This is my first circuit redesign and my first post ever.
I'm not particularly skilled with Photoshop, this was just experimenting with some thoughts about the MadRing, and possible options to improve thrown together on Photopedia. There was not to much to do during the race, I guess.
The basic concept was keep everything which is good or must stay because of surrounding features (Turn 3 – 8), keep what is necessary for brand recognition (la Monumental) and try to improve or get rid of everything that is not so great (the Sotshi section).
I do have experience in 3D Modeling from my professional background (but not in Mapmaking). If there's enough interest in this redesign, I maybe consider to create a simple 3D version for Assetto Corsa or/and BeamNG (very basic – I’m limited in time, also the import to Assetto Corsa or BeamNG is not something I do on a regular basis and allways struggle, a collab would be welcomed).
Description of the Changes:
Start Straight
The position of the start straight has been changed. Instead of running east-west in front of the exhibition centre, it now follows a north-south orientation alongside the venue.
This allows the fan zone (highlighted in yellow) to connect directly with the exhibition Centre, enabling the halls to become part of the event experience (f.ex the MCE, Madrid Car experience could be held around this time creating enormous profiting symmetry potentials) . Also the two fan zones north and south can now connect through the existing tunnel.
The straight is slightly shorter than the current one, measuring roughly 560 metres. However, the start line has been moved further back, providing approximately 250 metres of runup before Turn 1. The straight is also located on the existing car park rather than on the road (along the expo halls), allowing temporary grandstands and support buildings to be constructed on both sides.
Turns 1-4
Turn 1 is now a 45-degree left-hand kink. Why? It gives the defending driver a choice. The leading car will naturally want to stay to the right side of the straight before clipping the apex on the left. However, Turn 2 is a right-hand hairpin, which encourages drivers to position themselves on the left side of the track before curve 2. This should create an overtaking opportunity for the following car on the inside. The defending driver must decide whether to sacrifice Turn 2 and secure the inside line for the left-hand Turn 3, or defend heavily into Turn 2 and risk losing momentum through the following corner. The hope is that the flat-out right-hand Turn 4 will allow side-by-side racing to continue beyond the hairpin sequence. Also this whole shebang at the end of the start straight compensates for the short streight
Turns 5-10
Turns 5 to 10 are largely identical to the current Turns 4 to 9. The only major change is that the chicane before the underpass has been widened in accordance with suggestions made by Mr V (as far as I understood, that is a change they will apply from the next race on anyway). The exit of Turn 10 has also been dramatically widened to a minimum of around 20-25 metres, allowing drivers to fully exploit what is effectively a sad version of Laguna Seca's Corkscrew (if so mirrored). The drop should be radicaly increased, and the runoff area should also be widened, ensuring that its more spectacular and the drivers are not excessively punished for pushing the limits in this section.
Turns 11-15 and La Monumental
This is where the major changes begin. Instead of following the existing Turn 10-11 sequence, the new layout aims to reach the La Monumental section as directly as possible avoiding the weird existing 10-11 chicane. Why I moved the Turns 10 and 11 is because I assumed that permanent changes, could probably only made close to La Monumental given that the area is otherwhise used also for festivals (and la Monumental is built, so it kind of needs to be kept and is there). Turns 11 and 12 serve as the approach to La Monumental. Turn 11 is climbing back up to the hight of Calle de Francisco Umbral. Turn 12 is coming down after going over the overpass. Both are wide, heavy braking zones. Alternative: Curve 12 being already part of la Monumental (reducing the Curve numbers by one – tell me witch one you prefer, the longer I look at it the more I prefer the alternative). The reasoning is simple: for safety reasons. You may ask why Turns 14 and 15 exist instead of simply joining the straight directly. The answer is that these corners force drivers to use the full width and elevation of La Monumental. To maximise speed through Turn 14, drivers must position themselves towards the upper edge of the structure. This again could create opportunities for late-braking overtakes and potential side-by-side battles within La Monumental itself (the thing that was promised).
Both Turns 14 and 15 are heavy braking zones that compress the field before the long 1.3 km back straight.
Back Straight and new Obelisco Bridge
The back straight connects directly to the roads surrounding the exhibition centre car park, allowing the infrastructure to maintain practical use when racing events are not taking place (for ex. for access for festivals). The new bridge, Obelisco, is intended as a statement piece of Spanish architecture and serves as a visual counterpoint to La Monumental.
Turns 16 and 17 form a heavily widened left-right chicane that returns the cars to the final sprint towards the finish line. The objective is to create another overtaking opportunity and keep the racing intense right up to the chequered flag.
New track length: roughly 3.46 km
Bonus:
With these changes, the entire "Little Sochi" section has been eliminated.
Hope you like it.
