#F1 @Mercedes-Benz Grosser Preis Von Deutschland 2019 Preview – #GermanGP

After Lewis Hamilton extended his championship lead with victory at an action-packed British Grand Prix, round 11 of the 2019 FIA Formula One World Championship this weekend returns to Germany and the Hockenheimring for the Formula 1 Mercedes-Benz Grosser Preis Von Deutschland 2019. This will be the 78^th running of the German Grand Prix and the 64^th time the event has been run as part of the Formula One World Championship.

 

 

A look at the Hockenheimring

 

 

The Hockenheimring is a permanent racing circuit located in the Rhine Valley near the town of Hockenheim in Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany, situated on Bertha Benz Memorial Route.

 

The original Hockenheimring circuit was built in 1932 using roads in the forest as an alternative to the Wildpark-Circuit in Karlsruhe which was abandoned by German officials. The Hockenheimring was used for motorcycle racing and in 1936 was expanded as a test track for Mercedes and the Auto Union for the two manufacturers to prepare for the Tripoli Grand Prix.

 

The original circuit was 7.738 kilometres long and featured two long straights with a long “Eastern” corner in the forest and a U-turn inside Hockenheim joining them together.

 

When World War II broke out the construction was stopped and in the post-war years the Nürburgring became the home for Formula One racing in Germany, with Hockenheim hosting motorcycle racing and the German Motorcycle Grand Prix alternating with Hockenheim and other circuits.

 

In 1965 when the new Autobahn A 6 separated the village from the main part of the circuit, a new version of the Hockenheimring was approved with the “Motordrom” stadium section, the government supplied Hockenheim was given a large compensation payout. This money was used to build a new 6.823-kilometre track, the now famous Hockenheimring circuit, which went through the forest before looping into the spectacular stadium section around where large grandstands were built.

 

In 1968 tragedy struck when two-time World Champion and Indy 500 winner Jim Clark was killed there in a Formula 2 race and two fast chicanes were added along with crash barriers around the entire track. With the long Nürburgring-Nordschleife circuit quickly becoming outdated and drivers at the French Grand Prix plotting to boycott the Nürburgring unless changes were made, Formula One returned to the Hockenheimring in 1970. Once the Nürburgring-Nordschleife was modernised, the sport returned there until 1976.

 

But after three-time world champion Niki Lauda suffered a horrific crash and burns at the Nürburgring in 1976, Hockenheim once again became the home of the German Grand Prix from 1977-2006 with the exception of the 1985 event which was held at the newly configured Nürburgring. The Hockenheimring too however, saw more dangers follow. In 1980 when testing for Alfa Romeo, Patrick Depailler was killed at the circuit, and a slower chicane was installed to break up the fast Ostkurve corner, meanwhile in 1982 Ferrari’s Didier Pironi suffered a violent crash into the back of Alain Prost’s Renault and sustained terrible injuries to his legs.

 

In the early 2000’s, F1 officials demanded that the 6.823km circuit be shortened and threatened to abandon racing there. The state government of Baden-Wurttemberg secured the financing for the redesign by German Architect Hermann Tilke. In 2002 the circuit layout was majorly changed, and the fast-long straights were ditched. Despite arguments from several drivers and team principals including Ron Dennis, Jarno Trulli and Juan Pablo Montoya and heavy criticism from the fans that the circuit had lost its character, the first race on the new layout was considered a great success and the venue has remained on the F1 calendar ever since.

 

In July 2006, F1 chief Bernie Ecclestone announced from 2007 onwards that there would only be one Grand Prix per year in Germany. Since the 1995 World Championship, there were two Grands Prix every year in Germany with the German Grand Prix held at Hockenheim and either the Luxembourg or European Grands Prix at the Nürburgring. From 2007, the Nürburgring and Hockenheimring alternated hosting the German Grand Prix, starting with the Nürburgring in 2007.

 

With ongoing deficits from hosting Formula One Grands Prix, and up to 5.3 million Euro per race which was covered by the local taxpayer put the contract between the Hockenheimring and Formula One Management under increased pressure and would not be extended after the 2010 event. However, in October 2009, the contract for the Hockenheimring to continue to host the German Grand Prix was extended until 2018, with the Formula One Group agreeing to cover the losses the event has. Last year, neither the Nürburgring nor the Hockenheimring hosted the 2015 German Grand Prix event after the circuits failed to reach an agreement with commercial rights holder Bernie Ecclestone and the event was cancelled.

 

The current Hockenheimring circuit layout is 4.574km (2.842 miles) in length and runs in a clockwise direction with 17 corners.

 

Race distance is 306.458km (190.433 miles) in length with 67 laps in total.

 

Kimi Raikkonen holds the fastest lap record on the current Hockenheimring circuit layout set at the 2004 event with a 1:13.780 in his McLaren-Mercedes MP4-19.

