Circuit Information
Estoril is a track of extremes. The 4.182 km (2.599-mile) lap has one of the slowest average speeds of the year, with a lap record averaging just 153 km/h (95 mph). But in terms of maximum speed, only Mugello saw the MotoGP bikes go any faster than the 341.8 km/h (212.4 mph) recorded by Max Biaggi’s Honda last year.
That tells you a lot about the nature of the track. The fast bits are very fast; the slow bits very slow.
There is a long straight entered via a fast corner where the bikes can stretch their legs, but it ends with very hard braking for a tight right-hand corner, and the rest of the lap is slow and highly technical. -->
The former host of the Portuguese Formula 1 Grand Prix joined the MotoGP calendar in 2000, a welcome addition to the three Spanish rounds. The track, a short drive out of the capital Lisbon, also joined the testing calendar at the same time. Teams who joined the mass tests there before the start of the year quickly found out about one of the track’s special features – very high coastal winds off the nearby Atlantic ocean making a difficult lap more difficult still.
Back at the circuit, there are a number of good places to watch the art of MotoGP racing. The final fast corner, taken at full lean accelerating up through the gearbox with an exit speed of more than 200 km/h (124 mph), is a particular challenge; while the corkscrew whirls of the ultra-tight uphill chicane section require a completely different facet of racing skill.
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