German Grand Prix Preview

FEATURES

Editorial | Off On F1 | Letters | Race Features

Wednesday 16th July 2008

Like an old friend we've missed - Hockenheim is back on the calendar. It's time for the German GP, but this time without the airhorn cacophony that was Schumi's traditional Wagnerian greeting as he arrived back in the Stadium section of the track.

Thanks to Hermann Tilke's track changes the circuit has a good blend of fast blast and tricky corners. Even without traction control the final corner, the Sudkurve regularly caught drivers out in qualifying. This time round it will be doubly difficult.

The long run down to the new hairpin and a wide wide circuit gives lots of opportunity for overtaking - and we've seen overtaking moves carried through two corners before now.

BMW and Mercedes will be looking to score well at their home track. Though Felipe Massa was fastest on the final day of Hockenheim testing for Ferrari, it was Lewis Hamilton who had set the benchmark earlier in the week.

McLaren definitely look to be getting their World Championship act together with Ferrari on the defensive after a shambolic performance at Silverstone when they were lucky to have two cars return to the pits in one piece. Team chief Luca Montezemolo has warned them that they must not slip up again this season - so no pressure then.

The British GP was an interesting race because seeming no-hopers Honda, marshalled by Ferrari's former strategy genius Ross Brawn, walked all over them with a much slower car. Should the Scuderia lose out by the odd few points at the end of the season, then they can squarely attribute it to whoever decided that Brawn had had his time at Maranello. (And that's probably Montezemolo).

Ferrari are hoping for a hot weekend that will help degrade McLaren's tyres, though the forecast is for showers throughout. And we all know what will happen if it rains a lot.

The British Grand Prix was ample proof that Lewis Hamilton is a genius at controlling his car when some of the best drivers in the world cannot. Not only were McLaren good in the wet, they scored a pole position in the dry. Their main worry is no longer Lewis's ability to shrug off his critics, but Kovalainen's inability to give them a 1-2.

A certain amount of the Finn's lack of results has been down to bad luck, but he needs to prove he can muscle his car past lesser mortals.

At BMW it will be interesting to see if Nick Heidfeld can take the fight to Robert Kubica. Now that Nick has worked out how to get heat in his tyres on a qualifying lap it might be a return of The Boulder Brothers - where they used to start next to each other and knock lumps out of each others' car on the opening lap. It could easily happen again.

Though he's the highest placed German driver, Nick, or for that matter Nico Rosberg and Adrian Sutil, don't get the media spotlight when they return for their home race. That goes to Schumi's apparent successor Sebastian Vettel.

Vettel is full of the energy and enthusiasm that made Schumacher Senior such a winner with the German crowds. Though the jury is still out on exactly how much talent he has, there is little doubt that he will win races once he has the right car. Michael's trick, of course, was to win a race when he wasn't even in the right car.

That's not to say he should win in a Toro Rosso, but Vettel in a Red Bull next season might stand an outside chance. With Spanish banking giant Santander switching sponsorship to Ferrari in 2010 it seems a nailed on certainty that Alonso will be partnering Felipe Massa in the season after next. Which means Red Bull will need a long-term Coulthard replacement such as Vettel.

Both crashed out on the opening lap at Silverstone and Hockhenheim has had its fair share of drama and trauma on the opening lap before now. While Copse corner is just too fast to try something chancy, Turn 1 at Hockenheim present opportunities, as does Turn 2. And the hairpin can often see three cars approaching it on the opening tour.

It will be interesting to see what kind of atmosphere there will be for the first GP in the post-Schumacher era at Hockenheim. And also what colour the grandstands will become. Since 1996 they've been predominantly red. Should McLaren decide to wield the big cheque book as many predict, then in 2010 (it's the Nurburgring in 2009) it could look very silver.