German Grand Prix 2018: preview and weekend times

Opening hours

Friday July 20

Free 1: 11-00 (Sky Sport F1 HD)

Free 2: 15-00 (Sky Sport F1 HD)

Saturday July 21

Free 3: 12:00-13:00 (Sky Sport F1 HD)

Qualifying: 15pm (Sky Sport F00 HD)

Full broadcast at 20pm on TV00

Sunday July 22

Race: 15pm ̶ 10 laps ̶ 67km (Sky Sport F306,458 HD)

Full broadcast at 21pm on TV30

Previous race

At Lewis Hamilton's home, Sebastian Vettel ousted the King of England from the throne, taking home an important victory at the conclusion of what has undoubtedly been the best race of the season so far. The German from Ferrari thus greeted Silverstone with an 8-point lead over Lewis in the general classification, awaiting another success, this time at his home ground. His valiant teammate Kimi Raikkonen also climbed onto the podium with him, third behind Hamilton and in turn author of a breathtaking race. The Briton and the Finn were the real protagonists, after the contact at the start cost the former the free descent to the back of the grid, and the other a ten-second penalty. In short, 52 laps constantly experienced with adrenaline pumping, for a race finally worthy of a modern F1!

Predictions from F1GrandPrix.it

After a year, F1 returns to Germany, in Hockenheim, less than an hour from Sebastian Vettel's home. After Lewis it is now Seb's turn, who we are certain will not want to return the favor to his Mercedes rival by letting him win in front of his fans. On the German track the drivers will immediately face various unknowns: compared to the last edition, in fact, things have definitely changed, from the single-seaters to the tyres, which for this occasion Pirelli has decided to select as in China, with the change in compound from soft to ultrasoft – in addition to medium rubber. FP1 will therefore be a ground for advance discovery, waiting to understand who will be able to best navigate the long straights and the more technical and tight corners of the Motodrom. The Mercedes - Ferrari fight will almost certainly continue on equal terms on this occasion too, while it will be interesting to see how Red Bull, who is increasingly playing the balance in this 2018 World Championship, and the group of "others" - Renault, will behave behind them. , Force India and Haas – fighting to win the title of official chaser.

Circuit

Name: Hockenheim ring

Place: Hockenheim, Land Baden Wüttemberg, Germany

Construction: the project and the first runway date back to the 12s. Initially 2002 kilometers long, the track has undergone numerous changes over the years, also to ensure greater safety for the drivers (in fact, there has been no shortage of fatal accidents on this track, such as that of Jim Clark or Patrick Depailler). The current circuit is the result of drastic changes carried out in XNUMX, in the name of entertainment and a greater number of laps per race. The old track was dismantled amid protests from enthusiasts.

Distance per lap: 4,574km

Number of curves: 16, nine on the right and seven on the left

Direction of travel: clockwise

Technical data:

Downforce:	Low	Medium	High
Throttle opening: 68% of the lap
Fuel consumption per lap: 1.49 kg/rev
Full speed: 320 km/h
Possibility of safety car: 20%
Travel time in the pit lane with stop: 19 seconds
Overtaking possibilities:	Easy-to-use	Medium	Difficult
Winners from pole position: 6 out of 10 editions on this track
Worst starting position for a winner: third (Alonso 2005)

Special features of the route: on this track 51 gear changes are made per lap, reaching a total of approximately 3.400 gear changes in the entire race.

Brakes:

Circuit Category:	Light	Medium	Hard
Number of braking sessions: 8
Time spent braking: 19% of the lap
Energy dissipated during braking during the GP: 123 kWh
Total load on the brake pedal during the GP: 58.000 kg
More demanding braking: the third braking at turn 6, Spitzkehre hairpin

Rubber:

Tires 2018:	ultrasoft	supersoft	Soft Drinks	Medium	Hard
Tire stress	1	2	3	4	5
Lateral stresses	1	2	3	4	5
Asphalt abrasiveness	1	2	3	4	5
Asphalt grip	1	2	3	4	5
Total number of Pits 2016: 60
Winning strategy 2016: Supersoft (14) -> Soft (20) -> Supersoft (13) -> Soft (20) Hamilton
Longest stints 2016: Supersoft 23 laps (Grosjean) – Soft 33 laps (Bottas)

DRS zone: between turn 4 and turn 6, the so-called Parabolika, with detection point just after turn 4; on the main straight, between Turn 17 and Turn 1, and between Turn 1 and Turn 2, both with detection points after Turn 16.

