2018 Formula One German Grand Prix

Paul Jeffrey

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F1 2018 German Grand Prix.jpg

Welcome to the central discussion thread of the 2018 FIA Formula One German Grand Prix.


Sebastian Vettel retook the lead of the World Championship last time out at Silverstone, stealing the points from under the nose of Lewis Hamilton at his home Grand Prix, can the British driver recover lost ground and return the favour to Vettel and Ferrari at the German's home race this weekend?

Hockenheim makes a welcome return to the calendar this weekend in what promises to be a tense Grand Prix at the famous venue, with some good passing opportunities, a disgruntled Hamilton and a Ferrari team riding high, the end result is anyone's guess....

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Paul Jeffrey

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THURSDAY FIA PRESS CONFERENCE: Brendon HARTLEY (Toro Rosso), Nico HULKENBERG (Renault), Sergio PEREZ (Force India), Sebastian VETTEL (Ferrari)

German Grand Prix Press Conference.jpg


Q: Brendon, go back to two weeks ago at Silverstone. That was a horrible-looking crash. How are you now? No lasting effects, I hope.
Brendon HARTLEY: Actually, waking up on the Sunday, I was ready to go. Almost no knock-on effects, which was a surprise after watching the replay myself and seeing how spectacular that looked. In fact, the impact was smaller than what I had in both Canada and Barcelona. I think I’ve probably taken the top three crashes of the season all by myself! Hoping something like that doesn’t happen again. But no, I was physically ready already on Sunday and felt perfectly fine.

Q: Let’s talk to you now about the relationship between Toro Rosso and Honda, if we can. How do you feel that has developed as the season has gone on? Do you feel the development rate has increased as the year has progressed?
BH: It was a really positive start from the first laps in Barcelona testing where I think a lot of people had written us off before the season had even started. I think collecting nice laps on that first test was a really positive start and I think everyone at Toro Rosso saw it as a good opportunity having Honda on board. We’ve had an update already in Canada and yeah, the progress keeps moving forward every weekend. I think it’s only positive, I would say, the relationship between Toro Rosso and Honda.

Q: Do you sense there’s pressure to introduce engine upgrades this year, to help prepare Honda for next year when they’re going to be with Red Bull Racing as well.
BH: I think there were always updates planned, one of which has already come and I know there’s some other stuff in the pipeline – but at least from what I’ve seen. I haven’t seen any added pressure. Of course, we’ll welcome all the performance gains that we can – but honestly the way the team’s working together and systematically going through it, collectively as a team, Toro Rosso and Honda together. I mean, it’s all going in the right direction.

Q: Brendon, this is your first time here since 2009 when you raced in Formula 3. What are your expectations of Hockenheim in a Formula One car?
BH: Yeah, looking forward to it. It’s a proper track, it’s got history. Obviously not the same one that was raced many years ago through the forest. Yeah, I like it, I’m remaining optimistic. Surprisingly optimistic after the last few races I’ve had. Most of these bad results over the last few months have been out of my control, and I still feel strong and in good spirits and ready to take on this weekend. As we’ve all seen from P7, the last of the top three teams, to the very back, it’s an extremely tight battle. If we manage to eke two more tenths out of the car, from any area of development, that could mean securing quite a few points – or not securing. It’s extremely tight and we just have to bring our A game and get everything together over the next two days.

Q: Nico, Brendon’s just giving his thoughts on the German Grand Prix. There was no German Grand Prix last year – just how special is it for you to be racing on home soil this weekend?
Nico HULKENBERG: Yeah, it’s definitely good to be back. Hockenheim, which is a place with a lot of memory for me. My first ever race in single seater racing, Formula BMW in 2005 was here; lots of racing in Formula 3, so, I’ve always had good moments here, the circuits always been treating me well. Good results, even in Formula One, two times seventh. So, it’s good to be here, I like the place, like the area. I hear it’s pretty sold out for this weekend, which is great news so looking forward to start the weekend here.

Q: We’re pretty much at the halfway point of the season. Just wanted to get your assessment of yours and Renault’s progress in 2018.
NH: I think it’s been OK. Of course, we missed out a few opportunities and results here and there. Sometimes technical issues, sometimes just with having a few difficult weekends. I feel the last two, three, four weekends have not been brilliant for us, we’ve always had a little hiccup somewhere and we’ve given away a little bit – but I think that’s just how it goes. Over 21 races it’s really hard to be perfect all the time. I think in the bigger picture, we’re fourth in the Constructors’ Championship, which is pretty decent. We have more developments in the pipeline over the next few weeks, which hopefully puts us in a good direction for the rest of the season. Obviously, we want to be more competitive and stay where we are.

