The first hairpin will now be moved up towards the downhill section of the first sector and replace the chicane that previously led into the slow Turn Seven.
The Turns 11, 12 and 13 uphill chicane will no longer feature and will instead be replaced by a cambered hairpin, similar to that of Mugello’s Turn One.
Underneath the W Hotel, Turns 18 and 19 have been rounded off so that they are no longer 90 degree left-handers while the penultimate Turn 20 has been altered in a similar manner.
📢🏁 NEWS ALERT 📢🏁
A new era begins at Yas Marina Circuit. For the action. For the fans. For the sport. 🔥
Here’s a sneak peek of the changes coming to our track layout for the 2021 #AbuDhabiGP.🏎@EMSO_NEWS @F1 @Mrk1Consulting#F1 #Formula1 pic.twitter.com/8eIJ5n3L5G
— Yas Marina Circuit (@ymcofficial) June 24, 2021
Fans have been outspoken in their criticisms of the circuit and they haven’t been alone either. Kimi Räikkönen as well as other drivers have been critical of the circuit and the difficulties they face in following another car in the dirty air.
The 2010 and 2016 races in particular highlighted the issues with the circuit and the difficulties drivers have in making overtakes on those ahead.
Fernando Alonso famously got stuck behind the Renault of Vitaly Petrov which eventually cost him the 2010 title to Sebastian Vettel.
In 2016, Lewis Hamilton was able to back team-mate Nico Rosberg into rivals without the latter being able to overtake due to dirty air.