Previous editions

Last 3 editions:

2013 edition: the controversy over the Pirelli case is resolved, with the return to Kevlar structures and greater control over tire pressure and their left - right reversal by the FIA; we race, as usual, at the Nürburgring which had almost seen its presence disappear due to lack of funds. Free practice 1: the Mercedes duo Hamilton - Rosberg wins in the first session on Friday, while in the second it is Red Bull with Sebastian Vettel to record the best time; finally, in FP3 on Saturday, Vettel is still the fastest ahead of Rosberg. Qualifying: in Q2 Rosberg makes a surprise exit, while in Q3 his teammate Hamilton surprisingly grabs pole position, beating the two Red Bulls and the two Lotus of Rӓikkӧnen and Grosjean, seventh and eighth were the two Ferraris of Massa and Alonso. Race: Hamilton can do nothing at the start against the supremacy of Red Bull and must give way to them, while behind Massa he overtakes Daniel Ricciardo (Toro Rosso – Ferrari). However, the Brazilian was forced to retire following a spin three laps later. On the sixth lap the first tire change begins with Hamilton, Vettel, the duo Lotus and Webber. However, on the Australian's car, a wheel was badly fixed and when he restarted it came off, hitting a cameraman directly, who was slightly injured. Webber thus loses more time in the pits while Vettel leads calmly ahead of the two Lotuses. Fear on lap 22, when Bianchi's car, parked on the grass following the failure of the engine, was left in neutral and slid across the track, fortunately without consequences. However, this causes the Safety Car to come out for 7 laps. At the restart little changes in the first three positions, except the gaps: at the finish line Vettel wins with Kimi one second, Grosjean third, followed two seconds behind by a comeback Alonso.

2014 edition: the FIA ​​bans the use of FRIC, the system that regulates the front and rear suspensions ensuring greater cornering performance. In the first free practice on Friday, Nico Rosberg's Mercedes precedes that of Lewis Hamilton, followed by two tenths of a second by Fernando Alonso's Ferrari. In FP2, however, Hamilton precedes the German, while behind them this time there is Daniel Ricciardo with the Red Bull. Saturday: FP3 sees the same situation as the first free practices. Qualifying: during Q1 Lewis Hamilton crashes into the guards after going off the track. Rosberg thus has a free field and earns the start at the pole in front of the Williams by Valtteri Bottas and Felipe Massa; followed by Magnussen, Ricciardo, Vettel, Alonso, Kvyat, Hülkenberg and Pérez. Race: safety car suffered on the first lap due to a contact between Magnussen and Massa, the Brazilian gets the worst of it with a rollover from which he fortunately emerges unscathed. At the restart the leading positions did not change, while Hamilton recovered quickly from behind: having started twentieth, after ten laps he was already in the top ten. He managed to get up to second position before his stop on lap 29, still returning to seventh. On the thirty-third lap, second pit stop for Alonso, imitated one lap later by Vettel. The German returns ahead of the Spaniard, who however immediately overtakes him. On lap 37 both overtake Hülkenberg. Between lap 40 and lap 42 Bottas, Rosberg and Hamilton make their second stops. Vettel takes third pit stop on lap 45, he uses soft tires (the German is thus passed by Hamilton). Shortly afterwards Kvyat's car caught fire, while on lap 50 Adrian Sutil stop his Clean on the pit straight after a spin: the Race Direction decides not to send the safety car onto the track. On lap fifty-four Ricciardo passes Hülkenberg, and one lap later Alonso also makes his third tire change; this allows Hamilton to move up to third. One lap after the Australian Red Bull Racing he even overtakes Button, and is fifth. Button gives up a position to Alonso who is then able to pass Ricciardo and settle into fifth place, after a long duel with the Australian. Nico Rosberg wins for the seventh time in the World Championship, ahead of Valtteri Bottas and Lewis Hamilton.

