Circuit Length (Miles):
International - 2.249

Situated in Northamptonshire, Silverstone provides exhilaratingly fast corners and long turns including late apexes which makes this circuit challenging for all riders.
The nature of the circuit has changed for the use of bikes only at Luffield. Spectators are spoilt for choice here with large open stands and many hospitality suites. Facilities are excellent.

Start / Finish

• The start / finish straight

Copse Corner

• From the start / finish straight riders will be trying to maximise power towards Copse Corner and the braking point should be around the signal lights on the left a short distance in front of the corner marker board
The riders line through the corner and exit speed is far more important than your entry speed and riders can often ignore out braking manoeuvres on the entry
The actual corner is blind and is easy to lose the front end if wet
Peeling into the corner should be done no more than 5 metres before the 50 metre board. Riders state that this usually feels late but can square the corner provided they turn the bike fast so they can actually be on close to maximum throttle before the riders are on the apex
The apex is very late, about three quarters of the length of the inside kerb
Provided the riders make the apex they will have made enough room for themselves to hold full throttle from the exit to the next corner
Due to the length and speed of copse means that riders will be working the throttle hard all the way to the outside kerb ensuring the bike is upright in plenty of time to make their way back over to the right hand side of the track ready for the approach to Maggotts

Maggotts / Becketts

• There are many lines into Maggotts but the approach that takes riders out really wide will give more speed down the long Club Straight and the first part of Becketts
Riders will often carry brakes right up to the turn in point and it is better to avoid the tighter approach as riders will pay dearly for this on the exit as it denies riders the ability open the throttle for too long
If riders go too wide or too deep on the actual entry they can leave the door wide open for another rider to pass them with ease
Riders need to ensure they keep their bike in as tight as possible in the second part run on to Club Straight
There is no real apex point on Becketts so riders need to unsure they keep the bike to the kerb and follow it round
They need to use the throttle gently to keep the bike balanced or too much throttle will see them run too wide on the exit and lose time
After the riders let go of the kerb on the inside on Becketts the bike should be let out a little so the riders can then bring it back, closer to the 2nd apex
The wider the rider goes the more bumpy and slippery the track is
On exit riders need to lift their head up and look for the bridge

Ireland Esses

• The approach is from the exit of Becketts and riders will be trying to put the power on hard while bringing their bike upright
Riders will possibly find that their bike has been thrown too far to the left but the unpainted kerb on the apex on the left is low and smooth enough to be used when necessary
Riders will probably be thrown onto the first apex off the exit of Becketts and if riders have carried too much speed through Becketts they will be too wide and will either have to stay off the throttle for too long or otherwise catch too much kerb on the first apex which will mean the rider will be off line for the crucial second and third apexes
It is important for the rider to drive the bike hard to the second apex and to make ground to the right as early as possible in order to position themselves for the third apex
The 2nd apex also marks the peel in for the rider ready for the 3rd apex
Riders will keep as tight as possible to the inside kerb while still on the throttle and will need to concentrate on holding the line as tight as possible
Riders will need to economical with the amount of track they use on the exit to take the following kink at the exit of Irelands Bends on maximum power
Barriers are very close to the sides of the track on the exit

Abbey

• The straight bends left on the approach to Abbey so riders need to make as much ground to the left as possible and to do this they need to brake hard and turn simultaneously
Riders will need to brake just at the point where the band of darker tarmac dissects the track and riders will need to bend the bike as hard to the left as possible
The exit tightens so another late apex is required here so it is important to set the bike up on the entry with this in mind
A fast change of direction is required so a precise peel in point is essential
Riders will use the kerb on the left as a reference
Riders will aim to apex around the end of the inside kerb, this usually takes some practice as it’s difficult to see the kerb until riders are on it
It is essential to get on the power early for the crucial exit
The exit feeds back onto the main Silverstone circuit at a tight angle effectively making the corner turn in a little more than 180 degrees
Provided the rider has turned the bike in early by taking the late apex they should be able to use full throttle and work the gears hard right up to the next corner which is Bridge

Bridge

• Bridge is a fast, though fairly straight-forward right hander into a dip
The camber for the approach to Bridge may be flat perpendicular to the track but laterally it’s steeply downhill which makes braking difficult
Fairly fast corner though once the riders are up to speed braking is light provided the rider is confident on their turn in point
The turn in point into the corner is right under the bridge
Riders will push the bike right on to its side under the bridge as the camber also assists them to do this and from their peel in point the track drops downhill
From this point to the actual apex the track flattens then climbs again
The rider should be able to turn the bike early and increase the speed before hitting the late apex
The rider needs to be on the kerb late, in order to stop themselves from getting thrown too wide on the apex
If riders do not do this correctly then they have jeopardised their entry into the following Priory corner
As they exit they will be on full throttle but should not use more than two thirds of the track but as soon as the rider can, they should pull the bike back over to the right
There is a surface change very close to the brow prior to going into Priory

Priory

• The approach has been improved as it is more open and slightly more visible though the turn does still have to be anticipated as the brow obscures
Riders will still need to ready for braking especially after the fast Bridge section
As riders go over the brow the extra width of the service road has been lost following the insertion of bollards
The corner at Priory is actually quite rounded which allows power to be applied firmly with quite a bit more speed than is obvious at first able to be carried in
There are two rough spots of tarmac towards the outside of Priory

Brooklands

• As riders speed through Priory heading on the right hand side of the track for the tighter bend at Brooklands, the correct exit is reached next to the kerb
There is time for the riders to straighten up, brake and change down gear and at the same time looking for the apex then turn for it
The apex kerb is flat enough to use as long as the traction is not lost
When riders exit Brooklands they need to be ready for the new chicane section put in which is only used for bikes
A wide exit will give a rider a poor approach angle for the new tarmac
A shallow approach will leave the gap for riders to overtake
Riders usually aim to be somewhere towards the middle of the track to cover both speed and the defence before the approach into Luffield

Luffield

• Riders will see very little into Luffield as the Armco barrier obscures their view
The turn in point can vary but it is usually best for the rider to run a small direction change first then turn the bike hard just before the rider runs over the seam of the new tarmac
Riders can carry a lot of speed but they need to be aware they don’t drift too wide as they will destroy their attack angle for the last part which is the left then right back onto the straight
However, heading towards Apex 1 there is a nice camber on the apex which allows the rider to carry a lot of speed in this part of the new section
Riders can start driving from this point but riders must remember that they will need to scrub a lot of speed ready for the fast approaching right hander
Riders need to get to the right hand side of the track as soon as possible and start for the final chicane of this section
Riders will need to keep to the right, and need to turn the bike just before the pit lane entry
This will give the rider a very steep attack angle to the 2nd apex but it’s needed if you are going to get good drive onto the straight
Riders will need apex late on the kerbing so they can get to the left
This is extremely important as riders will now flick their bike over to the right giving the rider a much better line for the drive onto the straight, carrying less angle and having more overtaking options on the exit of the turn because the rider can run tighter to the inside
If the rider turned well in the right place they will just clip the point of the kerbing as they run out and onto the straight
On the exit there is a concrete barrier on the outside of the exit that usually grabs the riders attention, they need to ignore it and look up the straight as soon as they can
This will help the rider turn the power on earlier and run a tighter exit line for overtaking
Riders will open the throttle ending back along the start / finish straight