Q: Neither car was in Q3 at Silverstone. Did that track reveal the car’s shortcoming?
NH: Not necessarily. I think it’s a little bit track dependent. We feel Silverstone wasn’t great for our car. It was just a little bit difficult. We were boxed in a bit, we felt. Before that we’ve been to Q3 many times. Not all the time. It’s not always the most important in the midfield battle. Sometimes it’s actually good to be outside and on a different strategy, to upset a little bit. Of course, we’re pushing at Renault, everybody, to make the car more competitive, faster, trying to keep a gap in the midfield battle. But it’s really tight and it is track-specific. So one track suits better Haas or Force India, the next weekend the Toro Rosso is faster. I think, on balance, us as Renault, we have been pretty consistent.

Q: You say the team is working hard to put performance on the car – so how much quicker is the car than it was in Melbourne?
NH: It’s hard to quantify in terms of lap-time – but for sure we’ve developed the car since. There’s been quite a few new parts since. Here and there, some little things. It’s hard to measure – but if you see the gap to the top three teams, then you still think ‘that’s too big’. We don’t like that, but they’re doing at the same time, an amazing job and it’s really hard to catch-up. Yeah, especially as race drivers you always feel you want more. You want it quicker, you’re impatient. This weekend we had some stuff which I’m excited to try tomorrow and see how it goes.

Q: Sergio, coming to you. We’re doing a bit of a half-term report. So, tell us, what’s your assessment of yours and Force India’s season so far?
Sergio PÉREZ: It’s been a bit up and down in the first half of the season. We were expecting more, up until now but we’re certainly improving; getting closer to the top of the midfield battle. I think we’re definitely getting closer and improving there. Still a long way to go and we should be in a good position. We’re certainly making good progress. I think the season has started quite slow for us but then we made some good progress and I think right now we are in a good position to start fighting for good points.

Q: So, who do you feel you’re battling with at the minute. Can you go, on performance terms, toe-to-toe, with the guy on your left, for example?
SP: I certainly think so. I think there is a good chance. Definitely the midfield battle, as Nico described, is so much track dependent, track-to-track, small margins so everything down to the Sunday y’know? To the Sunday afternoon. There’s a lot to gain, even if you don’t have a great qualifying, there are still plenty of points that are valuable there. So, I think we should be in a good position. I still think fourth place is possible for us in the Constructors’, so that’s the main target.

Q: Sebastian, first thoughts, concerning these new spec, 2017-spec cars really. It’s the first time we’ve used them here at Hockenheim. How much of a different experience will it be, compared to 2016 with the old-spec cars?
Sebastian VETTEL: I think it should be more fun. Cars are faster, faster mostly, or mainly in the corners, so I think it’s always great if the cars are faster. I think here you have some corners, high-speed corners – Turn One and also the entry to the stadium, which, yeah, they should be a lot more fun – but also the medium-speed sections around the track. I think generally the cars are better, more fun to drive, so it should be better, more enjoyable than two years ago. And hopefully we are more competitive – that’s also more enjoyable!

Q: Pole position in 2016 was 1m14.3s. How much do you believe you might be able to shave off that this weekend?
SV: We’ll see. I think it’s not always straightforward to compare. I think the cars are faster, as we mentioned, but we also obviously but a lot of downforce on, so we lose a bit of speed down the straights – but I think we should be faster. We also have the ultrasoft this weekend for qualifying, so yeah, how much I don’t know but by quite a bit. As I said, the faster you go, the more fun it is.

Q: You’re leading the Drivers’ Championship; Ferrari leading the Constructors’ Championship. The development curve at Ferrari this year has been very impressive. Have you noticed a step up in that area compared to last year?
SV: Well, the team is still improving, still growing. Obviously, the team has been around for a long time and I have been now part of the team for three and a half years – but I think we are getting stronger, we have a very, very good group of people, a good mix of people on board. Yeah, you’re trying all the time. Sometimes obviously, there’s also the element of the stuff working better than expected, sometimes it works less than expected but I think overall, I think you can say over the last two years maybe, since the last time we were here, that, yeah, I think by the end of 2016 we had a sort of lock opened, and since then I think there was a certain momentum starting to keep going and to develop. Since then I think we kept it going. Obviously the ’17 regs gave us the chance as a team to catch up, because before we were a bit behind – but since then, also last year, I think we had a great pace, a great car and we were able to develop it. Missed a little bit of performance at the end of the year. I think we learned from that and hopefully we can do it better – which still have to be seen but I think the car has potential.

