Chicane could be Houston’s ‘calamity corner’ this weekend
That's because drivers will have to navigate a left-right chicane after coming off the dogleg frontstretch of the 1.7-mile MD Anderson Cancer Center Speedway layout at Reliant Park. The chicane was part of the two Champ Car races held at this track in 2006 and 2007.
Sebastien Bourdais, who won both of those events and is coming off a podium run last month in Baltimore, believes that "it's pretty evident" the chicane could have an impact on the proceedings this Saturday and Sunday.
"I wish we could have a very late start, blow through the chicane for the opening lap and let [the field] stretch out, but it's part of the program," Bourdais said following a media luncheon Friday afternoon at Houston's Reliant Center. "It's unfortunately the consequence of not having enough runoff at what should have been Turn 1 in the first place but it is what it is.
"We had the same problem in Champ Cars and it puts on a good show [for the fans]. For the drivers, it's a critical point because you don't want the race to end in Turn 1. It definitely holds a lot of potential for incidents."
Simona de Silvestro, who raced in the 2007 Formula Atlantic race at Houston, said luck will play a bigger role in who survives the corner.
"It could be bad; we've had some chaotic races of late, and I think it could go more and more that way this weekend," she said at the same event. "0But we've got lucky so far. We've got through the accidents and moved forward." NBC Sports