German GP Thread - Sponsored by Green Flag Insurance guarenteed to be there in 60 minutes or less Contains spoilers of Race/Qualifying and Practice

[Fernando]

First topic message reminder :

Just days after an exciting and incident-strewn British Grand Prix at Silverstone, Formula One heads high into the Eiffel for the German GP. The teams will regroup at another of the sport’s ancestral homes with F1 resuming at the Nürburgring for round nine of the 2013 FIA F1 World Championship.

Opened in 1984, the Nürburgring Grand Prix circuit doesn’t present quite the challenge offered by the revered Nürburgring-Nordschleife but over the years it has proved itself to be a stern examination of a Formula One car and its driver. The narrow, flowing circuit demands a compromise in set-up: the twisty, low-speed first sector contrasts the high-speeds reached later in the lap, while the chicanes demand soft suspension to allow drivers to really attack the kerbs.

True form ahead of the race is difficult to predict given that the German Grand Prix comes after a series of atypical circuits and – in the case of Silverstone – an atypical race. That the Nürburgring demands a little bit of everything frequently ensures it is a race that finds out any weaknesses in the technical package. Car performance can be rendered less-relevant, however, by the stormy weather that often afflicts the region – though the forecast is currently predicting a dry German Grand Prix.

After 14 consecutive scoring finishes, Sebastian Vettel’s race-ending gearbox malfunction denied the World Champion a likely 25 points at Silverstone. His failure to score, combined with a gutsy drive to third from Fernando Alonso sees the Drivers’ Championship battle intensify, with Vettel (132), having his lead over Alonso (111) cut to just 21 points. Meanwhile, in the Constructors’ table, Mercedes (171) has moved ahead of Ferrari (168) and is closing on championship leaders Red Bull Racing (219).

Schedule

Friday July 5, 2013
Practice 1 – 09:00
Practice 2 – 1:00

Saturday July 6, 2013
Practice 3 – 10:00
Qualifying – 1:00

Sunday July 7, 2013
Race – 1:00

Facts
The GP Circuit at the Nürburgring has held grands prix under three different names: in 1984, 1995-96, 1999-2007 it hosted the Grand Prix of Europe; in 1985, 2009 and 2011 the German Grand Prix and 1997-98 the Grand Prix of Luxembourg.
Johnny Herbert’s final F1 victory came at the Nürburgring in 1999. It was the first and only win for Stewart Grand Prix. After being sold to Jaguar and then Red Bull Racing it won at the circuit again in 2009. That victory was Mark Webber’s first in F1.
Triple World Champion Sebastian Vettel has a rare blind spot when it comes to his home race. He has yet to win a German Grand Prix. He also has yet to win in Hungary and the United States. At the season start Canada was the only other race on that list, and Vettel won that comfortably in June.
Finishing fifth in the British Grand Prix last week established a new record for Kimi Räikkönen. The Finn has now scored points in 25 consecutive races, beating the 24-race run Michael Schumacher set between the Hungarian Grand Prix of 2001 and the Malaysian Grand Prix of 2003. Räikkönen’s last failure to score was the Chinese Grand Prix of 2012. It is his only failure since coming back into F1. His record, however, has been set in an era where points are awarded down to tenth. Schumacher’s sequence started with points to sixth, and finished with points to eighth.
Ferrari have an impressive German Grand Prix record with a mighty 21 victories, well ahead of nine wins for Williams and eight for McLaren. Perhaps surprisingly, Ferrari’s longest winning sequence was three consecutive races between 1951-53: two for Alberto Ascari followed by a final F1 victory for Nino Farina.
Michael Schumacher, with four, has the most German Grand Prix wins of any driver in the F1 World Championship era. Schumacher’s victory in 1995 was the first for a German national at his home grand prix since Rudolf Caracciola’s final win. Caracciola won the German Grand Prix six times between 1926-1939. Five of Caracciola’s wins came on the Nordschleife. The first, however, was on the AVUS circuit.
In the World Championship era, the race was held at AVUS in 1959. That apart, the Nürburgring-Nordschleife (1951-54, 1956-58, 1961-69, 1971-76), Hockenheim (1970, 1977-84, 1986-06, 2008, 2010, 2012) and the Nürburgring GP Circuit (1985, 2009, 2011) are the only circuits to host the Formula One World Championship German Grand Prix. In 1950 and 1960 the German Grand Prix was a Formula 2 race (the latter held on the Nürburgring-Sudschleife circuit), and there was no race in 1955, following the Le Mans disaster. Officially there was no German Grand Prix in 2007. This was the first year of the race being alternated between Hockenheim and the Nürburgring and for legal reasons it retained its former title as the Grand Prix of Europe.

