[jfxavier]

Following last weekend’s race at the Hungaroring, teams and drivers have made the short journey from Budapest to Hockenheim, for the German Grand Prix.
Michael Schumacher holds the record for most German Grand Prix wins (4) in the modern Formula One era, with Fernando Alonso the best of the active drivers with 3. While Alonso is unlikely to add to his victories, he could well be joined on 3 wins by Lewis Hamilton, who won here on 2008 as well as on 2011.

Timings in IST:


Circuit details:


Circuit length : 4.574km/2.842 miles

Race distance : 67 laps (full world championship points will be awarded after 75 per cent distance/51 laps)

Distance to Turn One : 260m/0.162 miles

Longest straight : 1.14km/0.708 miles, on the approach to Turn Six

Top speed : 350km/h/217mph, on the approach to Turn Six

Pitlane length : 300m/0.186 miles, estimated time loss 22s

Full throttle : 60 per cent

Gear changes : 49 per lap /3,283 per race

DRS zones : Two, on the approaches to Turns Two and Six

Fuel consumption : 2.1kg per lap, which is relatively high

ERS demands : Medium. The sharp bursts of acceleration from low speed are demanding on ERS, but there are several opportunities around the lap to harvest energy under braking – into Turns Two and Six in particular.

Brake wear : Medium. There are some challenging braking zones, but the long straights provide opportunities to cool the brakes

Safety Car likelihood : Low. In nine races at the re-profiled Hockenheim there have been just three Safety Car periods, most recently in 2014 following a collision on lap one

Weather conditions forecast : 29 degrees, Expected to be showers in the area.

Hockenheim is considered a power circuit, thanks to a sequence of medium length straights in the opening half of the lap on which cars will accelerate to more-than 330km/h before braking heavily at the Turn Six hairpin with a deceleration of up to 6g to take the corner at around 75km/h. Heavy braking and the multiple lines through the corner make this the prime overtaking spot on a lap of Hockenheim. The hairpin, and the demands of the lower-speed stadium section at the end of the lap, create scope for interesting setup compromises, contrasting the needs for a stiff, low-drag car on the faster sections with the traction and downforce demands of the slower parts of the circuit.

History:
Hockenheim will sadly always be remembered as the track where the great Jim Clark tragically lost his life 1968 while competing in a Formula Two race. The circuit has gone through a number of incarnations since it was originally constructed back in 1932.
2002 saw a major change in the track, giving us the layout we have today, when Hermann Tilke was called in to create a new and more manageable circuit – removing the long blasts out to into the forest and back. There was a small bit of Tilkering with the stadium section, but the main change was in adding a whole new section to the track, starting with the new turn 2 and bringing the track across through the forest to rejoin the old track at the stadium section in turn 12.
The German Grand Prix appeared in the Formula One World Championship since 1951 and was held at the Nurburgring (Nordschleife). In 1959 the German Grand Prix was held at AVUS (Acronym for Automobil-Verkehrs und Ubungs-Strasse – Automobile Traffic and Practice Street) in Berlin, a public road, and when in use for racing consisted of two long parallel straights connected at either end by two curves, giving an ultimate high speed track. The track having been modified to include serious high banking at the north curve (an incredible 43 deg), with the race being run in 2 heats and aggregate times used to determine the result due to fears for the tyres at the ultra fast circuit.

The Grand Prix returned to the Nurburgring in 1960.
The Nurburgring, dubbed the Green Hell by Jackie Stewart, was one of the truly iconic tracks in Formula One’s history. The Nordschleife layout was almost 21km long, with 73 turns, and the track had a massive 300 m in elevation change. A supreme challenge for the drivers, but also a dangerous one, with numerous fatalities at the venue.
In 1970, the drivers came together to demand improvements to safety at the Nurburgring, forcing the race to be moved to the new Hockenheimring for that year while modifications were made to the Nurburging. The Grand Prix returned to the Nurburgring in 1971, and continued on there until 1976, with James Hunt winning there for McLaren in a race marred by a crash for runaway championship leader Niki Lauda that saw the Austrian trapped in his burning Ferrari and suffering serious burns.
The German Grand Prix continued to be held between the Hockenheimring and Nurburgring till 2014. Last year the German Grand Prix fell from the calendar, as the Nurburgring was unable to host due to financial difficulty.

What to expect in 2016?

The crowd will expect another victory for Mercedes, and preferably with Nico Rosberg at the front.
Lewis Hamilton will be out to stop that however, and having won five of the last six races it’s a realistic possibility. But having moved ahead with his win in Hungary Hamilton must turn his attention to his power units situation. Hamilton is already on his fifth example of some power unit components. He is likely to need a sixth and seventh before the season is over, which will incur a stiff grid penalty. Will he take it here and handover a Home victory to Nico or will he prefer to stamp his authority on this year’s championship before taking the summer break. I think the later will be his choice.

