By Ewan Tytler, U.S.A.
Atlas F1 Magazine Writer
Formula One returns to Hockenheim, current home of the German Grand Prix, for the 12th round of the 2001 World Championship. As always, Ewan Tytler reviews the field
At 6.822 km, Hockenheim is the second longest and the second fastest Grand Prix circuit. However, Hockenheim is about to undergo changes, and the circuit is to be shortened by 2.3 km, by a link between the Jim Clark and Ayrton Senna chicanes. This will bypass the remote eastern Ostkurve where Patrick Depailler was killed in 1980.
The Formula One fans who attend Hockenheim provide the most enthusiastic and vocal crowd outside Italy. "The atmosphere at Hockenheim is really something special," explains Ferrari's Michael Schumacher. "With the stands around the outside of the stadium you can see everyone cheering for you and sometimes even hear it!" Jordan's Jarno Trulli added: "I would say that together with Monza, Hockenheim has one of the best atmospheres of any Grand Prix."
Sam Michael, Williams's Chief Operations Engineer, explained the technical challenges Hockenheim poses: "Hockenheim is the lowest downforce circuit, putting a premium on engine power and aero efficiency. Set-up wise the car requires something a bit different to enable the drivers to be quick through the chicanes and the slow motodrom, but also to handle the long braking after the straights. Tyre selection will be crucial and Michelin are taking two tyres that we know.
"Rear tyre degradation is usually an issue here, but it maybe less so this year thanks to traction control. It is a circuit that no team tests on so you have to react quickly during the practice sessions, particularly with tyre compound choice. Strategy is usually quite predictable, but last year the race was won here by quite a different approach, although helped by rain and a safety car. Our drivers will be looking forward to plenty of overtaking opportunities because of the long straights."
Jordan-Honda's Heinz-Harald Frentzen adds a driver's perspective: "Hockenheim is a distinguished track in comparison to other F1 circuits on the calendar. It is almost like racing on two separate tracks as the short, slow and twisty infield section is so different to the long and fast straights that form the majority of the track. This makes car set-up very challenging and a good compromise needs to be found in order to gain maximum speed on the straights but sufficient downforce in the Motodrom. A good qualifying position is very important as overtaking is quite difficult here."
Ralf Schumacher rather disagrees with that statement. "Hockenheim is not particularly exciting from a driver's point of view," he says, "but there are some good overtaking opportunities." Jaguar's Pedro de la Rosa added "It's a very high-speed track and very punishing on the car, especially on the brakes as you approach tight chicanes." while his team mate, Eddie Irvine concluded, "The track is not very demanding from a driving point of view - just go flat out down the straights and the rest is down to traction out of the slower corners. With that in mind, traction control might be an important factor here and our system seems to work quite well."
Pitstop and tyre strategies
Although it rained over half the circuit last year, all other Grands Prix held at Hockenheim since 1994 have been held under dry, sunny conditions. Jaguar's Pedro de la Rosa commented, "Hopefully, we'll be blessed with good weather, as visibility can be appalling here in the wet because of the low tree-line around the circuit's main straights."
Attrition is a bit unpredictable at Hockenheim - 16 cars finished in 1998; 13 were classified in 1996; 12 in 2000; 11 in 1999 and 1997; while only 8 cars were running at the end of the 1995 and 1994 races.
In last year's wet race, all teams stopped twice while in the dry 1999 race, most teams went for a one-stop strategy, stopping between laps 20 and 24, while Prost's Olivier Panis and Sauber's Jean Alesi opted for a 2-stop strategy.
Past Experience
This is how well (or bad) the current drivers have qualified in the past at Hockenheim:
Down the Pitlane
Ferrari maintained a 52-points lead in the Constructors' Championship, having scored ten points in Silverstone while McLaren scored the same. In the past decade, Ferrari have won the German Grand Prix twice - in 1994 and 1999, scoring a total of 61 points at Hockenheim from 1990 to 2000, inclusive.
