German GP Preview

It's barely been a week since the drama and excitement of Silverstone, but Formula 1 is now in full swing at the Nurburgring for the German Grand Prix. There has been no shortage of drama after last weekend's race, tyres have been dominating the headlines as you might expect. Pirelli have confirmed that the tyres for this weekend are the Kevlar construction, but to be honest many people are tired of talking tyres. I'll be giving my verdict on the Pirelli situation shortly, but first I'll preview the German Grand Prix.

The Facts.

Lap: 5.148 km
Race Laps: 60
Lap Record: 1:29.468
M Schumacher (2004)
2012 Winner: Fernando Alonso
Race Date: 07.07.2013
Safety Car – Likely
Weather – Changeable
Tyre Allocation – Soft & Medium
DRS Zones: Pit-straight and between turns 12 and 13, with separate detection points.

The Circuit

The Nurburgring plays host to round 9, it's a twisty and undulating circuit which always spices up racing. Located in the Eifel mountains, the weather here can turn quickly, one minute it can be warm and sunny, the next a torrential downpour. Do you remember the race in 2007 for example? We had a Midland F1 car lading the pack. But back to this weekend's race, there are many German drivers and of course one manufacture hoping to dominate their home race. Nico Rosberg was on a high last with the win at Silverstone, but another win this weekend would be a dream come true for the German. Mercedes in general dominated the British Grand Prix, if only Hamilton's tyre didn't fail, they could have easily been one and two on the podium. Mercedes have certainly found race pace and they are using it to maximum effect, they are seriously entering into the title fight with Vettel. After his disappointment last time out, he will want to do well in front of his home fans.

This circuit rewards cars with good balance and change of direction, surly then that means Red Bull are most likely to dominate. Well don't be so sure, after watching the cars out on track for myself last weekend, Mercedes also look solid in these areas. It's Ferrari and McLaren who have work to do. We know McLaren are focussing more on next season, that leaves Ferrari who I felt took a step back at Silverstone. If they haven't improved for this weekend, they won't be in contention for victory. Force India could well celebrate a podium this weekend, German driver Adrian Sutil will be hoping he is the one to receive the teams first podium position. But Lotus could provide them with a challenge as they were quick during the race last weekend despite the setback in Qualifying. One thing for sure is, it's going to another cracking race.

Tom Wilkinson's Tyre Talk

Tyres have been the talk of the paddock for the last week, some of which I agree with, some I don't. Here's what I think to the Pirelli situation.

Firstly they provided a statement which said the new bonding process was not at fault, they also mentioned that the teams ignored the guidelines set by Pirelli. Teams have always pushed boundaries in F1, it's the nature of the sport. However these are guidelines, not orders from Pirelli so the teams are not in the wrong. They are doing what they always have been doing, if they did this in Silverstone, they did it at most other races I'm absolutely sure and we didn't see catastrophic failures in this manner earlier in the season. So in my view, blaming the teams was a lame excuse.

Secondly Pirelli suggested that the curbs around Silverstone were partly to blame, I didn't for a moment buy into this argument. The circuit and curbs were all checked by the FIA on the Thursday track inspection which is completely normal during every Grand Prix weekend. Trying to blame Silverstone was not a smart move, Fernando Alonso was asked by Sky Sports if he thought the circuit was at fault right after the race, he responded with a strong “no”.

It is clear to me that the tyres failing on the inner shoulder are a structural failure, and if you slow the images down, the steel belt is coming apart from the sidewalls. I'm not a tyre expert but I've watched F1 for many years and studied the sport in detail, this is a failure of tyre and tyre alone, caused in my opinion by the new bonding process. I say this because we didn't see any failures of this nature before the British Grand Prix. The construction of the tyres has changed, coupled with this new process is failing under extreme load in hot conditions.

So where does this leave Pirelli? I know many fans are highly frustrated with them, and I understand that. But if they left the sport, F1 would be in deep trouble as no one really is in a position to replace them. Common sense is slowly prevailing however, Kevlar tyres return this weekend with a new 2012 style construction from Hungary onwards.

The Drivers clearly are not happy with the current situation, a GPDA statement said they would pull out of this weekend's event if such circumstances arise once again. It's a serious threat, one that thankfully I can't see happening. This circuit isn't as demanding on tyres as Silverstone, plus the Kevlar tyres are stronger. But there is no doubt the sport must continue it's tremendous safety record, 19 years without a driver fatality, that's very impressive considering the dangers involved with Formula 1.

German Grand Prix Times.

Saturday
Third Practice – 10:00
Qualifying – 13:00
Sunday
Race – 13:00

You can catch up with all the latest Formula 1 news and updates by following me on Twitter @TomWilkinsonF1. I'll be reporting on all the F1 action throughout the weekend right here at Driving For Pleasure. GP2 is also in action once again, we have the full Grand Prix weekend covered.
Driving For Pleasure is the place to be for all the F1 action in 2013. Kevin Bennet provides fantastic photography to accompany my reports, you can see more great photos on his website: kevinbennettphotography.co.uk