Weather Forecast: http://www.latestmotorsportweather.com/racing-circuits/europe/germany/nurburgring-circuit.html
Source: Race Department.com

[dyrewolfe]

Well, congrats Seb - the first German to win the German GP. Got a good start to get past Hamilton and pretty much controlled the race from there, despite the constant threat from Lotus.

Gutted for Webber - that botched pit stop probably cost him a podium, but a good recovery drive to fight back to 7th.

Great drives from Kimi and Romain. The Lotus seemed to come alive in the higher temperatures, while the Mercedes suffered. Both guys gave Vettel a run for his money.

Good drive from Alonso - probably go the maximum he could from the Ferrari in the prevailing conditions.

Tough race for Mercedes with the increased tyre degradation rearing its ugly head as the track conditions heated up from practice and qualifying. Wasn't overly surprised to see Lewis get mugged by both Red Bulls into the first corner but was surprised how much faster the Lotus was. 5th was probably a decent result given the Mercedes was about the 4th quickest car today. At least Nico made up a couple of places and finished in the points too.

An unusually good race for McLaren with both cars finishing in the points for the first time in many races - 6th for Button and 8th for Perez. Could this be the start of the revival?

Overall, not the thriller Silverstone was but by no means a snorefest either, with the top 4 drivers keeping things interesting from the safety car onwards, as well as a few duels further down the field.

[dyrewolfe]

Poor race pace today from Merc. And Hamilton also looks to have poor traction out of the corners making the DRS a bit useless - it cost him behind his teamate and now the Sauber.

Back to the drawing board.

Both Mercs suffered with higher tyre degradation because of the higher track temperatures during the race. Also the straights at the Nurburgring aren't as long as most other circuits.

[GSC]

Lotus and Ferrari struggle to get heat into the tyres. Not an issue at hot circuits

[dyrewolfe]

Good news - the cameraman who was hit by Webber's loose wheel is apparently okay...just a bit shaken and bruised.

[Fernando]

He's broken his shoulder and cracked a couple ribs.

[Guest]

Okay race, vettel wins which is not great for the wdc. Lotus just aren't a good enough unit to capitalise on their pace.....nearly men in my opinion. Mercs in hot conditions get found out unsurprisingly, 5th for hammy was damage limitation. Poor communication with rosberg holding hamilton up in early stages. Hope the cameraman recovers quickly. Other than that nothing major to analyse. Vettel a step closer to four

[liverbnz]

I have a sneaking suspicion that Webber would have won that race without the tyre blunder - just can't keep them tyres outta the headlines! Webber seemed quicker than Vettel earlier on and I'm surprised RB didn't allow him to run a little longer on the softs. With that being said I'm sure RB would have done their best to engineer a Vettel win anyway.

[Guest]

Your last line says it all. Whenever its a 50/50, Vettel will end up on top

[SteveG]

Whenever Webber is in a useful position to threaten his teammate something always seems to go wrong. Last week was a failed starting procedure and this week a pit stop error. Now not suggesting any conspiracies but lets just say there always seems to be a 'convenient' problem on the other side of Vettels garage.

Also Webber - not surprisingly - absent from Red Bulls Mclaren style winners photo shoot. Maybe he couldnt bare wearing one of those lime green teeshirts.  

[bogbrush]

By now in this championship Webberwould have no business leading Vettel. Lotus did the thing for Raikonnenand I don't see the outrage.