2016 edition: the German GP returns to the calendar after a year's absence. The last edition, in 2014, was held at the Hockenheimring. In FP1 on Friday Esteban Ocon replaces Jolyon Palmer at Renault, while Charles Leclerc takes the place of Esteban Gutiérrez at Haas. In Free Practice 1 Rosberg and Hamilton took the lead on their opponents, with the Briton also forced into the pits for a long time due to a problem with the front suspension. Behind the Mercedes pair are Ferrari, Red Bull, McLaren and the two Toro Rossos. In the afternoon, Rosberg remained in the lead, with Hamilton and Vettel behind him, while Hulkenberg took the seventh fastest time, trailing Ferrari and Red Bull. On Saturday morning Rosberg doesn't let go, and Hamilton is at 57 thousandths. Ricciardo is third, ahead of the two Ferraris. Mercedes is fined 10.000 euros for the fault of Hamilton, who, leaving the pit lane, crossed the path of Grosjean's Haas: the Frenchman then ends up spinning due to a gearbox failure, which will have to be replaced, resulting in a 5-place penalty on the grid. Qualifying: in Q1 the best time was set by Hamilton, who preceded his teammate Rosberg by two tenths, while Magnussen, the two Manors, Kvjat and the Sauber duo were eliminated. Mercedes also monopolize Q2, while McLaren, Haas, Carlos Sainz - who will be penalized 3 positions for having obstructed Massa - and Palmer abandon the field. On the first pass in Q3 Hamilton is the fastest, and Rosberg is blocked by an electronic problem. But the German from Mercedes will still manage to take home pole position, with Hamilton second behind him. Third place goes to Ricciardo, starting from the second row together with Verstappen. Raikkonen, Vettel, Hulkenberg, Bottas, Perez and Massa complete the top ten positions. Hulkenberg would then lose a place: his team returned a different set of tires than the one indicated. Race: when the traffic lights go out Rosberg is not quick enough and Hamilton immediately takes advantage of the situation to take the lead. But the Red Bulls didn't take long either, with Verstappen also passing his teammate, immediately gaining second position. Behind Rosberg, who thus slipped to fourth, the two Ferraris and Bottas follow. On lap 11 Verstappen is the first to come out of the pits, together with Rosberg. Shortly afterwards it is then the turn of Ricciardo, Vettel and Hamilton. The positions on the track do not change. On lap twenty-seven Rosberg pits again, with Verstappen following him one lap later. Once on the track, on lap 30, the German snatched the position from the Dutchman from Red Bull, but was then penalized 5 seconds for obstructing him on the bend when overtaking. After the second tranche of pit stops Hamilton continues in the lead ahead of Rosberg, Verstappen, Ricciardo, the two Ferraris and Hulkenberg. Ricciardo passes Verstappen and starts chasing Rosberg, who will stop on lap 44 to serve the penalty, returning to fourth.

Best edition for authors:

1976 edition: on the first day of testing the best time belonged to James Hunt. His direct pursuer, Niki Lauda, ​​set the second fastest time ahead of Patrick Depailler, Hans – Joachim Stuck and Clay Regazzoni. On Saturday a light rain disturbed the tests, so much so that none of the leading riders managed to improve their time. Hunt thus conquers pole number 5, just ahead of Lauda. Race: rain makes its appearance on the track a few minutes before the start, postponed due to the need to repair damaged protections. All the drivers thus choose wet tyres. At the start, the lead of the race was taken by Regazzoni, while Lauda got off to a bad start and slipped to eighth position. At the end of the first lap many drivers decide to change tires to switch to dry ones, except for tread Ronnie Peterson and Regazzoni. The drama happens on the second lap, when Lauda skids at the Mine losing control of his Ferrari. The car sets off to the right, hits the bare rock at the side of the circuit and bounces in the middle of the track, catching fire: it is hit by Harald Ertl's car and Brett Lunger's. The drivers who in the meantime arrive on the scene get out of their cars and manage to extract Lauda from the burning car, including the Italian Arturo Merzario. Lauda, ​​with bad wounds and burns, was immediately taken by helicopter to the hospital, where in the following days he fought between life and death. At the restart, two hours later, it is not allowed to use the forklift, while Chris Amon decides not to take to the track due to the lack of safety along the track. In the end, James Hunt wins McLaren, who without his direct rival Lauda, ​​and the withdrawal of an excellent Peterson, has a clear path, leading Jody Scheckter (Tyrrell – Cosworth) and teammate Jochen Mass. This will be the last edition of Formula One raced on Nordschleife.

Best Readers Edition:

2004 edition: in qualifying Michael Schumacher dominated with Ferrari, taking pole in his home GP; Juan Pablo Montoya (Williams – BMW) starts behind him, almost 4 tenths behind due to an error in the last sector. Button should have started third on BAR – Honda, but the gearbox replacement causes him to drop 10 positions, leaving the second row to the two from McLaren – Mercedes, Kimi Rӓikkӧnen and David Coulthard. Race: poleman Schumacher gets off to a good start and maintains the lead while behind him is a surprising Alonso, who from fifth place manages to overtake the two from McLaren and Montoya, who in turn made a terrible start which relegates him to seventh place . A contact between Coulthard and Barrichello forces the Brazilian to return to the pits to replace the damaged nose cone; a lap later Rӓikkӧnen overtakes Alonso and tries to close the gap with the race leader, while Montoya takes sixth, passing Webber. On the ninth lap the waltz of pit stops begins: Alonso is first, then Schumacher and finally Kimi, who sets the fastest lap in the race and seems to be able to catch up with the German. However, he had to say goodbye to his dreams due to the failure of the rear wing on the thirteenth lap, resulting in the car crashing into the barriers: fortunately the Finn escaped unharmed. At the 21st Montoya goes off-piste, with Button taking advantage of it, taking fourth. Thanks to the excellent race strategy, the Englishman also managed to gain third position after the second pit stop, in which he was the last to return. Having overtaken Coulthard, he then hints at a duel with Alonso, but the Spaniard leaves no space and Button has to give up the direct attack; so he goes to the third stop. He's the pilot Renault to still be in front, but only for a short time: on lap 52 Button manages to steal second place from him, quickly gaining a certain margin with which he guarantees the second step of the podium. Schumacher wins in front of an amazing Button (from 13th to 2nd) and Fernando Alonso, who in the final laps has to watch out for Coulthard, managing to take home third place.