 

Rudolf Caracciola holds the record for most German Grand Prix victories with six to his name.

 

Scuderia Ferrari is the most successful constructor at the German Grand Prix with 22 victories.

 

Onboard pole lap of the Hockenheimring

 

 

Here is the onboard pole position lap of the Hockenheimring from last year’s event set by home hero Sebastian Vettel in his Scuderia Ferrari SF71-H. The German posted a blistering 1:11.212, which you can watch right here at the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bs_LIBPTAdg

 

The Last Five Winners

 

 

2018: Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes AMG F1. 2017: Not held. 2016: Lewis Hamilton, Mercedes AMG F1. 2015: Not Held. 2014: Nico Rosberg, Mercedes AMG F1. 2013: Sebastian Vettel, Red Bull Racing. 2012: Fernando Alonso, Scuderia Ferrari.

 

Tyres

 

 

Pirelli will be bringing with them to Germany, the white C2 side-walled Hard rubber, the yellow-branded C3 Medium compounds and red-marked C4 Soft tyres along with the green-branded Intermediates and the blue-marked Full Wets in case of rain.

 

Renault and Toro Rosso have opted for a more aggressive approach at the German Grand Prix weekend by selecting 10 sets of the soft compounds for each of their respective drivers.

 

Ferrari will have one set fewer of the softer tyres compared to Renault with Sebastian Vettel and Charles Leclerc selecting nine sets of the C4’s, but the duo have a split choice on the other two types of rubber with the former choosing three sets of the C3 mediums to Leclerc’s two while the German will also have one set of the C1 hards in contrast to the young Monegasque driver’s two.

 

Mercedes and Red Bull have the same identical sets of the C4 red-branded soft compounds with their respective drivers all opting for eight sets.

 

While Max Verstappen and team-mate Pierre Gasly have gone with the exact same allocations at their disposal, championship leader Lewis Hamilton has selected four sets of the mediums with Valtteri Bottas having three.

 

DRS Zones

 

There will be two DRS Zones at the Hockenheimring with the first detection point 103 metres before turn one with the activation zone 60 metres after turn one and the second detection point is at the exit of turn four and the activation zone 140 metres after turn four

 

Pitlane Speeds

 

Pitlane speeds will be 80km/h during practice, qualifying and the race.

 

ICYMI: British GP Rewind – Hamilton extends title lead in thrilling British GP

 

 

Lewis Hamilton took a record-breaking sixth British Grand Prix victory after jumping title-rival and Mercedes team-mate Valtteri Bottas with a safety car-assisted strategy, while Sebastian Vettel knocked Max Verstappen out of third.

 

Hamilton ran a longer first stint to overhaul team-mate Bottas, which allowed him to stop only once and proved crucial when the safety car was deployed after the latter pitted.

 

That gave the Briton track position and he won comfortably after Bottas had to come in for his final pit stop to put on his mandatory second tyre, the red-branded softs.

 

Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc claimed the final podium spot after a dramatic battle for third, in which the young-Monegasque driver has an epic fight with Verstappen – who was later sent into the gravel by Vettel.

 

Red Bull Racing’s Pierre Gasly came home in a season-best fourth for the Milton Keynes-based outfit, while team-mate Verstappen managed to get his Honda-powered RB15 racer out of the gravel trap to complete the top five, with Vettel down in 16^th after replacing the SF90’s front wing from nose damage and being slapped with a 10-second time penalty.

 

Bottas held the lead in the first part of the Grand Prix but set off the pit stops among the front-runners while Hamilton remained out longer until lap 20.

 

That was crucial for Hamilton, who was opting to use the harder compounds and run a one-stop strategy.

 

He and Vettel – who was stuck down in sixth, but also ran a longer first stint – then had his commitment rewarded when the safety car was deployed.

 

Alfa Romeo Racing’s Antonio Giovinazzi locked the rears of his C38 racer entering Vale and slid side-ways into the gravel.

 

With the race stabilised, Hamilton and Vettel jumped into the pits, emerging in first and third respectively and able to run until the end without making another stop.

 

In the battle for the win, Bottas was hindered by the decision not to stop under the safety car and switch onto the hards, which forced the Finn into a two stopper.

 

He was unable to fight Hamilton for the lead at the restart and ran a couple of seconds off of the Briton, before stopping with seven laps remaining having opened up enough of a gap to the best of the rest.

 

That meant Bottas finished in second and was likely to claim the bonus final point as a consolation for losing the victory – before team-mate Hamilton snatched it on the last lap on his older hard rubber.

 

Hamilton’s last grab fastest lap meant the Briton extended his championship lead to 39 points.

 

Behind the two Silver Arrows, Leclerc brought his Ferrari home in third after an epic race.

 

Leclerc held position earlier on but had to withstand pressure from a fast-charging Red Bull of Verstappen, who then managed to jump past him in the pitlane as they pitted at the same time.

