Right on Track: interview with Hermann Tilke
Following the announcement at Abu Dhabi last week, that the country will host a Grand Prix from 2009, Hermann Tilke reveals more about plans for this and for others around the globe, as he discusses with Mathias Brunner the past, present and future of Formula One track design
Q: The first connection between Abu Dhabi and Formula One was a five percent share of the investment company Mubdala in Ferrari. Then there was the Ferrari theme park. Was a Formula One track part of the big picture right away?
Hermann Tilke: "No, the race track was not part of the plan initially. We have been taking care of this project since January 2006 and although there was a track planned it was not intended for Grand Prix racing. It was meant to be developable to F1 standard but the original plan did not foresee a World Championship race. That only started to take shape in the second part of 2006."
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