Q: You’ve won at the Nurburgring but not here. Would winning here on Sunday mean more to you than simply 25 points?
SV: Yeah. Absolutely. I think the fact that racing in Germany, I’m afraid that probably this is the last time for a while, as far as I understand – which would be a shame to lose one of the classic races, and the fact that I’m literally from here – it’s just half an hour away were I was born and grew up – so yeah, the area means a lot to me and it would be great to have a good weekend.

Q: (Sonja Kreye – Speed News) Question for Sebastian. As far as I remember, Nico Rosberg, when he became World Champion in 2016, he dedicated some of his success to some mental work that he does, like meditation and hypnosis – don’t know what he does – but do you also follow something like this? Do you have a mental routine? Do you do some mental work?
SV:
I think it’s a very broad subject: I don’t know what Nico was doing or not but I think we all have our routines. Some of it is conscious, some of it – a lot of it – is probably sub-conscious. I think everybody knows from their own experience that you have some things that you run through before the start, or before a test, or whenever it gets important, we all have some sort of routine that we follow. Something that we do different to other people around us. It’s the same for us. Obviously when it comes to qualifying on Saturday or preparing the race, I think yes, I have certain things that I try to go through, I try to visualise and go through the track and so on. I’m not practising meditation or doing some of things that people maybe think of when they talk about mental preparation. So, as I said, most of it I think is a certain routine. We have the qualifying, it’s always the same things happening, so you know what’s coming and it’s important to be there, to be sharp, to prepare – but yeah, I think we know what to do.

Q: (Wolfgang Monsehr – Rennsportpresse-Agency ) Two questions for Brendon Hartley. Number one: is there a regular exchange of info or experience with your sister team, either you and your Red Bull driver colleagues or engineers. And question number two: you come from a relatively small country, New Zealand, but with a very rich motorsport background, starting a long time ago with Bruce McLaren, Mike Thackwell, Chris Amon etc. You’re representing Formula 1 as a New Zealander, over in America it’s your countryman Scott Dixon. Both are totally different championships but nevertheless do you have with him a regular contact and exchange of experience – Formula 1 to IndyCar and IndyCar to Formula 1?
BH: OK, so the first question was regarding Toro Rosso and Red Bull. They are two very separate teams. Obviously we share the same catering, so there is some crossover and I’m also good friends with Max and Daniel, as I am with some other drivers in the paddock. The crossover in information is relatively small but probably not my area to discuss but I’m not well informed on exactly how much information is passed, but I should mention that they are two different teams and everything on the Toro Rosso is manufactured by Toro Rosso in Faenza and in Bicester, where the winds tunnel. The next question: I am very aware of the rich history and I knew Chris Amon very well. Especially when I travelled away from New Zealand I realised how rich the history is and you mentioned Scott Dixon and yeah we do keep in contact. I think that’s the nature of being from a small country and flying the flag and we’re all very proud of that. I think we’re not the only two. It’s fair to say there are many other New Zealand drivers representing on a very level and yeah, I’m proud to be one of many.

Q: (Alan Baldwin – Reuters) Seb, Lewis’ deal with Mercedes as a two-year extension was announced today. He’s locked in for two years, you’re at Ferrari for two years and Max is at Red Bull for two years. Your thoughts on how the future is lining up?
SV: Well, congrats. I don’t know why it took so long. I think it was pretty clear. Yeah, no reactions. For me it’s clear, that’s what matters to me and what the others are doing doesn’t really matter. I have my place and my mission and what I want to achieve and in all honesty, that’s all that matters.

Q: (Udo Döring – Darmstädter Echo) As you mentioned, Sebastian, it could be the last German GP maybe, so another question to both of you who are from Germany, what are you thinking about this and why do you think it’s so difficult to keep the grand prix in Germany in these times?
NH: Yeah, of course it would be a big shame, Germany being the car nation that we are, and to not have a grand prix would be disappointing and sad. I guess it comes down to commercial questions, simple as that. Germany has a big history in racing and in Formula 1 in particular. Maybe the nation is a little bit full or tired or racing, I don’t know, but we’ve always been around for decades, with Michael, with Mercedes, with Seb, with Nico before. Germans are a bit spoiled when it comes to that, because we’ve always been successful, we’ve always been around and I don’t know if it’s an effect of that, but I think ultimately it’s the commercial aspects that play the biggest part.