 

However, Leclerc quickly snatched the place back when Verstappen ran wide at The Loop corner immediately after exiting the pits, before dropping back behind after the Scuderia opted not to stop him again as soon as the safety car emerged.

 

Red Bull reacted quickly, and Verstappen had a swift stop as the Dutchman rejoined in fifth place, behind Vettel and team-mate Gasly who pitted earlier and was sticking to a one-stop strategy.

 

Ferrari’s decision to stop Leclerc a lap later relegated him to sixth, and when the race resumed the battle with Verstappen intensified.

 

Their wheel-to-wheel battle continued and peaked when Leclerc attacked the Red Bull around the outside into the final series of corner just before the mid-point of the race.

 

They touched wheels slightly when Leclerc had the inside line for the right-hander of Vale and Verstappen took to the run-off on the outside, holding his position as he rejoined through Club.

 

Leclerc’s challenge evaporated after the incident was unpenalized, while Verstappen breezed past Gasly into fourth and then caught and attacked Vettel who was in third.

 

He blasted the Ferrari on the outside of Stowe on the 37^th lap, but the Dutchman ran slightly wide and Vettel stuck into his slipstream on the short run to Vale – but placed his SF90 racer on the inside, with nowhere to go, and attempted to make a late switch back to the outside.

 

Vettel locked his brakes and slammed the rear of Verstappen’s RB15 racer, sending it airborne over the kerb and into the gravel trap at Vale, ending up facing the wrong way with its rear wheels in the gravel.

 

They both continued on, but Verstappen had to settle for fifth and lucky not to lose more positions – as Vettel dropped to the back.

 

Vettel’s fall allowed McLaren’s Carlos Sainz to finish sixth after an intense fight with Renault’s Daniel Ricciardo in the best-of-the-rest battle.

 

Alfa Romeo Racing’s Kimi Raikkonen’s one-stop strategy worked to perfection and claimed eighth, while Toro Rosso’s Daniil Kvyat’s well-timed stop under the safety car allowed the Russian to charge to a ninth-place finish.

 

Renault’s Nico Hulkenberg rounded out the top 10 and ahead of the other McLaren of Lando Norris who took 11^th and Toro Rosso’s Alexander Albon who was 12^th.

 

Racing Point’s Lance Stroll finished 13^th and in-front of ROKiT Williams Racing’s George Russell who came home in 14^th and ahead of the aforementioned Vettel who ended the race in 15^th.

 

ROKiT Williams Racing’s Robert Kubica and SportPesa Racing Point’s Sergio Perez brought up the rear and a lap down.

 

The two Haas F1 VF-19’s were the other two retirements in the Grand Prix alongside the aforementioned Giovinazzi – as Romain Grosjean and Kevin Magnussen collided on the opening lap and both ended their races early afterwards.

 

The Situation

 

 

Lewis Hamilton returns to the Hockenheimring sitting on top of the Driver’s Championship with 223 points and a 39-point advantage over team-mate Valtteri Bottas who is second on 184 points while Max Verstappen is third and a further 87 behind the Briton on 136 points.

 

Mercedes comes to their home Grand Prix comfortably on top of the Constructors Championship with 407 points and a 164-point lead over nearest rivals Ferrari who are second on 243 points while Red Bull Racing are a further 216 behind the Silver Arrows in third place on 191 points.

 

Formula 1 2019 World Driver’s Championship Standings – Top 10

 

1. Lewis Hamilton – 223 Points.
2. Valtteri Bottas – 184 Points.
3. Max Verstappen – 136 Points.
4. Sebastian Vettel – 123 Points.
5. Charles Leclerc – 120 Points.
6. Pierre Gasly – 55 Points.
7. Carlos Sainz – 38 Points.
8. Kimi Raikkonen – 25 Points.
9. Lando Norris – 22 Points.
10. Daniel Ricciardo – 22 Points.

 

Formula 1 2019 World Constructors Championship Standings

 

1. Mercedes AMG Petronas Motorsport – 407 Points.
2. Scuderia Ferrari – 243 Points.
3. Aston Martin Red Bull Racing-Honda – 191 Points.
4. McLaren-Renault F1 Team – 60 Points.
5. Renault F1 Team – 39 Points.
6. Alfa Romeo Racing – 26 Points.
7. SportPesa Racing Point F1 Team – 19 Points.
8. Scuderia Toro Rosso-Honda – 19 Points.
9. Rich Energy Haas F1 Team – 16 Points.
10. ROKiT Williams Racing – 0 Points.

 

The Formula 1 Mercedes-Benz Grosser Preis Von Deutschland 2019 weekend begins Friday July 26 with Free Practice 1 and 2, followed by Free Practice 3 and Qualifying Saturday July 27 and the 67 lap Race Sunday July 28.