One less DRS and a new resurfaced Silverstone

Formula 1 arrives at the Silverstone for this weekend’s British Grand Prix with news that the controversial DRS zone that ran through the first few corners has been dropped.

Last year the FIA introduced a third DRS zone for the British race that ran from the final corner until the braking point for Turn 3.

However, this proved problematic for some drivers – most notably Romain Grosjean and Marcus Ericsson – given the speeds achieved sweeping through Abbey with the DRS open.

As such the FIA have opted to remove that zone, leaving just two – the Wellington and Hangar Straights.

But while that is great news for some drivers, they may not be too happy to learn that the track has been resurfaced.

And that, according to Daniil Kvyat, changes the characteristics of the track.

“One unknown factor is that the entire track has been completely resurfaced again,” the Toro Rosso driver told F1.com

“And on Friday, it will be interesting to find out just how different it is and what the new tarmac will be like.

“It will be an important factor because the lateral loads on the tyres, with all the high-speed corners here, are very high.”

Follow us on Twitter @Planet_F1 and like our Facebook page.