Sebastian, have you got anything to add?
SV: I think it would be a shame to lose the German Grand Prix because it has so much history. As Nico said, for car manufacturers Germany is well known. We are a car nation. I think probably it’s to do with the fact that generally you have to pay money to get a grand prix. Other nations are prepared to pay money. Other countries are prepared to fund the grand prix and I think that’s where the main problem is; Germany is not ready to spend money on having the grand prix, to advertise Formula 1, to advertise racing, to advertise Germany, to attract people coming here. So I think the view on that is different to other countries and that’s where probably the problem is. I mean, I know the track well here, I know the people that work for it and they are working very hard for the event to get people coming here and it’s tough for them to actually make some money, because simply they have no funds backing them up from the county or state or I don’t know the country, supporting them financially.

Q: (Jo van Burik – Autocar.nl) To follow up on Alan’s question regarding Lewis’ contract, a question to Seb. The battle between you and Lewis’ has seemed to bring a lot to Formula 1 over the past few years and this season most notably. Do you look forward to maybe continuing that for another two years?
SV: Yeah, with the result the other way round, yeah, I look forward to that. I think any battle is good. Obviously it’s always great if it’s tight at the top, it’s always great if you have a lot of cars fighting for podiums, for wins. Now this year already we have six cars, which is already a lot better, also being part of it, than the previous years I think some years ago we had even more cars on the podium, fighting for race wins and so on, so that would be great to see the gap closing. Normally that’s something that happens naturally if you just let things be. I don’t know what… obviously for ’19 we have a small change and ’20 should be fairly stable and then we see what happens in ’21, but that’s quite far away. But in general it’s always exciting as a driver if you can fight for points and fight for podiums and then fight for wins and you want to fight the best and Lewis has been one of the best since he entered Formula 1, so it’s good to be there.

Q: (Heikki Kulta – Turun Sanomat) Seb, how different would it be for you if Charles would be your team-mate instead of Kimi?
SV: I don’t know. I don’t know Charles much. I know him a little bit through the programme. Kimi is Finnish, Charles is French; I think they are quite different… or Monegasque. Sorry, sorry… sorry. I like Kimi. I think we get along. We have never any issue. Sometimes on track. I remember I drove into him, crashed into him. But I think the way we handle things is very similar, very straightforward, so I think it’s great to work with and great for the team, but it’s not my decision so we’ll see what happens.

Q: (Phil Duncan – PA) Seb, we saw after the last race some comments from Lewis and from Mercedes about the events that happened on the first lap. I know Lewis has since retracted those comments but do you think, in a way, that you and Ferrari are getting under Lewis’ and Mercedes’ skin this season?
SV: I’m not a big fan of getting more out of it than there seems to be. I think it’s fine, you know. Obviously it was silly to say it but we are racing and we’ve all been there, it’s never great if you get hit without doing anything wrong, then it’s also fine to express your opinion, even it’s not right or reasonable, but it’s human. I think it’s fine, so we shouldn’t… it’s two weeks ago, we move on.
 

Paul Jeffrey

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Red Bull Gives Ricciardo Wings in German Grand Prix FP1
German Grand Prix FP1.jpg

Daniel Ricciardo sets fastest time in FP1 as Formula One returns to Hockenheim.

Opening practice for the 2018 German Grand Prix would be something of a Red Bull affair thanks to the efforts of Danial Ricciardo, the Australian taking the plaudits for fastest time with an outstanding 1:13.525 to just edge out the newly contracted Lewis Hamilton, the British driver a further .186 ahead of the equally impressive Max Verstappen in the second Red Bull machine.

With many expecting the challenge at the front to firmly be between Mercedes and Ferrari, in that order, it would be a surprise to onlookers to see Red Bull quite so competitive from the green flag, however Ricciardo might be more disappointed than his fastest time shows, having confirmed to be starting from the rear of the field on Sunday thanks to an frustrating requirement to change MGU-K, energy store and control electronics during the weekend.

Impressive as Red Bull appeared in FP1, the top six cars in Hockenheim today would be covered by just seven tenths of a second, with Red Bull, Mercedes and Ferrari all showing strong form in the fight for top dog come Sunday afternoon...