Fact is, he started best and in a car that had one issues held off a great Lotus challenge.

Credit where it's due boys, or is that not in the script?

[Fernando]

Vettel doesn't get credit here BB ud have to drag them balls 1st through broken glass to get credit for Seb

[GSC]

Vettel drove superbly

Pulling Grosjean made perfect sense. Raikkonen was the only one with the pace to chase Vettel so why have Grosjean hold him up and let Alonso catch up

[bogbrush]

Looks that way!

[liverbnz]

By now in this championship Webberwould have no business leading Vettel. Lotus did the thing for Raikonnenand I don't see the outrage.

Fact is, he started best and in a car that had one issues held off a great Lotus challenge.

Credit where it's due boys, or is that not in the script?

That's because there is none -anywhere on this thread.

[Guest]

exactly, people just like to argue for the sake of it.

Going to be interesting to see how the car's react to the 2012 tyres but with a 2013 compound in Hungary and who it favours. It should be extremely hot too which will not suit Mercedes. You just get the feeling Alonso is once again fighting a losing battle to Seb. Also the Lotus' qualifying and being held up in important moments of races are what literally is the difference between a podium and a win for Kimi. Vettel just needs to continue doing what he's doing and the title should be his.....unfortunately.

I also see that Mercedes are asking for a day of running at the upcoming test to try out Pirelli's new tyres, on safety grounds. I think they've got bob hope and no hope.

[dyrewolfe]

He's broken his shoulder and cracked a couple ribs.

Well, thats the last time I believe anything Johnny Herbert says...

I wish him a speedy recovery.

[Guest]

Lotus have confirmed they have held talks with Nico Hulkenberg over a possible drive in 2014. Wowzer!

Goodye Kimi or Goodbye Romain?

[Good Golly I'm Olly]

Goodbye both?

[GSC]

Probably Kimi though Grosjean needs a strong half season.

Massa and Hulkenberg not a bad duo

[Guest]

Boullier even admitted this week that Lotus' had to delay payment on Kimi's salary and he wasn't even getting paid for a number of races. They've paid it now, although hardly the best way to get him to re-sign on with the team for 2014. I'm sure Lotus talking with Hulkenberg is a contingency plan if Kimi leaves for Red Bull and I would expect Grosjean to stay on with the team due to his close relationship with Boullier. Should be interesting how the driver market unfolds and the domino effect it has up and down the grid.

[Critical_mass]

Would love to see Kimi back in the Ferrari, but as Alonso is there it wont happen. Hulk in the Lotus would be good too.

I really cant see Kimi going to RBR, i really cant... ill eat my hat if he does. He'll stay put for another season at least.

[Guest]

Bad news for Mercedes. After Lotus criticised the medium n hard tyre choices as being too conservative for Hungary, Pirelli have now decided to change to softer tyre choices for the Hungarian GP. Add in the hot, dust bowl temps at Hungary and Mercs will be in trouble.

Not sure why Pirelli changed their choice of tyres because of pressure from one team, who will no doubt gain a significant advantage in comparison to their rivals.

[Critical_mass]

Very odd. No team should have a say in the matter.

[SteveG]

Think its time for Merc to write this season off. There's an inherent design flaw that they obviously can't change and this is now compounded with every other team being given the opportunity to test the new tyres being introduced for the rest of the season (a position they probably wouldnt be in had the hearing been held after Silverstone) and now to top it all off Pirelli are going 'soft' - literally.
 
At the end of the day the punters are the biggest losers in all of this regardless of who's to blame for testgate quite simply because the only car that can get close to Red Bull on a Saturday (the ONLY way to stop Red Bull) is a tyre chewer and is about to become even more disadvantaged. Result:- another cakewalk for the chosen one, but then again most punters pretty much knew that at the start of the season anyway - the only surprise (and a nice one at that) being Mercs quali pace.
 
So as a Hamilton fan it'll still be fun watching him keep Vettels finger in his pocket on Saturdays but overall it's roll on next season - and a few million more less viewers.