The World Championship leader Michael Schumacher has extended his lead to 37 points over David Coulthard and he now needs 24 points from the next six races to win the Championship. Schumacher won the German Grand Prix in 1995 and finished 2nd in 1993 and 3rd in 1992 for Benetton. With Ferrari, he finished 2nd in 1997, 4th in 1996, and 5th in 1998. Schumacher set fastest lap in 1995 and 1993 and his highest grid positions wa 2nd, in 1995 and 2000.
Rubens Barrichello has recaptured 3rd position in the Drivers' Championship, 50 points behind Schumacher. Barrichello won last year's race and set the race lap record (1:44.300). His only other finish was 6th in 1996 for Jordan, and his highest grid position was 5th in 1995 for Jordan.
McLaren remain in 2nd in the Constructors' Championship. Last week, Mika Hakkinen, Alex Wurz and Darren Turner tested with the McLaren team at Monza, while David Coulthard withdrew due to food poisoning. Team Principal Ron Dennis stated: "Following the performance improvement demonstrated at Silverstone, the team arrives at Germany with two drivers who are capable of winning races. There are still a large number of points to be secured in both Championships, and the team will continue to work hard to optimise the results over the rest of the season."
McLaren have been consistently successful at Hockenheim during 1990-2000, winning twice - in 1990 and 1998, and scoring a total of 59 points.
Mika Hakkinen has jumped to 5th position in the Drivers' Championship after his convincing win in Britain. "The victory at Silverstone meant a lot to me, it also demonstrated that I am as committed to winning as ever and I am looking forward to more of the same at the German Grand Prix this weekend," Hakkinen stated. "Hockenheim is a challenging circuit, which offers a number of good overtaking opportunities and a fantastic atmosphere. You can actually hear the roar of the crowd when you enter the Stadium section, which is rare in Formula One."
This will be Hakkinen's 10th German Grand Prix at the circuit where he has had his greatest highs and lows. Hakkinen won the 1998 race from pole position, crashed out of the lead of the 1999 race after a frightening tyre failure, and was, somewhat harshly, given a one-race ban following a multi-car first-lap accident in the 1994 race. Hakkinen also set pole position in 1999 and finished 2nd in last year's race, and 3rd in 1997.
David Coulthard is still 2nd in the Drivers' Championship and he is the only driver other than Michael Schumacher with any chance of winning the title. Coulthard will only be able to achieve this if he becomes a consistent winner while Schumacher finishes lower than 3rd in several of the remaining races. Coulthard reflected: "There are six races to go in the FIA Formula One World Championship and we are looking to build on the second positions held in both the Drivers' and Constructors' titles. The German Grand Prix is always an interesting race, often affected by the unpredictable weather conditions. With the extremely fast outfield section, through which we are at full throttle for the majority of the time, and the slow Stadium complex, a set-up compromise is required to ensure the maximisation of performance over the whole track."
Coulthard has been a consistent points scorer at Hockenheim, finishing 2nd in 1998, 3rd in 2000, and 5th in 1996 and 1999 for McLaren; and 2nd in 1995 for Williams. Coulthard set pole position last year and set fastest lap in 1999, 1998 and 1994. This will be Coulthard's 8th German Grand Prix.
Williams have consolidated their 3rd position in the Constructors' Championship. BMW Motorsport Director, Dr. Mario Theissen, predicted: "The high speed Hockenheim circuit, with its long straights, should suit us. The season so far has shown we are very well prepared in terms of engine power, and engine-wise Hockenheim is the most demanding circuit. There is a high proportion of driving under full load and the use of high revs for a long time as well. For this reason Hockenheim is the reference circuit for our engine on the test bench. We have had a very intensive test at Monza, where we worked on further development of engine functions and prepared ourselves for Hockenheim using the characteristics of the Italian track, which are similar."
Williams have been the most successful team at Hockenheim during 1990-2000, winning the German Grand Prix in 1991, 1992, 1993 and 1996, scoring a total of 69 points. The outright qualifying (1:37.087) and race (1:41.591) lap records for Hockenheim were set by Williams cars in 1991 and 1992.