RECORD

Test lap: 1:13.780 – K Raikkonen – McLaren – 2004
Race lap: 1:18.442 – D Ricciardo – Red Bull Racing – 2016
Distance: 1h30:44.200 – L Hamilton – Mercedes – 2016
Driver victories: 4 – M Schumacher
Team victories: 21 – Ferrari
Driver Pole: 4 – J Clark, J Ickx
Pole team: 19 – Ferrari
Best driver laps: 5 – M Schumacher
Best team laps: 17 – Ferrari
Driver podiums: 7 – M Schumacher
Team podiums: 51 – Ferrari

Hall of Fame

1. 1926 R Caracciola – Mercedes
2. 1927 O Merz – Mercedes
3. 1928 R Caracciola, C Werner – Mercedes
4. 1929 L Chiron – Bugatti
5. 1931 R Caracciola – Mercedes
6. 1932 R Caracciola – Alfa Romeo
7. 1934 H Stuck – Auto Union
8. 1935 T Nuvolari – Alfa Romeo
9. 1936 B Rosemeyer – Auto Union
10. 1937 R Caracciola – Mercedes
11. 1938 R Seaman – Mercedes
12. 1939 R Caracciola – Mercedes
13. 1950 At Ascari – Ferrari
14. 1951 At Ascari – Ferrari
15. 1952 At Ascari – Ferrari
16. 1953 N Farina – Ferrari
17. 1954 J Fangio – Mercedes
18. 1956 J Fangio – Ferrari
19. 1957 J Fangio – Maserati
20. 1958 T Brooks – Vanwall
21. 1959 T Brooks – Ferrari
22. 1960 J Bonnier – Porsche
23. 1961 S Moss – Lotus Climax
24. 1962 G Hill – BRM
25. 1963 J Surtees – Ferrari
26. 1964 J Surtees – Ferrari
27. 1965 J Clark – Lotus Climax
28. 1966 J Brabham – Brabham Repco
29. 1967 D Hulme – Brabham Repco
30. 1968 J Stewart – Matra Ford
31. 1969 J Ickx – Brabham Ford
32. 1970 J Rindt – Lotus Ford
33. 1971 J Stewart – Tyrrell Ford
34. 1972 J Ickx – Ferrari
35. 1973 J Stewart – Tyrrell Ford
36. 1974 C Regazzoni – Ferrari
37. 1975 C Reutemann – Brabham Ford
38. 1976 J Hunt – McLaren Ford
39. 1977 N Lauda – Ferrari
40. 1978 M Andretti – Lotus Ford
41. 1979 To Jones – Williams Ford
42. 1980 J Lafitte – Ligier Ford
43. 1981 N Piquet – Brabham Ford
44. 1982 P Tambay – Ferrari
45. 1983 R Arnoux – Ferrari
46. 1984 A Prost – McLaren TAG
47. 1985 M Alboreto – Ferrari
48. 1986 N Piquet – Williams Honda
49. 1987 N Piquet – Williams Honda
50. 1988 At Senna – McLaren Honda
51. 1989 At Senna – McLaren Honda
52. 1990 At Senna – McLaren Honda
53. 1991 N Mansell – Williams Renault
54. 1992 N Mansell – Williams Renault
55. 1993 A Prost – Williams Renault
56. 1994 G Berger – Ferrari
57. 1995 M Schumacher – Benetton Renault
58. 1996 D Hill – Williams Renault
59. 1997 G Berger – Benetton Renault
60. 1998 M Hakkinen – McLaren Mercedes
61. 1999 E Irvine – Ferrari
62. 2000 R Barrichello – Ferrari
63. 2001 R Schumacher – Williams BMW
64. 2002 M Schumacher – Ferrari
65. 2003 J Montoya – Williams BMW
66. 2004 M Schumacher – Ferrari
67. 2005 F Alonso – Renault
68. 2006 M Schumacher – Ferrari
69. 2008 Hamilton – McLaren Mercedes
70. 2009 M Webber – Red Bull Renault
71. 2010 F Alonso – Ferrari
72. 2011 L Hamilton – McLaren Mercedes
73. 2012 F Alonso – Ferrari
74. 2013 S Vettel – Red Bull Renault
75. 2014 L Hamilton – Mercedes
76. 2016 L Hamilton – Mercedes

Sources: Brembo, Pirelli