Further down the field it would be rare outings for Nicholas Latifi (Force India) in 17th, and Ferrari junior Antonio Giovinazzi (Sauber) in 20th, neither driver particularly impressing in their respective cars, all the more disappointing for Giovinazzi as he looks to line himself up for a drive in the Swiss team should Ferrari come calling for Leclerc ahead of the 2019 season....

Provisional FP1 Results:
  1. Daniel Ricciardo RIC Red Bull Racing TAG Heuer 1:13.525 22
  2. Lewis Hamilton HAM Mercedes 1:13.529 +0.004s 29
  3. Max Verstappen VER Red Bull Racing TAG Heuer 1:13.714 +0.189s 34
  4. Sebastian Vettel VET Ferrari 1:13.796 +0.271s 23
  5. Valtteri Bottas BOT Mercedes 1:13.903 +0.378s 30
  6. Kimi Räikkönen RAI Ferrari 1:14.267 +0.742s 24
  7. Romain Grosjean GRO Haas Ferrari 1:14.691 +1.166s 29
  8. Kevin Magnussen MAG Haas Ferrari 1:14.853 +1.328s 28
  9. Charles Leclerc LEC Sauber Ferrari 1:15.097 +1.572s 25
  10. Nico Hulkenberg HUL Renault 1:15.282 +1.757s 32
  11. Sergio Perez PER Force India Mercedes 1:15.415 +1.890s 29
  12. Fernando Alonso ALO McLaren Renault 1:15.544 +2.019s 13
  13. Lance Stroll STR Williams Mercedes 1:15.629 +2.104s 32
  14. Carlos Sainz SAI Renault 1:15.769 +2.244s 10
  15. Brendon Hartley HAR Scuderia Toro Rosso Honda 1:15.864 +2.339s 36
  16. Sergey Sirotkin SIR Williams Mercedes 1:15.876 +2.351s 34
  17. Nicholas Latifi LAT Force India Mercedes 1:16.023 +2.498s 27
  18. Pierre Gasly GAS Scuderia Toro Rosso Honda 1:16.071 +2.546s 32
  19. Antonio Giovinazzi GIO Sauber Ferrari 1:16.136 +2.611s 23
  20. Stoffel Vandoorne VAN McLaren Renault 1:16.149 +2.624s 14
 
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Paul Jeffrey

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Red Bull Again as Verstappen Lays Down Marker in FP2
German Grand Prix FP2.jpg

Max Verstappen continues a rich vein of form for Red Bull during Second Practice for the German Grand Prix.

Red Bull would once again be on top form during second practice today, this time Max Verstappen picking up from where teammate Ricciardo left off to head the timesheets at the end of running, snagging himself a new track record into the bargain as the Dutchman edged out Lewis Hamilton by 0.026s, another very close and fraught session going the way of the Austrian team.

Just behind Verstappen and Hamilton would be Valtteri Bottas in the sister Mercedes, the newly confirmed Mercedes driver for 2019 ahead of home favourite Sebastian Vettel in fourth and the second Ferrari of Kimi Räikkönen fifth, all covered but just over three tenths of a second.

Sadly FP1 pace setter Danial Ricciardo would be absent from the times this afternoon, the Australian suffering mechanical issues that necessitated a power unit change, rendering the Red Bull car incapable of taking to the circuit in anger and relegating the driver to the foot of the field come race start on Sunday afternoon.

With Danny Ric out of the picture it would be Haas and Romain Grosjean who picked up the pieces, the Frenchman taking the award for best of the rest, pushing his Haas machine a couple of tenths faster than team mate Magnussen in seventh, both drivers ahead of the ever impressive Charles Leclerc's Sauber, home driver Hulkenberg in the Renault and Esteban Ocon rounding out the top ten in his Force India Mercedes.

