alonso, who has won six times this season. "But in reality, I think the car could have been pretty competitive with a trouble-free race."
The race comes just a few days after Ferrari driver Rubens Barrichello confirmed his move next season to BAR-Honda on a multiyear deal. Ferrari already announced it had signed another Brazilian, Felipe Massa, from Sauber to team with Schumacher. Massa, 24, has yet to reach the podium in 47 races.
Barrichello, 33, is in his sixth season with Ferrari and has nine-career wins -- all with the Italian team.
There were few signs of tight security on Thursday, although officials promised to deploy 2,000 paramilitary police for the event, backed by undercover officers and security guards.
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