Due to Lewis Hamilton’s win at Silverstone two weeks ago, the rest button has been pushed on the championship fight between the two Mercedes men and it is well and truly back on.
Due to Lewis Hamilton’s win at Silverstone two weeks ago, the rest button has been pushed on the championship fight between the two Mercedes men and it is well and truly back on.
This weekend we head to Hockenheim for the German Grand Prix at an event where Nico Rosberg will be hoping the home crowd get behind him just as much as the British fans did for Lewis Hamilton at Silverstone to spur him on to victory.
The German Grand Prix alternates between Hockenheim and the Nurburgring with the last race at this circuit being won by Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso back in 2012. For the first time since the introduction of DRS, the 4.5 KM long circuit will see the use of two DRS zones this weekend.
Eyes on the skies
The first activation point is located just after turn one with the second DRS zone on the exit of turn four. The DRS should be highly effective on this circuit and provide a lot of overtaking especially at the turn six hairpin. Pirelli will be bringing the yellow marked soft tyre (prime) and the yellow marked super-soft tyre (option) to Hockenheim but could we need the wet tyres this weekend?
Both Friday and Saturday look set to be hot however the form book could be thrown out of the window on Sunday. Thunderstorms look to be on the cards come race day and this could certainly mix up the results and throw a spanner in the works for Mercedes who will be desperate to take the win at their home Grand Prix.
After Germany’s heroics in the World Cup final last weekend Rosberg will be looking to get over his first disappointing DNF of the season to try to stretch out his four point lead that was eaten into due to Hamilton’s victory. The main talking point heading into the weekend is the FIA deciding to ban the front and rear inter-connected suspension, FRIC for short.
Hamilton looks for the lead
Whether or not this will bring the grid closer together and slash the huge advantage that Mercedes currently have remains unclear. We won’t know until Friday afternoon.
For the rest of the field this could be their best shot yet of beating the Silver Arrows and, although Red Bull have taken a win this season, that win came after Mercedes hit reliability issues. We have seen so far this season that yes Mercedes are fast but they are also fragile.
Fresh from his fight with Fernando Alonso, last year’s German Grand Prix winner Sebastian Vettel has been keen to downplay expectations heading into his home race and is calm about being 28 points behind his teammate Daniel Ricciardo.
This shows a clear contrast from what we saw this time last season in terms of Vettel’s mind set. Williams will be looking for a big weekend from Felipe Massa in Germany.
Whilst Valtteri Bottas has been on the podium at two races, Felipe Massa has finished fourth and did not make the finish at Silverstone. Hockenheim is a circuit that should suit the Williams thanks to the long straights and of course the ban on the FRIC system that Mercedes heavily rely on.
With rain predicted on Sunday and a fired up Lewis Hamilton looking to regain the championship lead we should be treated to a thrilling German Grand Prix.
Who do you think will come out on top? Post your comments below.
Image: Mark McArdle / Wikimedia Commons