Huerth's Ralf Schumacher has slipped back to 4th in the Drivers' Championship and is 53 points behind his brother. Ralf's thoughts on Hockenheim: "It's my second home country Grand Prix this season and I will be looking forward to the unique atmosphere in the motodrom, which is like driving in a football stadium. As long as it doesn't rain we should be well prepared for this race." Ralf finished 4th in 1999 for Williams, 5th in 1997 and 6th in 1998 for Jordan. His highest grid position was 4th in 1998.
Juan Pablo Montoya has slipped to 6th in the Drivers' Championship. Montoya stated: "I have always finished well at Hockenheim, although sometimes I have not qualified as well as I would have like to. This will be my third visit there and so it should improve my knowledge of the track. The Monza test has been extremely useful for us because our performance in Germany will depend on many of the factors we see at Monza, such as the importance of fuel levels. All in all, we have a good car and should be competitive there." In F3000, Montoya finished 3rd after qualifying 10th in 1998 and finished 5th after setting fastest lap and qualifying 15th in 1997.
Sauber have consolidated their 4th position in the Constructors' Championship. Technical Director Willy Rampf commented: "Hockenheim, like Monza, is one of the fastest circuits on the calendar and requires the lowest level of downforce during the season. This means developing the aerodynamic package to maximise straight-line speed, for overtaking opportunities while maintaining sufficient downforce for the three chicanes and the stadium section at the end of the lap. The high-speed nature of the circuit also places a premium on horsepower and engine reliability. At the same time braking performance is also crucial as drivers decelerate from more than 350 km/h to 85 km/h through the chicanes."
Sauber finished 5th in 1995 and 2000m, scoring a total of 4 points from 1990-2000.
Monchengladbach's Nick Heidfeld is 7th in the Drivers' Championship. "Hockenheim is home ground again for me for the second time in three races," Heidfeld said. "The C20 has a very good down force to drag ratio for high-speed circuits and our Petronas engine has proven to be a highly reliable engine during the whole season. I am looking forward to a good performance this week end."
Heidfeld, the 1997 German Formula 3 Champion, finished a distant 12th in last year's German Grand Prix after qualifying 13th for Prost. Heidfeld pulled off a hat-trick at the 1998 F3000 race at Hockenheim; winning after setting fastest lap and pole position. In the 1999 F3000 race, Heidfeld spun off after qualifying 5th.
Kimi Raikkonen is 8th equal in the Drivers' Championship and has the fastest test time during July testing at Monza. Raikkonen freely admits that he prefers high-speed tracks like Hockenheim. "Hockenheim is one of those high-speed circuits that I really enjoy," he says. "Of course I am looking forward to racing there this weekend. We have prepared well for this Grand Prix during the Monza tests early July. These data will give us the base line for the Hockenheim race track. WeŽll be challenging for points again, I hope."
Jordan are still 5th in the Constructors' Championship. Jordan have scored 14 points at Hockenheim, finishing 3rd in 1999, 4th in 1998, 5th in 1991 and 1997 and 6th in 1991, 1996 and 1998.
Monchengladbach's Heinz-Harald Frentzen is now 11th in the Drivers' Championship and hasn't scored a point since the San Marino Grand Prix. "Hockenheim doesn't compare to any other circuit on the calendar," Frentzen said. "The long and fast straights are great but you always want more power to go faster still. The short infield stadium section at the end of the track is so different from the rest of the circuit that it's almost like racing on two different tracks. This makes it challenging to find a good compromise with the car's set-up. It would be good to have another podium finish here, especially as it's my home turf."
Jarno Trulli has slipped to 9th equal in the Drivers' Championship. Trulli, the 1996 German Formula 3 champion, stated: "Jordan has always performed quite well at Hockenheim. I raced at this circuit six times in the German Formula 3 Championship and won six times. It's also the track where I scored my first Formula One points (with Prost in 1997), so all this adds to my confidence on this track and optimism for the Grand Prix weekend there. The German crowds still recognise me from my F3 days and I always receive a good reception in Hockenheim which is great. Together with Monza, Hockenheim has one of the best Grand Prix atmospheres, with so many people camping in the woods and the huge crowds filling the incredible grandstands in the stadium area." Trulli had the best finish of his career in 1997 - 4th for Prost and his highest grid position was 6th in 2000.