F1 seems a like a 3 tier championship increasingly. In Tier 2 Red Bull are within a point of Ferrari, and certainly look like an outfit full of confidence. The Hockenheimring with its mix of twisty stadium section and long straights will provide an interesting test for both outfits, highlighting both the strengths and weaknesses of both teams, but Ferrari continue to have the feel of a team one race away from a crisis. Ferrari tend to do well at the Hockenheimring. They won five of the nine races at the track since its 2002 Tilkering.
In Tier 3 Williams desperately need to rediscover form if they are to keep Force India at bay, but recent form has done nothing to suggest they can produce a good enough result for that. Force India have been quietly impressive this year and lie just 20 points behind fellow Mercedes engine customers Williams.
The long straights of Hockenheim should handicap McLaren and Torro Rosso, so maybe providing an opportunity for Haas to sneak back into the minor points placings.


Tyres:


PAUL HEMBERY, PIRELLI MOTORSPORT DIRECTOR:
“Hockenheim will be a bit of an unknown quantity: we’ve not raced there for two years, and even before then it was a race that alternated with the Nurburgring, so everybody is lacking historical data compared to other venues we visit. The cars are obviously going a lot quicker than they were in 2014, which is why we have introduced a tyre nomination that is a step harder compared to last time. The most notable feature of that 2014 race was the variable weather: on race day track temperatures were 20 degrees cooler than they had been on the very hot qualifying day. With the German Grand Prix taking place at the same time of year again, there is obviously the potential for similar variation.”

Sources : FIA preview & media kit, teams & Pirelli previews.

[Hatari]

Originally Posted by jfxavier

Top speed : 350km/h/217mph, on the approach to Turn Six

350 seems high? even with DRS + tow..

[Aditya]

That's a nice lesson in history there jfxavier.

I used to love the old Hockenheim circuit. Somehow, I don't find the current one quite as charismatic.

Once again, with the long straights we are likely to see another dominating performance from Mercedes. Hamilton has been winning for a while now and I don't expect him to give Rosberg an opportunity here either.

Though Red Bull is on a bit of a roll, I expect Ferrari to beat them - unless they mess up their strategy. Force India should now try to close the gap to Williams.

McLaren is still way down on power to make an impact.

[jfxavier]

Originally Posted by Hatari

350 seems high? even with DRS + tow..

I think the teams are guessing that since they dont have solid data. 2014 was variable weather and the PUs have come a long way since.
350 seems a bit high. Maybe 330 - 340 sounds reasonable.

[jfxavier]

Pictures from German GP are trickling in.


Look what awaits the drivers off racing line.
Another round of suspension failures

As usual, the aero bits are getting the attention.

look at the Ferrari front wings.

The view from the rear makes much more sense on the complex design.
So many small winglets, fins and slots etc. on the aero kits, it is mind boggling if you go into details. Here are some examples.


Force India rear wing end plates lower side.


Hass front splitter and bargeboard.


Merc. front wing


Merc. pontoons


Merc. rear wing end plate


Merc. side pods


Renault flat floor before rear tyres with slots.

Torro Rosso has brought their aero upgrade here at Germany.


STR Flat bottom before rear tyres


STR flow conditioners


STR new wings


STR turning vanes


Torro Rosso fin under rear wishbone.

Sensors and cameras mounted to measure temp., air flow & flexing all around.


Merc. IR camera looking at tyres


McLaren looking at the front wing flex.

Sourcecs : AMuS, Alberto Rodríguez , Craig Scarborough

[jfxavier]

The radio restrictions are gone.

http://www.fia.com/news/f1-strategy-...s-new-approach

At the request of the Teams and Commercial Rights Holder, the FIA has agreed to adopt a more liberal approach to the interpretation of Article 27.1 (that a driver must drive the car “alone and unaided”).

With the exception of the period between the start of the formation lap and the start of the race, there will be no limitations on messages teams send to their drivers either by radio or pit board.

This approach is aimed at providing improved content for fans and spectators, as teams will now be required to provide the Commercial Rights Holder with unrestricted access to their radio messages at all times that their cars are out of the garage.

DRIVERS PRESS CONFERENCE – Sebastian VETTEL (Ferrari), Nico HULKENBERG (Force India), Pascal WEHRLEIN (Manor), Daniel RICCIARDO (Red Bull Racing), Rio HARYANTO (Manor), Felipe NASR (Sauber)

http://www.fia.com/news/f1-2016-germ...ess-conference

[ecenandu]

Originally Posted by jfxavier

I think the teams are guessing that since they dont have solid data. 2014 was variable weather and the PUs have come a long way since.
350 seems a bit high. Maybe 330 - 340 sounds reasonable.