Provisional FP2 Results:
  1. Max Verstappen VER Red Bull Racing TAG Heuer 1:13.085 18
  2. Lewis Hamilton HAM Mercedes 1:13.111 +0.026s 39
  3. Valtteri Bottas BOT Mercedes 1:13.190 +0.105s 39
  4. Sebastian Vettel VET Ferrari 1:13.310 +0.225s 46
  5. Kimi Räikkönen RAI Ferrari 1:13.427 +0.342s 41
  6. Romain Grosjean GRO Haas Ferrari 1:13.973 +0.888s 34
  7. Kevin Magnussen MAG Haas Ferrari 1:14.189 +1.104s 36
  8. Charles Leclerc LEC Sauber Ferrari 1:14.374 +1.289s 41
  9. Nico Hulkenberg HUL Renault 1:14.496 +1.411s 31
  10. Esteban Ocon OCO Force India Mercedes 1:14.508 +1.423s 39
  11. Sergio Perez PER Force India Mercedes 1:14.552 +1.467s 38
  12. Carlos Sainz SAI Renault 1:14.592 +1.507s 43
  13. Daniel Ricciardo RIC Red Bull Racing TAG Heuer 1:14.682 +1.597s 36
  14. Marcus Ericsson ERI Sauber Ferrari 1:14.783 +1.698s 38
  15. Pierre Gasly GAS Scuderia Toro Rosso Honda 1:14.793 +1.708s 44
  16. Brendon Hartley HAR Scuderia Toro Rosso Honda 1:14.830 +1.745s 45
  17. Fernando Alonso ALO McLaren Renault 1:14.836 +1.751s 38
  18. Lance Stroll STR Williams Mercedes 1:15.269 +2.184s 36
  19. Sergey Sirotkin SIR Williams Mercedes 1:15.408 +2.323s 41
  20. Stoffel Vandoorne VAN McLaren Renault 1:15.454 +2.369s 34
 
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Paul Jeffrey

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Wet, Wet, Wet in Germany Ahead of Potentially Thrilling Qualifying Session.

German Grand Prix FP1.jpg

The heavens opened at Hockenhiem on Saturday morning during a very low key final practice for the German Grand Prix.


With the Hockenheim circuit drenched in water following a dramatic rain storm prior to the session beggining this morning, FP3 for the German Grand Prix would be something of a hour of quiet contemplation - few of the teams and drivers venturing out onto the track, and those that did very quickly finding themselves in strife and trundeling back to the safety of the pitlane.

Of the intrepid few who try to get some running under their belt, Carlos Sainz found himself quickly facing the wrong way, the Renaul man outfoxed by the tricky conditions and harmlessly spinning his RS18.

Of those that did take to the circuit, it would be Charles Leclerc who ended up the fastest time, the young Sauber rookie managing just eight laps to top out the times from team mate Marcus Ericsson - the first time in many years since Sauber headed an official Formula One session since the days of a competitive Williams team in Formula One, something spookily represented by third place man Sergey Sirotkin, giving Williams their best result of the year even if the times are thoroughly unrepresentative due to the difficult driving conditions on track.

Provisional FP3 Results:
  1. Charles Leclerc LEC Sauber Ferrari 1:34.577 8
  2. Marcus Ericsson ERI Sauber Ferrari 1:35.000 +0.423s 9
  3. Sergey Sirotkin SIR Williams Mercedes 1:35.334 +0.757s 9
  4. Sebastian Vettel VET Ferrari 1:35.573 +0.996s 5
  5. Pierre Gasly GAS Scuderia Toro Rosso Honda 1:35.659 +1.082s 6
  6. Brendon Hartley HAR Scuderia Toro Rosso Honda 1:36.151 +1.574s 6
  7. Nico Hulkenberg HUL Renault 1:36.873 +2.296s 4
  8. Kimi Räikkönen RAI Ferrari 1:37.755 +3.178s 4
  9. Lance Stroll STR Williams Mercedes 1:38.393 +3.816s 7
  10. Romain Grosjean GRO Haas Ferrari 2
  11. Kevin Magnussen MAG Haas Ferrari 2
  12. Max Verstappen VER Red Bull Racing TAG Heuer 1
  13. Fernando Alonso ALO McLaren Renault 1
  14. Stoffel Vandoorne VAN McLaren Renault 2
  15. Daniel Ricciardo RIC Red Bull Racing TAG Heuer 1
  16. Carlos Sainz SAI Renault 2
  17. Valtteri Bottas BOT Mercedes 2
  18. Esteban Ocon OCO Force India Mercedes 2
  19. Sergio Perez PER Force India Mercedes 1
  20. Lewis Hamilton HAM Mercedes 2
 
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Paul Jeffrey

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Nightmare for Hamilton as Vettel Secures Home Pole
German Grand Prix Qualifying.jpg

Sebastian Vettel took Pole Position in front of his home crowd as title rival Lewis Hamilton struggles to 14th.