BAR are still 6th in the Constructors' Championship, but they have yet to score a point at Hockenheim. Olivier Panis is 12th in the Drivers' Dhampionship. Panis finished a remarkable 2nd in 1994 for Ligier, in his debut German Grand Prix, and finished 6th in 1999 for Prost. His highest grid position was 7th, also in 1999. Panis also won the 1993 F3000 event at Hockenheim. Jacques Villeneuve has slipped to 10th in the Drivers' Championship. Villeneuve finished 3rd in 1996 and 1998 for Williams and his highest grid position was 3rd also in 1998.
Jaguar are still 7th in the Constructors' Championship, and driver Eddie Irvine is 13th in the Drivers' Championship. This will be Irvine's 8th German Grand Prix, and he commented: "Hockenheim is the first really high-speed circuit we race on this season, so it's difficult to predict how well we will do. Traction control might be an important factor here and our system seems to work quite well. I've been testing at Monza, where despite a few problems, we managed to do some more work on our aero package, trimming it for low downforce configuration and working on the new floor we introduced at Silverstone. We also got through a lot of tyre testing, which should pay off both at Hockenheim and when we come back to Monza in September. We know we have to qualify better, as our race pace is very good, but I am only cautiously optimistic that we will be able to do that at Hockenheim."
Irvine won the 1999 German Grand Prix with help from teammate Mika Salo, and in return Irvine gave the victor's trophy to Salo. Irvine's highest grid position was 5th, also in 1999. He also won the 1990 F3000 event at Hockenheim.
Pedro de la Rosa is still 15th equal in the Drivers' Championship. "Hockenheim holds fond memories for me as I achieved a sixth place finish there last year," de la Rosa said. "The Jaguar R2 performed well at Monza last week and you can't help but feeling encouraged after each test programme we complete. Our 2001 season was always going to be long-haul journey with many mountains to climb on the way, but we're all pleased at the rate at which we're achieving this. There are still six races left and on current form, it really shouldn't be too long before we earn some points which in turn will do justice to the progress everybody at Jaguar Racing is making." De la Rosa finished 6th in last year's race after qualifying 5th for Arrows. In 1999, he did not finish after qualifying 20th.
Prost are still 8th in the Constructors' Championship. Team principal Alain Prost won twice at Hockenheim and his team has scored 4 points at this circuit, finishing 4th in 1997 and 6th in 1999. Jean Alesi is still 14th in the Drivers' Championship. Alesi is the most experienced driver at Hockenheim, this will be his 13th German Grand Prix. Alesi has been a regular points scorer at Hockenheim, finishing 2nd in 1996 and 6th in 1997 for Benetton and 3rd in 1991 and 5th in 1992 for Ferrari. His highest grid position was 2nd in 1994. In last year's race he was involved in a frightening collision with Pedro Diniz's Sauber-Petronas. Luciano Burti has never competed at the Hockenheimring in a premier Formula.
Benetton remain 9th equal in the Constructors' Championship. Technical Director Mike Gascoyne stated: "In preparation for Hockenheim we tested last week at Monza where we had a useful four day test with both drivers in attendance running the B201 car. We were able to complete more kilometres than at any test we have had this season which puts us in a very positive situation. Hockenheim, along with Monza, is one of the two really low down-force circuits that we run at. The cars will be running this weekend with a very low down-force set up, with several new parts designed specifically for this type of aerodynamic configuration. We feel that at Monza we were able to make some significant progress both with the aerodynamic layout of the car and also with several mechanical aspects. At Hockenheim last year, Giancarlo qualified in third, so it will be interesting to see what we can achieve this year. Overall, I feel that we are more prepared for the Hockenheim Grand Prix than we have been for any race so far this season."