[Guest]

Think its time for Merc to write this season off. There's an inherent design flaw that they obviously can't change and this is now compounded with every other team being given the opportunity to test the new tyres being introduced for the rest of the season (a position they probably wouldnt be in had the hearing been held after Silverstone) and now to top it all off Pirelli are going 'soft' - literally.
 
At the end of the day the punters are the biggest losers in all of this regardless of who's to blame for testgate quite simply because the only car that can get close to Red Bull on a Saturday (the ONLY way to stop Red Bull) is a tyre chewer and is about to become even more disadvantaged. Result:- another cakewalk for the chosen one, but then again most punters pretty much knew that at the start of the season anyway - the only surprise (and a nice one at that) being Mercs quali pace.
 
So as a Hamilton fan it'll still be fun watching him keep Vettels finger in his pocket on Saturdays but overall it's roll on next season - and a few million more less viewers.

Have to agree with pretty much all that. F1 season ahead is basically Hamilton or Rosberg on Saturdays followed by finger waving on Sundays with Lotus` showcasing their inability to be ruthless and Alonso struggling in an inferior car and maximising his race potential to the limit. Season ends with a four time world champion.

[Trebs]

When you consider Mercedes are in second place in the Constructor's championship, I would not be writing their season off just yet. With Webber's form not being great, they could even win it.

As for the tyre choice, Pirelli have said it's due to the 2012 style construction which allows them to use a softer compound. I doubt one team lobbying for it has meant it has gone through, that would be utterly ridiculous.

[Guest]

Just some post-germany news is that of Sauber and the financial issues they are facing to stay in f1 and the desperate measures they are taking to gain sponsorship. They are trying to sign a deal with Gazprom, one of the biggest russian oil and gas companies and, in doing so, have also signed a 17 year old russian named Sergey Sirotkin as a driver, in preparation for him to be fast-tracked into a drive for 2014 and possibly replacing Hulkenberg. Once again the financial problems of lower teams is resulting in more pay drivers and the effect that has upon geniunely good drivers being held back. Also, having the Russian GP next year and the demand for a russian driver in f1 has to be taken into account. Would not surprise me to see Petrov popping up somewhere next year.

[GSC]

It got Karthikeyan a drive for New Delhi

[Guest]

Yeah, exactly and we know how dreadful that guy was. Absolutely appalling driver who had no idea what mirrors were actually used for. Remember him giving Vettel a puncture though at a race which did make me laugh. Just worrying how many pay drivers there are and how dangerous they can be but I guess the financial situation means that's the direction we will be going down for most teams.

[Bull]

Marussia confirm they will use Ferrari powertrains in 2014

good move for them if you ask e, could help them up the grid

[Guest]

Yeah, should see a significant step for Marussia and should propel them towards the middle order of the grid. Be interesting to see the response from Caterham.

Also, Pat Symonds has joined Williams and sees a return of the controversial figure after a five year ban. http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/formula1/23327416

[Fernando]

Daniel Ricciardo will test for RB at the YDT

[Bull]

Personally i like Marussia and want to to see them do well, not a big fan of Caterham not after what they did to Kovo =(

Also rate Bianchi very highly

[GSC]

So Marussia are basically Ferraris Toro Rosso with Bianchi on board.

[Bull]

Pretty much lol are now as Torro Rosso have dropped the ferrari engines.
guessing Marussia will run Ferrari engines next year?

[Guest]

Yeah, they are running their engines in 2014. It was obvious this partership would continue to grow, especially as Bianchi, who is basically owned by Ferrari, was sent their to learn and gain experience before possibly going on to bigger and better things.

[GSC]

Can't really blame Marussia I guess. Question is how long this partnership lasts once they achieve mid team performance.

[Fernando]

Bernie Ecclestone charged with bribery offences by German judge

[CaledonianCraig]

Bernie Ecclestone charged with bribery offences by German judge

To be brutally honest that doesn't surprise me at all. Bernie has and always will be money motivated as can be seen by the way he runs the sport.

[Sponsored content]