Driver tests proposed new Eau Rouge layout

A local racing driver and consultant has tested the proposed new trajectory through Spa-Francorchamps’ legendary Eau Rouge-Raidillon section.

Following a spate of dangerous recent incidents at the fabled section, including the death of Anthoine Hubert in 2019, circuit organisers demolished the famous villa at the top of the hill to re-imagine the layout.

The FIA’s goal, according to France’s Auto Hebdo, is to reduce the overall speed of the famous up-down-left-right sweepers by 10 percent.

A proposed new trajectory through the section, marked out with white lines, has been tested at full speed by local driving techniques consultant Pierre-Yves Rosoux in a BMW M2 CS Racing GT4 car.

"The new, more angular version requires me to brake 20 metres earlier," Rosoux revealed afterwards.

"When the braking phase is over, I am at 160kph in the new Raidillon compared to 180 before. At the top of the hill, I am at 170 instead of 182 with the turn that we have known for so long," he added.

Rosoux admitted that he is not sure if the proposed layout "will have a future".

"The more we approach Raidillon with high-performance cars, the smaller the gap will be (compared to the existing layout)," he insisted.

"This version also risks generating other problems at the top. It is likely that more tests will take place in the coming weeks."