Originally Posted by Hatari

350 seems high? even with DRS + tow..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0mybohudpEU

Without tow + DRS you reach 330 Kmph. So with them expect 345+ kmph.

[jfxavier]

FP1 classification:




Birthday boy Fernando. Nice lid.

Originally Posted by Hatari

350 seems high? even with DRS + tow..

Originally Posted by ecenandu

Without tow + DRS you reach 330 Kmph. So with them expect 345+ kmph.

FP1 Speed trap figures. Expect them to go faster as the track evolves.



McLaren seems to be seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.
Now trying to position themselves as the best of the rest.
Here the heavy braking zones might be of help, but Honda is rising for sure.


The PU components usage as of now.
Looks like penalties will be inevitable after the summer break.


Hope the weather does its part to spice things up this weekend.

[Hatari]

Originally Posted by jfxavier

Attachment 1535236
Birthday boy Fernando. Nice lid.

Ok this is phtoshopped for sure!

FP1 Speed trap figures. Expect them to go faster as the track evolves.

Impressive. Will get faster as fuel loads go down.
Do post the Q3 speed trap figures on Sat if you get them.

Attachment 1535243

McLaren seems to be seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.
Now trying to position themselves as the best of the rest.
Here the heavy braking zones might be of help, but Honda is rising for sure.

With each PU upgrade they can bring a more agressive aero update.
Hope the improvements continue and they can sneak in a podium at Suzuka/Interlagos in the wet perhaps?

Hope the weather does its part to spice things up this weekend.

Fingers crossed!

[Chetan_Rao]

Hamilton is rumored to be running a reduced engine setting this weekend. BBC started it but no confirmation from the team so it may just be them stirring the pot.

[jfxavier]

Originally Posted by Hatari

Impressive. Will get faster as fuel loads go down.
Do post the Q3 speed trap figures on Sat if you get them.

FP2 speed trap figures.

Originally Posted by Hatari

Ok this is phtoshopped for sure!

Me no photoshop.

McL even did a special birthday aero upgrade for Fernando. See



Sensors were installed at Turn 1 to police the naughty ones.

Not surprised, Max features on it prominently.

Charlie even sent his warning notes to the teams.
No price for guessing the driver who left track 14 times.


No need for this for Hamilton maybe, since the radio ban is gone


The empty and covered stands is a dampener.
No point in complaining that Bernie is taking the races to new pastures.

[jfxavier]

Originally Posted by Chetan_Rao

Hamilton is rumored to be running a reduced engine setting this weekend. BBC started it but no confirmation from the team so it may just be them stirring the pot.

Many teams use high mileage engines or more conservative engine settings during practice sessions. Lewis is topping the PU components consumption list, so maybe they are taking it easy now. Quali maybe another story. In any case he can change the strat modes from his steering when push comes to shove. Not sure what the new "rules of engagements" say on that

[Chetan_Rao]

Originally Posted by jfxavier

Many teams use high mileage engines or more conservative engine settings during practice sessions. Lewis is topping the PU components consumption list, so maybe they are taking it easy now. Quali maybe another story. In any case he can change the strat modes from his steering when push comes to shove. Not sure what the new "rules of engagements" say on that

I'm beyond buying BBC's rumor mongering, their pro-Hamilton slant to everything is beyond amusing. They just can't concede someone else being better than their hero, who can do nothing wrong, even at something as noncommittal as Friday Practice. Just our luck that we get hand-me-down Sky/Channel 4(?) programming which is even worse unless one is a Hamilton fanboy.

Rosberg ahead by 3 tenths is 'Rosberg edges Hamilton'. Swap their times and they'd be 'Hamilton dominates hapless Rosberg'.

Does anybody know of another English language coverage option I can switch to? I don't think I can handle the Indian broadcast for much longer.

[avdhesh15]

So after FP3, the top-6 are separated by less than half a second! Should be an interesting qualifying session for sure.

Rosberg has dominated the FP sessions but with Hamilton, even the qualifying doesn't matter... it's the race start which counts as was seen in the last race where he jumped Nico and kept the position till the end.

[jfxavier]

Excellent lap from Nico, especially since he was fueled for 2 hot laps when he got it done. Paddy Lowe said post session he had several warnings and lost sync on his gears and apparently control of his throttle pedal as well when he brought it in to the pits.
The last time Lewis beat a teammate here in Quali was 2008.

Ferrari clearly becoming the No.3 team here.
The slide backwards continues as RBR is progressing nicely. Waiting for Renault PU upgrades
Glad to see the top 10 getting closer than ever, even on a track where PU power is important.

Me off to do the rain dance to invoke rain gods for tomorrow's race



Speed trap during Quali runs.