Fun & Famous

9 X WHY THE GRAND PRIX IS exceptionally COOL

Invited by our good friends at Renault, I spent the day in the small city of Spa yesterday. No, I was not there to enjoy their renown water, but I was there to be one of those pit babes in the bleachers at the Spa-Francorchamps circuit. And believe me, this is something I was looking forward too far more than the Dsquared show, to name something. And this is why:

1. The magic

You say Formula 1 and I say money and glamour. I’m sure scoring a soccer player is great, but if you’ve managed to score a formula 1 driver then you’ve definitely won the grand prize. Those guys make up to 30 million a year. That’s a lot of shopping you can do. You’ll probably live in Monaco, jet off to Malaysia and Mexico in private jets, order magnum bottles of champagne and everything, everything, everything oozes glamour and success. Our health editor used to intern for a hotel in Monaco and she sold (plastic) glasses of champagne during the Grand Prix for 27,50 euros per glass. Everyone acted as if it was entirely normal. My point exactly. Glamour.

2. The Spa-Francorchamps circuit

This was practically a home race for the Dutch Max Verstappen who grew up somewhere nearby. It’s also a famous circuit and the turns in the road are all names after perfumes. Eau Rouge and Rivage for example.

3. Team Renault

I was given a very coveting costly card from Renault. And with good reason because they have a rich history with the Formula 1. Did you know they’ve taken part in more than 600 Grand Prix matches, have won 168 times and have 12 titles under their name?

4. Geri Halliwell

She definitely scored the first place prize. She’s married to Max Verstappen’s boss Christina Horner, the boss of Red Bull Racing and she sure looks good. What a stunner. I was definitely hoping to get a selfie with Geri…

5. The art of driving

Perhaps you’re thinking: what’s so entertaining about pushing the gas peddle a little harder for two hours in a tiny car, sitting in a stuffy cockpit and a fireproof suit that hardly allows you to move. The G-force in the body of a racer is insane. Did you know that Max Verstappen can get his car to go from 300 km an hour to 0 in just 3 seconds? This requires strong brakes and a carbon brake disk costs 4,000 per piece and you need about 140 to 240 a year.

6. On life and death

Press the gas peddle just a little too much and you’ll fly off the road. If you’re even more unlucky your car will set on fire. Seriously though, bullfighting is nothing compared to this.

7. Everything with Renault

For a bunch of confusing reasons it’s not properly indicated and officially Max Verstappen drives in a Tag Heuer car, but you know as well as I do that Tag Heuer make watches and not motors. But the motor he uses to race across the track is from Renault.

And there’s more than just Max. Since a year now Renault has it’s own team. The Renault Sport Formula One Team with the British Jolyon Palmer (number 30) and the Danish Kevin Magnussen (number 20) in their ultra cool yellow and black Renault Sport. There is gold in their chassis’, which is symbolic for success that they’ll all achieve. Although we’re waiting for Magnusses success because he got a little too cozy with a concrete wall.

8. And there’s something in it for us too

Which is a lot of fun because all the tweaks and innovations that they use in the Formula 1 get applied into their regular passenger cars. Take the Renault Talisman that I drove to get there with it’s 4 control system (which allows you to steer all four wheels instead of just the front two making it so much easier to park) and the EDC automatic. So all the money that gets put into the Formula 1 isn’t only to improve the race car drivers performances, but also to make our own cars even more comfortable and better.

9. The growling engines

What a wonderful sound. Do you think they make cd’s filled with this?