Performing flawlessly in front of his home crowd, Sebastian Vettel put in an incredible lap time this afternoon to place his Ferrari on Pole Position for the German Grand Prix, the four time World Champion making the most of a mechanical failure in Q1 for Lewis Hamilton to drive home the advantage by over two tenths of a second from the second Mercedes.

Heading row two would be the second Ferrari of Kimi Räikkönen, the Finn putting just under three tenths between himself and the sole Red Bull of Max Verstappen - Daniel Ricciardo having elected to call time on his day early in the knowledge that a back of grid start is coming his way anyway due to mechanical issues on his Red Bull.

With less than normal numbers of front runners taking part in Q3, it would be left to Haas F1 duo Kevin Magnussen and Romain Grosjean to pick up the slack in fifth and sixth places, the later just a few hundredths ahead of the other German taking part this weekend, Nico Hulkenberg making good use of his extra practice playing F1 2018 wrap up a very solid seventh place start. Showing Renault do have some pace this weekend, Hulkenberg would be shadowed by team mate Sainz in eighth, FP3 pace setter Leclerc ninth and Sergio Perez rounding out the top ten.

Provisional Qualification Results:
  1. Sebastian Vettel VET Ferrari 1:12.538 1:12.505 1:11.212 16
  2. Valtteri Bottas BOT Mercedes 1:12.962 1:12.152 1:11.416 18
  3. Kimi Räikkönen RAI Ferrari 1:12.505 1:12.336 1:11.547 17
  4. Max Verstappen VER Red Bull Racing TAG Heuer 1:13.127 1:12.188 1:11.822 18
  5. Kevin Magnussen MAG Haas Ferrari 1:13.105 1:12.523 1:12.200 18
  6. Romain Grosjean GRO Haas Ferrari 1:12.986 1:12.722 1:12.544 17
  7. Nico Hulkenberg HUL Renault 1:13.479 1:12.946 1:12.560 17
  8. Carlos Sainz SAI Renault 1:13.324 1:13.032 1:12.692 19
  9. Charles Leclerc LEC Sauber Ferrari 1:13.077 1:12.995 1:12.717 23
  10. Sergio Perez PER Force India Mercedes 1:13.427 1:13.072 1:12.774 19
  11. Fernando Alonso ALO McLaren Renault 1:13.614 1:13.657 16
  12. Sergey Sirotkin SIR Williams Mercedes 1:13.708 1:13.702 13
  13. Marcus Ericsson ERI Sauber Ferrari 1:13.562 1:13.736 17
  14. Lewis Hamilton HAM Mercedes 1:13.012 8
  15. Daniel Ricciardo RIC Red Bull Racing TAG Heuer 1:13.318 6
  16. Esteban Ocon OCO Force India Mercedes 1:13.720 10
  17. Pierre Gasly GAS Scuderia Toro Rosso Honda 1:13.749 9
  18. Brendon Hartley HAR Scuderia Toro Rosso Honda 1:14.045 8
  19. Lance Stroll STR Williams Mercedes 1:14.206 10
  20. Stoffel Vandoorne VAN McLaren Renault 1:14.401 10
Q1 107% time - 1:17.580

Note - Ricciardo will start from back of grid due to multiple replacement power unit elements.
 
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Paul Jeffrey

Premium
RACE REPORT

Hamilton Wins as Vettel in the Wall in Wild German Grand Prix.
F1 German Grand Prix Race Report.jpg

Some smart tactics and confident driving secured Lewis Hamilton the race win and championship lead this afternoon in Germany.

Right from the green flag it looked like the 2018 German Grand Prix was Ferrari's to lose, and sadly for the home fans lose they did with a uncharacteristic mistake for then race leader Sebastian Vettel, the former four time World Champion pushing too hard at the head of the field in wet conditions and nosing his scarlet machine into the barriers and out of the race, opening the door for Hamilton and Mercedes to romp through to a remarkable race victory.

Starting from 14th on the grid Hamilton, playing the long game on his tyres in anticipation of a potential rain shower towards the end of the race, executed a perfect strategy to pit for fresh rubber just before a short break in the weather fell right into the hands of team and driver, the reigning champion using his fresher rubber to put pressure on those in front and eventually take over the race lead, beating back a spirited fightback from team mate Bottas until the Silver Arrows called time on the battle and allowed Hamilton to head home a team one-two in front of their German home fans.

Further down the field the racing would be fierce for the minor points for much of the event, helped somewhat by a period behind the safety car bunching up the field for the closing stages of the race, a race ending under intense pressure of further rainfall that would frustratingly just hold off luntil the track activity came to an end - not a moment to soon for an obviously jubilant Mercedes team.

