The Parabolica
Autodromo Nazionale Monza
If there is a racetrack in the world where the ghosts walk among the trees, it is motorsport’s “cathedral of speed,” Monza. The circuit’s signature corner, the Parabolica, is an increasing radius, long right-hand turn, the final corner before the start-finish line and Monza’s legendary main straight. Perfect execution with maximum exit speed is thus vital for a quick lap. The corner lasts an astounding 7.6s at
race speeds of close to 200kph (150mph), with drivers getting on to the power as early as possible, drifting the cars to the very outside of the tarmac at the exit. Perhaps less well-known today in light of Sebastian Vettel’s brilliant outside pass of Fernando Alonso at the Curva Grande in 2011 — misnamed now, as in modern F1 it is barely a flick, taken flat out — the Parabolica remains a test of precision and bravery. It is also the site of Derek Warwick’s miraculous escape after a devastating 1990 shunt in his Lotus and, sadly, the place where 20 years earlier Jochen Rindt was killed during practice in his own Lotus 72 before winning the World Championship posthumously.
race speeds of close to 200kph (150mph), with drivers getting on to the power as early as possible, drifting the cars to the very outside of the tarmac at the exit. Perhaps less well-known today in light of Sebastian Vettel’s brilliant outside pass of Fernando Alonso at the Curva Grande in 2011 — misnamed now, as in modern F1 it is barely a flick, taken flat out — the Parabolica remains a test of precision and bravery. It is also the site of Derek Warwick’s miraculous escape after a devastating 1990 shunt in his Lotus and, sadly, the place where 20 years earlier Jochen Rindt was killed during practice in his own Lotus 72 before winning the World Championship posthumously.
From the F1A&G | 6 Best Corners in F1 collection.