Awful tracks vs. good tracks

[Apex 0]

I was racing around Sochi and realised how bad the track is with 90 degree corners everywhere and realised that spa is also made of a lot of 90 degree corners. What makes a track interesting to you as I was fascinated at how simple spa now seems to me even though it is still so fun to drive.

https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B4nM1ptgCCJFSDJJOWJxMzBrb1k To see what I mean.

[MBKF1 91]

In my opinion, what makes a track great to drive is its flow. Spa just all connects brilliantly with each corner delivering you onto the next, and each corner needs to be nailed for the next one to be the best it can be. Other examples for me would probably include Suzuka, Silverstone, Budapest and Interlagos. Away from F1, off the top of my head, I'd also include Sonoma, Laguna Seca Zandvoort and Brands Hatch.

These are the tracks I've enjoyed driving on games anyway, where you look forward to each lap and you want to push that bit further, take a corner flat, brake a bit later, etc. Each corner offers a new challenge. They're tough to nail, but so satisfying when you do get it right.

Sochi meanwhile is just boring, and has zero flow and zero personality (apart from T3). But 90 degree corners aren't challenging, and you don't get any satisfaction from them. Who comes out of Sochi T5 going 'ah yes, nailed it'. But get the Suzuka Degner corners spot on and it feels amazing.

In terms of providing great racing, they may not necessarily be the best. The examples I included above don't have the usual perfect recipe for overtaking (long straight, followed by hairpin). But that makes the overtakes that are made so much better. Think of Raikkonen overtaking Fisichella into T1 at Suzuka around the outside. Stunning. Or Verstappen around the outside of Blanchimont, and around the outside of Rosberg at Chapel last year.

Hermann Tilke circuits of recent years haven't quite got that flowing pleasure. While some of his circuits have some brilliant sections (Istanbul T8, COTA 1st sector, Sepang T5 / T6), they're often ruined for me by clumsy tight and twisty sections. I love Circuit of the Americas, the whole first sector is a dream, but then you arrive at this slow section of mess which totally disrupts the flow of the circuit.

I don't know where I'm going with this, I'm probably just waffling on so I'll stop.

[Jiggy 5]

I always disliked the A1-Ring/Red Bull Ring for some reason, because it was so basic to me.

Love Abu Dhabi, it's like one long carnival ride, it feels like I've been in three different worlds after a lap.

That's how I look at most tracks, like an attraction ride. I was less of a fan of tracks like Sepang (although it's iconic), Shanghai, Bahrain, because it's dull and boring. An exciting track for me needs a fast section that throws you around in a fast sequence, giving someone a chance to show off reaction speed and getting that sequence right is exciting to me. It's why I never liked Road America or Brands Hatch, it's too consistent to me and therefore boring.

Silverstone at the other hand has Maggots and Becketts, which is probably my favorite corner sequence ever, because of the high speeds you'll approach it with and how it transitions into the Hangar Straight. The old location of the start/finish-line meant that it was the best opening corners of any track for me. The new s/f-line kind of took that away, but I do love the first four corners of the new section of the track and as a whole, Silverstone is more exciting for me than before.

[SirPhilMcKraken 279]

This is probably my noobness but I've never gotten into Spa. I just can't seem to get the racing lines on some of the corners and that very last chicane at the end is so easy to spin out on. Rethinking about it now though as @MBKF1 said, the corners do flow very nicely into each other and its not a boring track. I just suck at it lol.

[Liaveil 137]

Something that has a nice mix of fast, flowing and slow speed corners and generally not too many straights. Chicanes are okay if they're not constant and if they're not placed at the end of a long straight.
Anything with too many stop and start 90 degree corners is pretty boring. Also, too much leniency in run offs is awful. I'm on of those that feels if a driver makes a mistake and runs off he should be punished for it, not let off by simply being able to cut the corner or whatever to recover.

[MBKF1 91]

Totally agree @Wynterdust, mistakes should be punished. On too many circuits you can run onto a sea of tarmac run off and re-join with zero penalty.

What I wish all circuits could have is a 2 metre wide strip of grass running around the entire edge of the circuit, before any tarmac run off area begins. It means running wide and off track is punished slightly, yet you don't really lose control (unless it rains), and you can still slow down sufficiently if you do run onto the main tarmac area. I'm not sure why circuits don't do this.

[Jiggy 5]

Hungaroring is an absolutely **** track tbh.

[Apex 0]

Jiggy said:

Hungaroring is an absolutely **** track tbh.

Yeah, although it does require some driver skill and is Monaco without the glamour or barriers except the barrier protecting the car in front rom being overtaken