Max Verstappen in fourth would hold up Red Bull honours following a mechanical retirement once again for Daniel Ricciardo, Nico Hulkenberg would be impressive in his Renault in fifth, Romain Grosjean performing faultlessly to ease the pressure on his career prospects in sixth, and Sergio Perez, Esteban Ocon, Marcus Ericsson and Brendon Harley rounding out the top ten.

Provisional Race Results:
  1. Lewis Hamilton HAM Mercedes 67 1:32:29.845 25
  2. Valtteri Bottas BOT Mercedes 67 +4.535s 18
  3. Kimi Räikkönen RAI Ferrari 67 +6.732s 15
  4. Max Verstappen VER Red Bull Racing TAG Heuer 67 +7.654s 12
  5. Nico Hulkenberg HUL Renault 67 +26.609s 10
  6. Romain Grosjean GRO Haas Ferrari 67 +28.871s 8
  7. Sergio Perez PER Force India Mercedes 67 +30.556s 6
  8. Esteban Ocon OCO Force India Mercedes 67 +31.750s 4
  9. Marcus Ericsson ERI Sauber Ferrari 67 +32.362s 2
  10. Brendon Hartley HAR Scuderia Toro Rosso Honda 67 +34.197s 1
  11. Kevin Magnussen MAG Haas Ferrari 67 +34.919s 0
  12. Carlos Sainz SAI Renault 67 +43.069s 0
  13. Stoffel Vandoorne VAN McLaren Renault 67 +46.617s 0
  14. Pierre Gasly GAS Scuderia Toro Rosso Honda 66 +1 lap 0
  15. Charles Leclerc LEC Sauber Ferrari 66 +1 lap 0

Fernando Alonso ALO McLaren Renault 65 DNF 0
NC 18 Lance Stroll STR Williams Mercedes 53 DNF 0
NC 5 Sebastian Vettel VET Ferrari 51 DNF 0
NC 35 Sergey Sirotkin SIR Williams Mercedes 51 DNF 0
NC 3 Daniel Ricciardo RIC Red Bull Racing TAG Heuer 27 DNF 0
 
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M-Bimmer

WhAt GoEs ArOuNd CoMeS ArOuNd
FP1 was a bit different/strange with some teams running more fuel to check tyre degradation. Can’t wait for the long runs in FP2 but the ultras won’t cut it (in those long runs) at least today IMO.
 
I don't like or hate Stroll, but if he moves out, I hope they give Robert a chance to race again.

I know you say that, and I agree it would be nice to see him back, but with the recent team form would you be happy to see him finishing almost last every race?

The couple of interviews I've seen with Robert certainly seem to give the impression that he wouldn't want to be racing the current car and finishing where it is.

Williams are trying to rebuild but obviously something has gone terribly wrong on the technical side. They will sort it (hopefully) but it will take time.

As for Stroll, I could see this coming. His Father is not going to bankroll his career to finish last all the time (doesn't matter which team it is) so a move was on the cards.
 
I feel like I'm the only person who prefers the new layout. I got into it before I knew of the old version, and I really like the way it flows. I still wish they didn't demolish the forest layout though.

Yeah it's a tough one.

I've been watching F1 since about '90 and I think what I loved about the old Hockenheim was it was at the point of the season when you had some very varied tracks. Magny-Cours, the older version of Silverstone (Bridge corner!), super fast Hockenheim, then onto the twisty Hungaroring and finishing off with the awesome Spa and super fast (earlier version) of Monza.

They were all just unique in their own way, sometimes produced dull races, sometimes produced great ones but they had their own character and style.

That's missing a little from modern F1 circuits and that's a bit of a shame.

Time moves on and I accept that, we still have some amazing circuits on the calendar but the modern ones can sometimes feel a little stale in comparison.

For sure though I would imagine the modern Nurburgring circuit is much more spectator friendly. Like you say such a shame they couldn't keep the original layout for classic races. A Hockenheim "Classic" event around there would have been amazing.
 
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I started watching F1 at late 80s and what was amazing in the old Hockenheim was the balance between the ultra fast sections and the very slow Motodrom, with drivers struggling with low aero, and top drivers making the difference.
I really miss that time.
 
Hardly anyone there today. Funny lot the Germans, Schumacher, Vettel, Rosberg and Mercedes all champions in recent years yet no one can be arsed going.
 

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