Hill questions safety in Jeddah: "I'm a bit concerned about the speed"

Hill afraid of speed Jeddah Corniche

The organizers got the brand new track finished just in time for the Grand Prix. It will be the first time driving on the new track, which means that the asphalt is very slippery and the F1 teams have little data available to assess the conditions. The fact that the track seems particularly fast and the walls are close, leaving little room for error, doesn't make it easy for the drivers.

Among other reasons, Hill is concerned about the high speed. The circuit was designed by German F1 house architect Hermann Tilke, who is precisely known for his safe track designs. Nevertheless, Hill says at the F1 Nation podcast: “The track we’re going to discover, I think it’s going be a big challenge, by the looks of things, I’m a bit worried about the speed.”

Hill sees little room for error

Like the drivers, including Max Verstappen, Hill sees little room for error on the new circuit: "“I mean, there’s not much run-off. They’ve got the SAFER barrier that they’re using, which is like they do in Indianapolis, but it’s gonna be very high speed and not much run-off. So [it’s] high-risk, high jeopardy. That always gets your attention as a racing driver.”

Hill, meanwhile, did speak to Ross Brawn who was, fortunately, able to assure him that the track was safe enough, nevertheless, the Briton thinks the drivers are going to have a very tough time: “I think it’s a very difficult one to judge because it’s such an unusual-looking track,” said Hill. “I compared it to possibly like Baku, and I was told off by Ross Brawn who said, ‘No, no, it’s not like that at all. It’s a completely different type of track. It’s got banked corners and stuff’.”