We're racing at the legendary Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps this weekend, which means Team Principal Mike Krack is a very happy man, but when he stops grinning at the thought of Pouhon, Blanchimont and Les Combes, he has a few things to say about the Hungarian Grand Prix last weekend, AMR24 updates and the value of positivity.
The Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps is… special. Rolling down the hill through Francorchamps on a Wednesday evening, seeing the track rising out of the densely wooden Ardennes there is the sense of Grand Prix racing at its most historic and spectacular. It's also the place where Team Principal Mike Krack was bitten by the racing bug as a youngster.
In his final column before the F1 summer break, he reminisces about that but also discusses our hard-won point at the Hungaroring, the effectiveness of our latest updates, the progress the team has made across the first half of this season and what he's planning for his holidays.
This is Mike on...
Keeping cool
"Lance and Fernando drove very well in Hungary. It was a difficult weekend in terms of temperatures, rain and tyre degradation. I think we did a great job on Saturday, we got the cars out at the right moment and kept our heads in the challenging conditions. You see other teams and other drivers getting that wrong – just because it was an incredibly difficult session to navigate. We manoeuvred ourselves through that and, at the end of the day were best of the rest.
"What made me particularly pleased was that we never got a good lap through practice with new tyres fitted. In each of the sessions, whenever we went out to set a time, a yellow flag would come out and prevent it – but the team came good when it mattered."
Heading in the right direction
"On that subject, we could see through practice that our updates to the AMR24 were working as expected, though the timesheets were suggesting otherwise. Some of the journalists were questioning me about our updates not performing. I was able to tell them to wait and see, promising we would talk later. The real headline is that we're on the right path."
Positivity
"I'm very proud of the team at the moment, for the way it's handled itself over the last few races. At this point in the season, it would be easy to be looking to the summer break and losing focus on the race ahead – but that's not what's happening. The mood is very positive. Everyone is still absolutely flat out. It's easy to see in the metrics: whether that's reliability trackside, progress in aerodynamic development, the speed with which production and our supply chain are delivering new parts.
"I'll be addressing the team before we all go on summer break and saying that we have fewer points than last year but that every metric except that one says the team is heading in the right direction. It's not always noticed how much work goes into that every year: into reliability, into preparation, in pitstop practice, in optimisation, but also setup, aerodynamic analysis, aerodynamic research, development, production, finance! It all has to work together – and if you see what we've done over the last year, it's a positive improvement."
Fabulous Spa
"And now Spa! Wow! Legendary circuit! Rollercoaster! I'm smiling just thinking about it. I grew up here. Well, not here exactly, but it's one of the tracks I went to with my dad. Camping at 24-hour races, watching touring cars, my first F1 races – buzzing when Senna passed by, often with rain bucketing down. It's incredible. It's iconic.
"The circuit keeps developing its infrastructure, it keeps improving the safety, and it would be great to keep this track on the calendar. It's one of the best of the year and it takes places in a stunning country. The drivers love it. Traffic is a challenge, obviously… but let's concentrate on the positives. Spa!"
The break
"And then after Spa, we have the summer break. Well, first we have a Pirelli tyre test and many of the crew will be staying on for that, and we'll have Stoffel Vandoorne in the car, driving the AMR24 for the first time, but after that, the break. Everyone deserves it.
"Two weeks off gives everyone a chance to take a breath. For me, it's an opportunity to zoom out a bit and think about things strategically but to also hold a mirror up and ask: 'What do I have to do differently?' It's very difficult to do that when we're bouncing from race to race to race. I'll also find time to keeping enjoying this incredible summer of sport by watching some of the Olympics, and go on holiday with my family …but first, Spa! Brilliant, brilliant Spa!"
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