Benetton has been quite successful at Hockenheim during 1990-2000, winning the German Grand Prix in 1995 and 1997 and scoring a total of 51 points. Gerhard Berger still holds the qualifying lap record (1:41.873) for the current track, which he set with a Benetton B197-Renault in 1997. In last year's race, neither Benettons finished.
Giancarlo Fisichella is still 15th equal in the Drivers' Championship. Fisichella has yet to score a point at Hockenheim, his best finish being 7th in 1998. His highest grid position was 2nd in 1997 for Jordan. In last year's race, Fisichella crashed with Michael Schumacher at the start and retired immediately.
Jenson Button still has no ponts in the Drivers' Championship. In last year's German Grand Prix, Button finished 4th after qualifying 16th for Williams. Button also won a Formula Ford race at Hockenheim under wet conditions.
Arrows remain 9th equal in the Constructors' Championship. Technical Director Mike Coughlan stated: "We're looking forward to going to Hockenheim as it was a good race for us last year. If you compare last year's performance to that of the rest of the 2000 season, we ran very well there and the track is such that it particularly suits our car. The fast straights lend themselves to the characteristics of the A22, so hopefully it should be a good one for us. The circuit suits Jos' style of driving very well, as heavy braking is his speciality and, with three big braking areas, he should have plenty of opportunity to demonstrate his skills." Arrows finished 6th last year, as Footwork, the team also finishing 4th and 5th in the 1994 German Grand Prix, scoring a total of 6 points at Hockenheim.
Jos Verstappen is still 13th in the Drivers' Championship. The 1993 German F3 Champion commented: "The Hockenheimring is a very fast, low downforce circuit with very long straights. That kind of configuration usually suits our car but we won't know exactly where we stand until we start running on Friday. Hopefully we are in for a good weekend. Hockenheim is also one of the closest Grands Prix to Holland so you can expect to see a lot of Dutch fans at this race." Verstappen finished 10th for Tyrrell in 1997 and his highest grid position was 11th in 2000.
Enrique Bernoldi commented: "Hockenheim is a pretty good circuit. It's very fast with very hard braking but then it's also tight around the complex section. Set-up is a real compromise as you want to have very little downforce for the straights but enough grip to get through the complex without losing time. I scored points both times I raced there in F3000 and it's a circuit I enjoy a lot." In last year's F3000 race Bernoldi finished 6th after qualifying 8th and in 1999, he finished 5th after qualifying 7th.
Minardi have never scored a point at Hockenheim but both Minardis finished last year's race. Fernando Alonso only completed 6 laps of last year's F3000 race after qualifying 6th. Tarso Marques was eliminated on the first lap after qualifying 21st in the 1997 German Grand Prix. In F3000, Marques was eliminated by an accident in 1995 after qualifying 6th while in 1994, he finished 10th after qualifying 16th.
* F3000 Result
Driver/Year 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 Average(96-00) Schumacher M 6 3 4 2 3 4 92 - 5 4.50 Barrichello - 17 11 5 9 12 13 6 18 11.60 Hakkinen 13 - 8 7 4 3 1 1 4 2.60 Coulthard - - 6 3 7 8 2 3 1 4.20 Schumacher R - - - - - 7 4 11 14 9.00 Montoya - - - - - 15* 10* - - - Fisichella - - - - - 2 8 10 3 5.75 Button - - - - - - - - 16 16.00 Panis - - 12 12 12 - 16 7 - 8.33 Villeneuve - - - - 6 9 3 12 9 7.80 Frentzen - - 9 11 13 5 10 2 17 9.40 Trulli - - - - - 11 14 9 6 10.00 Verstappen - - 19 - 17 20 19 - 11 16.75 Bernoldi - - - - - - - 7* 8* - Heidfeld - - - - - - 1* 5* 13 13 Raikkonen - - - - - - - - - - Irvine - - 10 6 8 10 6 5 10 7.80 De La Rosa - - - - - - - 20 6 12.50 Alonso - - - - - - - - 6* - Marques - - - - - 21 - - - 21 Alesi 5 10 62 10 5 6 11 21 20 12.60 Burti - - - - - - - - - -
The German Grand Prix Preview in a Nutshell: