Autosport Plus 24.07.2014.

Features published on AUTOSPORT+ Jul 17, 2014 - Jul 23, 2014
Why F1 stars have lost their mystique - by Jonathan Noble

What difference has the FRIC ban made? - by Edd Straw and Gary Anderson
Tech focus: Adapting to life after FRIC - by Craig Scarborough
AUTOSPORT's German GP driver ratings - by Edd Straw
How Hamilton missed the perfect comeback - by Edd Straw
Gary Anderson: F1's dangerous rules precedent - by Gary Anderson
Has Germany fallen out of love with F1? - by Dieter Rencken
Why Formula 1 does matter - by Edd Straw
The greatest Spa 24 Hours? - by Gary Watkins
Features published on AUTOSPORT+ Jul 17, 2014 - Jul 23, 2014 1
http://plus.autosport.com/ 2014 autosport.com
Why F1 stars have lost their mystique
The drivers have lost their gladiatorial image in recent years but they remain Formula 1's main draw.
JONATHAN NOBLE thinks it's time to introduce a novel rule change
While Formula 1's teams have concentrated their efforts to spice up the show on making the cars look better,
there's no escaping the fact that the focus of fans' interest is the drivers. However much we marvel about the
cars and the amazing technology in the sport, it's what the men in the cockpits do that really stirs us all.
Over recent weeks, as F1 chiefs continue their self-analysis over why interest in the sport is declining, one
issue that seems to be overlooked is that the men in the cockpits have lost a bit of the gladiatorial status of
yesteryear.
Part of the reason current stars do not have the mythical standing that Jim Clark, Jackie Stewart and Ayrton
Senna had in their heyday can be explained by the way modern society has changed. Social media and the
24-hour internet news culture means anything and everything they do is reported to the nth degree.
And the modern corporate world, where image rights and contractual terms count for everything, means they
all too often have to toe the party line.
But while their out-of-the-car existence may be more watered down, it's what's going on in the car - and the
way the sport has developed - that has done more to take away the mystique of the men behind the wheel.
AUTOSPORT+ feature: Why F1 stars have lost their mystique 2
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Just look at what happened at the British Grand Prix. The amazing battle between Sebastian Vettel and
Fernando Alonso should have been celebrated as one of the most epic duels of recent years. Here were two
men showing total commitment, going to the limit and beyond, in as furious and intense a fight as you are ever
likely to witness.
Instead, their fight drew a reaction not for being sensational but because of the radio complaints from both
men. The moans about breaking track limits, and unfair use of DRS, were a turn-off and instead showed us all
that is wrong in a sport increasingly dictated by ever-tighter regulations.
Three-time world champion Niki Lauda has banged on for weeks now about the need for drivers to stand out
more - and he's mentioned regularly that he's tired of the endless radio chatter that's a part of modern F1. And
that's not just aimed at drivers like Alonso and Vettel complaining about each other - for the outspoken
Austrian thinks that communication from the teams is also killing off the show.
"Even going to the starting grid they need to be briefed about what to do, as it is so complicated," he said.
Just think for a second how bad it looks for drivers when we hear them being told to concede positions, back
off to save fuel and tyres, or even where they need to be going quicker.
Perhaps it's time for something a bit radical that would serve to make things more unpredictable (and
therefore exciting), and put the drivers firmly back in the drivers' seat. Let's ban pit-to-car radios, for starters.
Teams will rally against the move, citing safety reasons for informing drivers of when car trouble is on the
horizon, but it would be fairly simple to engineer a warning light in the cockpit that can be activated to work in
such events.
For fans, the change would make the drivers the stars again. No longer able to rely on the stacks of
information coming in their ears every second, they would have to manage tactics, fuel use, tyre wear and
strategy alone - and cope alone with their great battles, just as Rene Arnoux and Gilles Villeneuve did at Dijon
in 1979.
There would be scope to get it wrong - which would be good for the show - but also a certainty that more
credit would be heaped on the drivers who got it right. They would be centre-stage again.
F1 needs to ensure that drivers always come first. And right now, radio may be stifling their superstar status.
What difference has the FRIC ban made?
GARY ANDERSON and EDD STRAW analyse the first FRIC-less day of F1 practice and examine whether it
has changed the competitive order
The removal of FRIC suspension systems has been the talk of Hockenheim so far during the German Grand
Prix weekend, with Friday practice the first opportunity to see whether the change has reduced Mercedes'
advantage.
As always, the headline laptimes only tell a small part of the story, but there are plenty of other reasons to
look forward to a closely-fought weekend.
RAW PACE
As usual, it was Mercedes on top, with Ricciardo right behind. All the fastest times were set on super-soft
Pirellis, which were significantly faster than the softs over a single flying lap.
Pirelli had expected the gap to be in the vicinity of two thirds of a second, but with track temperatures very
high, at up to 58C, the difference was often over a second.
But there were signs Mercedes could have been quicker. With tyre degradation high, Nico Rosberg aborted
his first lap and set his best time on his second, which was just 24-thousandths slower than Lewis Hamilton's
best.
Best lap by car
1. Mercedes (Lewis Hamilton) 1m18.314s
AUTOSPORT+ feature: What difference has the FRIC ban made? 5
2. Red Bull (Daniel Ricciardo) +0.102s
3. Ferrari (Kimi Raikkonen) +0.546s
4. McLaren (Kevin Magnussen) +0.619s
5. Williams (Felipe Massa) +0.683s
6. Sauber (Adrian Sutil) +1.076s
7. Toro Rosso (Daniil Kvyat) +1.111s
8. Force India (Sergio Perez) +1.240s
9. Lotus (Pastor Maldonado) +1.817s
10. Marussia (Jules Bianchi) +2.987s
11. Caterham (Marcus Ericsson) +3.529s
FRIC WINNERS AND LOSERS
Gary Anderson: "It is always difficult to look at just one day of running and assess the impact of rule
changes, but after Friday practice it made sense to see whether anything stood out with all cars running
without FRIC.
"To get a rough picture of what has changed, it's best to compare each car's peak pace relative to the front
today with the average deficit during the first nine race weekends of 2014.
"To do this accurately, I always convert the times into a percentage of the overall fastest lap of the weekend.
This means that each race weekend carries equal weight without things being skewed by different lap lengths.
"Obviously, this is only to give a broad idea of what the loss of FRIC might have changed, but it does appear
to show that Mercedes has lost out."
Gary Anderson: "This shows that, while Mercedes remains on top, nearest rival Red Bull has closed up
dramatically, while Sauber has gained a huge amount.
"McLaren has halved its deficit, although it is important to note that the team has also introduced further
updates today.
"The majority of teams have made a gain of between 0.286 per cent (Ferrari) and 0.669 per cent (Caterham)."
WHY LOSING FRIC HAS MADE A DIFFERENCE
Gary Anderson: "The majority of cars looked a bit harder to drive. Taking the Sauber as an example, it has
always looked hard to drive and it doesn't look any worse, but it is closer to the pace.
"Without FRIC, you lose braking stability and you have to run the car stiffer, which makes it harder to drive.
Mercedes, for example, was able to run quite soft at times and the car looked fantastic over the kerbs in
Monaco and Canada, but it will lead to more ride height change, which FRIC counters.
"Now, you need to support the car more with stiffer suspension. The teams will have had a good idea of how
to modify their suspension, and most likely the challenge is more about drivers re-adapting to life without
FRIC."
LONG-RUN PACE
Given the high track temperatures, tyre degradation was a big problem today. The bold choice to allocate the
super-soft and soft rubber means that the option tyres on which the majority of the top 10 on the grid will start
the race on will not last long should temperatures remain as high as they were today.
The below averages are based on seven counted laps, with outlying slow laps disregarded.
Top five cars: Super-soft runs
1. Mercedes (Rosberg) 1m22.778s
2. Red Bull (Ricciardo) +0.156s
3. Ferrari (Raikkonen) +0.460s
4. McLaren (Magnussen) +1.058s
5. Williams (Bottas) +1.228s
Ricciardo's run was particularly impressive, as he completed 12 flying laps on the super- softs at an average
pace of 1m23.285s, suggesting that the Red Bull is looking after its tyres well. Particularly in Ricciardo's
hands.
Gary Anderson: "Looking at the Red Bulls in Turn 1, Vettel seems almost to have a 'double-take' when he
turns in. The rear kicks out, he corrects it and then goes again.
"Ricciardo, who is having a fantastic season, is just smoother in the way he loads it up and takes it through
the corner. That will be very good to the tyres, while Vettel's aggressive turn in will hurt the rears."
As the first stint will be decisive in setting the tone for the race, if the two Mercedes, which should lock out the
front row, do not have a bigger pace advantage than this, there is no guarantee that they will retain track
position during the first pitstops.
But there's a strong chance that the Mercedes pair still have more in reserve. As Ricciardo pointed out, what
we saw today was pretty much the maximum for Red Bull, so there's a good chance that things will be very
different come Sunday.
SAUBER LOOKING BETTER
After failing to score a point so far this year, thanks to the gains that have been made possibly because of
others losing the advantage of FRIC, a system Sauber had but had not perfected, the Swiss squad is looking
like a points threat at Hockenheim.
On long-run pace, while not setting the world alight, the car has the potential to run more closely to the top 10
than has been the norm this season.
On his super-soft run, Adrian Sutil averaged 1.778s per lap off the leading pace based on the same seven lap
run used to calculate the above averages.
While it's nothing extraordinary, it's a step in the right direction.
STRATEGY
With the super-soft tyre not lasting long, Pirelli reckons that this will be a two or three-stop race, with everyone
having just one relatively short stint on the super-soft.
Gary Anderson: "Having the super-soft and the soft will make the decisions on the pitwall very tricky.
"The super-softs are definitely a one-lap special, so you have no safety lap in qualifying, and they won't last
forever in the race.
"That means that not only must drivers nail it in qualifying and not make mistakes, but there is perhaps more
scope for varied strategy in the race, particularly behind those who have to start on the super-soft."
WOLFF'S RUN
Williams test driver Susie Wolff was able to do some serious running during FP1 at Hockenheim after an
engine problem ruined her outing at Silverstone.
She completed 22 laps, with her best lap just two-tenths off the other Williams of Felipe Massa.
Gary Anderson: "I think Wolff did an excellent job this morning. I can't see any reason why Williams would
bother to lighten her fuel load so it's clear she did a good, competent job as well as putting in a laptime that it
took some very experienced drivers a while to work down to.
"Jumping into an F1 car after a few laps at Silverstone, knowing that this is your one chance and that you
can't make a mistake is not easy. As far as I'm concerned, she is a driver who did a good job, regardless of
whether she's male or female."
Tech focus: Adapting to life after FRIC
CRAIG SCARBOROUGH examines the upgrades teams have trialled at the German GP, and explains how
they are changing things without interconnected suspension
The German Grand Prix marks the mid-point of the 2014 season, with updates planned for this weekend
coming on top of the removal of interconnected suspension (FRIC) from all cars that previously ran it.
Without getting into the politics of the situation, the teams were given less than two weeks' notice to prepare
for running without suspension that is hydraulically linked from front to rear.
The timing was fortuitous, coming just before the first day of a two-day test at Silverstone. Some admitted to
running without FRIC immediately there.
It needs to be made clear exactly what has been effectively outlawed because the term FRIC is vague and
used by different teams in different ways.
What has now been unofficially defined as an aerodynamic aid is the interlinking of the front suspension to the
rear. Every team had already run this season with a hydraulic element linking each side of the suspension at
both the front and rear, with each of these then linked front to rear.
With the FIA's technical delegate, Charlie Whiting, expressing his opinion that the front-to-rear link is not legal,
teams are still able to run complex hydraulic set-ups on each axle.
AUTOSPORT+ feature: Tech focus: Adapting to life after FRIC 10
FRIC maintains the ideal ride height of the car's underbody, especially under braking. As the car dives under
braking, it uses the rear axle to support the front, to prevent too much dive.
Typically, teams run the cars as low at the front as possible. This gets the front wing close to the ground and
increases rear ride height for greater airflow expansion under the rear of the car. Both of these things create
more downforce.
If ride height can't be controlled, with this nose-down attitude the front splitter grounds on the track and wears
excessively, leading to potential penalties.
So without the link, teams have had to raise the front ride height, which costs downforce and leads to
understeer, and find other means to support the front springs under braking.
As the cars are still equipped with very complex hydraulic actuators, valves and accumulators from the full
FRIC set-up, they can still use these to control pitch and front ride height. Most teams have simply removed
the front-to-rear link pipes.
Some teams may migrate towards more typical heave spring/dampers on the suspension. But the adjustability
of the complex hydraulic set-ups will no doubt be exploited in other ways to control the cars' attitude under
braking.
McLAREN
As a team working to regain its position at the sharp end of the grid, McLaren's car has been developing
rapidly this year.
With a new front wing and a simplification of the rear suspension blockers, the direction has been positive. But
we were not expecting the radical rear wing development on the car this weekend.
The slot gap between the rear wing main plane and flap, which is normally straight, has been changed to a
wavy serrated gap.
This shaping is formed on both the main plane and flap, such that each curve interlocks with the other to
create the wavy slot gap.
How this aero feature works is not entirely clear. Serrated gurneys on the trailing edge of wings have been
used in Fprmula 1 before, but not in the slot gap.
Its use is probably related to drag reduction, from either keeping the airflow attached under the wing or
breaking up the wing's wake into individual vortices formed on each wave. This might also have a bearing on
how the wing works with DRS open.
Also aiding the performance of the new wing are two series of strakes on each rear wing endplate. These are
quite common up and down the grid. They also produce a series of vortices that lower the pressure behind the
wing to create more downforce.
RED BULL
Again Red Bull made some detail revisions to its front wing. These changes were tried in Silverstone testing,
but the blown front axle also tried was not fitted to either car for Friday practice at Hockenheim.
This weekend the cascade winglets mounted above the main front wing had a subtle revision.
The inner winglet forming the cascade elements uses a two element wing. Usually this wing has a vertical
endplate to seal the upper and lower surfaces. For Germany the winglets two elements each curl up to form
their own separate little endplates.
FERRARI
As usual, Ferrari tried various different wings and brake ducts on the F14 T.
For this weekend, new sidepod vanes seen in testing were on the car. These new parts still wrap around the
front of the sidepods, but feature a different shape to both the vertical and horizontal sections.
The vertical part is longer and a new twist to the shape of the vane passes over the top of the sidepod.
FORCE INDIA
For the third consecutive race, Force India tried significant upgrades. First noses, wings, turning vanes and
rear wing mounts were adjusted, but now its sidepods have been revised.
Seen initially at the Silverstone test, the Force India has had a big rearrangement of the top bodywork and
radiator layout.
Before now, the VJM07 had a large ERS cooler above the gearbox. This was fed by a large duct and opening
above the roll hoop.
Having this duct running over the top of the engine leads to the bodywork being quite bulbous.
Having understood the car's cooling needs over the first half of the season, the team has reproportioned and
repackaged the coolers, including this cooler within the sidepods.
This has allowed the closing of the extra roll hoop inlet and much slimmer bodywork behind it.
In Britain, the bodywork was very slim and formed a pronounced shark fin over the spine of the engine cover.
For Germany with the unusually hot weather, a slightly larger body panel was run, with a larger opening at the
back.
LOTUS
In a curious reversal to the Force India development, Lotus has actually fitted a new cooler to the area over its
gearbox.
Finding that the Renault power unit is very sensitive to charge air cooling, the E22 has had its second cooling
revision this year. At Barcelona, the team fitted a larger water radiator to its turbo's water-intercooler.
To package the sidepods for more cooling area, the ERS cooler has been shifted to over the gearbox.
A triangular, double-pass radiator sits on a carbon fibre mount behind the airbox. This is fed by two inlets
formed to the side of the roll hoop inlet. These inlets lead into ducts flanking the airbox above the engine.
This duct work and cooler requires a bulkier engine cover, with a rounded outlet to vent the heat from the ERS
cooler. Just as Force India has gained aero performance, Lotus has lost some, but the benefit to the power
unit must offset this aero loss.
Lotus also ran with two different front wing endplate updates, one being a tiny infill section added to the
trailing edge of the endplate, the other featuring a curvier vane.
HOCKENHEIM
Hockenheim is a 'middling' track, no longer featuring the flat-out blast through the woods. Now, the track is
average for power, braking and downforce.
In comparison to recent venues, it lacks fast corners and long straights. With no fast corners, it is medium to
high downforce track.
The stop/start nature does make this a power track, but the lack of straights should not hinder those with
lower average top speeds.
This weekend's surprisingly hot weather has led to the super-soft option tyre shifting towards a qualifying tyre,
unsuitable for long stints if the weather remains hot.
But a change in weather, with either cooler or even thundery weather, is predicted for Sunday's race.
Whether hot or wet, the tricky corner is Turn 1, and track limits have been explored by most drivers. The
right-hand flick has been made worse by the slight understeer induced by the banning of FRIC.
AUTOSPORT's German GP driver ratings
EDD STRAW rates the field's performances in a German Grand Prix that featured some stunning moments of
wheel-to-wheel racing, and a few that went awry
1 SEBASTIAN VETTEL
Red Bull-Renault RB10
Start: 6th
Finish: 4th
Strategy: 3 stops (supersoft/soft/supersoft/soft)
Rating: 8
Still just behind his team-mate on pace, but drove a good, combative race to emerge with what was probably
as good a result as a Red Bull was going to get.
Still looks a little hesitant on turn-in and needs to get on top of the car, but at least making progress.
3 DANIEL RICCIARDO
Red Bull-Renault RB10
Start: 5th
Finish: 6th
Rating: 9
AUTOSPORT+ feature: AUTOSPORT's German GP driver ratings 16
Again, was smoother and quicker than Vettel but even more impressive was the way he fought back after
being forced to take evasive action to miss the inverted Massa at the start.
Drove stunningly in wheel-to-wheel combat with Alonso and nearly stole fifth from him at the line.
6 NICO ROSBERG
Mercedes F1 W05
Start: 1st
Finish: 1st
Strategy: 2 stops (supersoft/soft/soft)
Rating: 8
It was a good job he was unopposed by Hamilton during Q3, because pressing the DRS button a fraction too
early on his second run cost him a chance to improve.
Even so, did a solid job to take pole and then didn't put a foot wrong in the race.
44 LEWIS HAMILTON
Mercedes F1 W05
Start: 20th
Finish: 3rd
Strategy: 3 stops (soft/soft/supersoft/supersoft)
Rating: 9
Can't be blamed for what happened in qualifying, and probably would have taken pole but for the brake
failure.
Recovered superbly, but had he avoided that clash with Button, he would surely have finished second.
Excellent, but not flawless.
7 KIMI RAIKKONEN
Ferrari F14 T
Start: 12th
Finish: 11th
Strategy: 3 stops (soft/supersoft/soft/supersoft)
Rating: 7
The result on paper is poor, but actually Raikkonen seemed more at home with the Ferrari at Hockenheim
than he had been previously.
Was racing well before picking up front-wing damage after being caught up in two incidents, which led to him
fading out of the points. Performed better than the numbers suggest.
14 FERNANDO ALONSO
Ferrari F14 T
Start: 7th
Finish: 5th
Strategy: 3 stops (supersoft/soft/soft/supersoft)
Rating: 9
Looked absolutely mighty on the track and even though his team-mate was doing a decent-enough job, still
managed to thrash him in qualifying.
Drove an excellent race, particularly in eventually battling past Ricciardo late on. Fifth was as good as it was
going to get.
8 ROMAIN GROSJEAN
Lotus-Renault E22
Start: 14th
Finish: DNF
Strategy: retired (soft/supersoft/retired)
Rating: 7
At times, looked a little more ragged than his team-mate, but did a much better job in qualifying.
Didn't have the easiest of races even before he was forced to retire with cooling problems, but hard to see
what else he could have done.
13 PASTOR MALDONADO
Lotus-Renault E22
Start: 18th
Finish: 12th
Strategy: 2 stops (supersoft/supersoft/soft)
Rating: 6
Qualifying was poor, but his race drive was very respectable in a car that is currently not good enough to
mount a serious points challenge.
Held his own in battle and avoided mistakes, and his reward was to match his season's best of 12th.
20 KEVIN MAGNUSSEN
McLaren-Mercedes MP4-29
Start: 4th
Finish: 9th
Rating: 8
Looked superb from the start of practice and comfortably outpaced team-mate Button during qualifying.
Nothing he could have done to avoid the first-corner clash with Massa but recovered well to salvage points.
His performance deserved a more spectacular result.
22 JENSON BUTTON
McLaren-Mercedes MP4-29
Start: 11th
Finish: 8th
Rating: 7
Didn't look as comfortable as his team-mate during practice and blamed a lack of balance for just missing out
on Q3.
Still drove a decent race even though he had to back out of an attempted two-stopper late on, bagging some
solid points.
11 SERGIO PEREZ
Force India-Mercedes VJM07
Start: 10th
Finish: 10th
Rating: 7
Had the sky-high track temperatures held, Perez would have excelled, but in cooler conditions he didn't have
a significant tyre advantage, so had to work hard for his point.
Not quite as convincing as Hulkenberg in the race after matching him in qualifying, but overall a solid
weekend.
27 NICO HULKENBERG
Force India-Mercedes VJM07
Start: 9th
Finish: 7th
Rating: 8
A very good weekend's work from Hulkenberg, who was the faster of the two Force India drivers by a tiny
margin in qualifying, but more comfortably in the race.
There's no way he could have beaten the six ahead of him, so got the maximum out of the car.
21 ESTEBAN GUTIERREZ
Sauber-Ferrari C33
Start: 16th
Finish: 14th
Strategy: 3 stops (supersoft/supersoft/soft/soft)
Rating: 5
Didn't look as strong as his team-mate, and his race pace was not as good, but did at least extract a laptime
when he needed to in Q1.
Three-place penalty for Silverstone collision hurt him and left him to dice irrelevantly in the lower midfield.
99 ADRIAN SUTIL
Sauber-Ferrari C33
Start: 15th
Finish: DNF
Strategy: retired (supersoft/soft/soft/soft/retired)
Rating: 5
Looked good in practice and should have made Q2 no problem, but failed to put a lap together after the red
flag in Q1.
His race drive was fine, although he didn't have the pace to mount a serious points challenge, until the engine
cut, causing him to spin exiting the last corner.
25 JEAN-ERIC VERGNE
Toro Rosso-Renault STR9
Start: 13th
Finish: 13th
Rating: 4
Disappointing in qualifying, with his old ways of overdriving rearing their head.
During the race, did himself no favours with several track-limits infringements, leading to a five-second
penalty. Below the high standards he has set this year.
26 DANIIL KVYAT
Toro Rosso-Ferrari STR9
Start: 8th
Finish: DNF
Strategy: retired (supersoft/soft/soft/retired)
Rating: 6
Did a great job to make it through to Q3. But his chance of a result vanished when he made a bold move
around the outside of Perez but failed to leave the Force India sufficient room. The result was a collision and a
spin, which was followed later by a firey retirement.
Superb in qualifying, but a disappointing misjudgement in the race.
19 FELIPE MASSA
Williams-Mercedes FW36
Start: 3rd
Finish: DNF
Strategy: retired (supersoft/retired)
Rating: 6
The Brazilian was unable to find the same kind of performance that his team-mate did in Q3, having looked on
a similar level up to then.
While ideally he would have left Magnussen some room at Turn 1, he was unsighted to the presence of the
McLaren that turned his world upside down.
77 VALTTERI BOTTAS
Williams-Renault FW36
Start: 2nd
Finish: 2nd
Rating: 9
Bottas was spectacularly unflustered on his way to second in the race. Yes, he had the top speed, but
deserves credit for not putting a foot wrong while Hamilton attacked late on.
Maybe could have been fractionally quicker in qualifying after several late oversteer moments, but not by
enough to take pole.
4 MAX CHILTON
Marussia-Ferrari MR-03
Start: 21st
Finish: 17th
Rating: 5
Never showed the kind of pace Bianchi was able to extract from the Marussia and couldn't repass Kobayashi
after losing a position at his first pitstop.
Losing his qualifying simulation on Saturday morning is a mitigating factor, but still a disappointing weekend.
17 JULES BIANCHI
Marussia-Ferrari MR-03
Start: 17th
Finish: 15th
Strategy: 2 stops (supersoft/soft/supersoft)
Rating: 8
A strong weekend for Bianchi, who qualified well and managed to recover from a car-related problem that held
him back off the line to pass Kobayashi, Chilton and Ericsson within just four laps.
Given the pace of the cars up the road, there was no way he could have done any better.
9 MARCUS ERICSSON
Caterham-Renault CT05
Start: 22nd (pits)
Finish: 18th
Rating: 6
Two of Ericsson's practice sessions were interrupted by car problems, which also kept him out of qualifying.
On top of that, he had to serve an early stop/go penalty for Caterham breaking parc ferme regulations.
In those circumstances, a distant last is probably a par score.
10 KAMUI KOBAYASHI
Caterham-Renault CT05
Start: 19th
Finish: 16th
Rating: 7
When you are in a Caterham, finishing ahead of anyone not in a green car is, by definition, a job well done.
Kobayashi managed to split the Marussias in both qualifying and the race, deserving particular credit for
repulsing Chilton's attempt to undercut him at the final round of stops.
How Hamilton missed the perfect comeback
The Mercedes driver lit up the German GP with his charge from 20th to third. EDD STRAW explains how he
pulled off the recovery, and why Hamilton had reason to be kicking himself as he celebrated third place
Lewis Hamilton wasn't sure how to respond when asked whether he saw the metaphorical glass of his
German Grand Prix charge from 20th on the grid to third as half-full or half-empty.
"Well, I don't really know how to answer that," he admitted. "I came from last, so to get on the podium is quite
an achievement, so perhaps half-full."
Making up 17 places, even in the best car, is no mean feat, so perhaps the Mercedes driver was right to look
on the positive side. But while there was nothing he could have done to prevent his right-front brake disc
failing early in qualifying, pitching him into the Sachskurve tyre barrier, Hamilton knew that he really should
have finished second.
If he loses the world championship to Nico Rosberg by three points or fewer, he will rue the clash with Jenson
Button that almost certainly prevented a Mercedes one-two.
Hamilton knew just how close he had come to performing the perfect damage-limitation job.
THE EARLY CHARGE
Hamilton was one of only three drivers, along with Kimi Raikkonen and Romain Grosjean, who opted to start
on the soft-compound Pirellis rather than the super-softs. This meant he would run longer than most in the
first stint, making the first 20 laps of the race critical to his hopes of challenging for the podium.
AUTOSPORT+ feature: How Hamilton missed the perfect comeback 25
A combination of an unremarkable start and the almost immediate deployment of the safety car, thanks to
Felipe Massa's Williams - which had started third - rolling at the first corner after clashing with Kevin
Magnussen's McLaren, meant Hamilton gained little at the start and was running 17th when the race was
restarted.
Although he had jumped Jules Bianchi immediately, due to the Frenchman's Marussia barely moving when
the red lights went out, and got ahead of Kamui Kobayashi's Caterham too, he also lost a place to Max
Chilton. Picking up places from Massa and Magnussen was a given, so in those early seconds of the race
Hamilton really only made up one place on track. This made the early laps of the restart doubly important.
When the race got back under way on lap three, he immediately passed Chilton into Turn 2 for 16th. A lap
later, Pastor Maldonado was effortlessly dispatched at the same corner for 15th. Next time around, he dived
past Grosjean at Turn 1 and easily cleared Esteban Gutierrez when the Sauber driver locked up on the
outside line at the hairpin.
Now in 13th, Hamilton was behind the first of the serious runners, the delayed Daniel Ricciardo, who had
dropped down the order avoiding the first-corner shunt. Fortunately for Hamilton, Ricciardo was not hanging
around and soon passed Adrian Sutil's Sauber, with Hamilton having his first dicey moment of the race when
he ambushed the German at the hairpin. Contact was made, but Sutil noticed his old Formula 3 team-mate
just in time to take some evasive action, meaning the impact was harmless. Twelfth.
The two Toro Rossos were next, with Daniil Kvyat helpfully removing himself from the equation by attempting
to go around the outside of Sergio Perez's Force India at the Turn 8 left-hander and turning in on the Mexican,
who had no way to avoid tipping him into a spin. Jean-Eric Vergne was dealt with on the next lap. Hamilton
was into the points in 10th.
CLIMBING THE TOP 10
By now, Hamilton was in among what might be considered the more serious competition. Ricciardo, who had
been picking up places ahead of him, was now becoming a problem.
Hamilton appeared to have got the Red Bull at the hairpin on lap 10 but, with Raikkonen in the way on the
inside line defending against the Australian, Hamilton had to back out of it. A few corners later, at Turn 8,
Ricciardo completed a superb move on Raikkonen, with the Finn managing to keep Hamilton behind after
hanging on around the outside of the Mercedes at the fast right-hander leading into the stadium section.
Hamilton couldn't afford to waste too much time behind the pair. He saw his chance on lap 13, when
Raikkonen attacked Ricciardo into the hairpin. Hamilton went to the inside of both, with Raikkonen squeezed
in the middle, and a small lock-up from Hamilton meant that he clipped the edge of the Ferrari's front wing as
he went through.
The Mercedes suffered no damage, unlike Raikkonen, and Hamilton's high-risk strategy had paid off. With
fourth-placed Fernando Alonso pitting at the end of that lap, Hamilton was now up to seventh.
Button pitted at the end of the 13th lap and an easy move up the inside of Perez at the hairpin put Hamilton
fifth. This became third when Sebastian Vettel and Nico Hulkenberg stopped from third and fourth respectively
at the end of the lap, and second at the end of lap 15 when Valtteri Bottas pitted.
Hamilton's progress had been rapid, but not rapid enough to be able to take the lead when team-mate
Rosberg, who had been controlling the race after dropping Bottas at the restart, pitted at the end of lap 15.
During that phase, the closest Hamilton got to Rosberg was seven and a half seconds down. Because of the
need to extend his first stint, ideally in the hope of being able to complete the race on only two stops, the gap
had increased almost threefold by the time Hamilton came in at the end of lap 26, shortly after he allowed
Bottas, on fresher rubber, to pass him at the hairpin unopposed.
After all, as Hamilton had been told over the radio, "you are forecast P2, even if Bottas overtakes". The hard
work was done.
A COSTLY MISJUDGEMENT
Hamilton, out of synch with the rest of the leading contenders, re-emerged eighth and was keen not to lose
time behind slower cars. On lap 29 he attacked Ricciardo into the hairpin, but couldn't make the move stick
until the Turn 8 left-hander. That put him seventh and closing on Button.
After gaining on the McLaren in the DRS zone, Hamilton made his move to the inside at the hairpin, mistaking
Button's wide entry as an invitation to go through.
Button turned in, Hamilton couldn't hold as tight a line as he needed to, and his front-left wheel - and crucially
the endplate of his front wing - clipped the sidepod of the McLaren.
"I honestly thought he was opening the door to let me past," said Hamilton. "He's been a bit like that before, in
the past race, for example, so my bad judgement there."
Button was puzzled by Hamilton's assumption of cooperation.
"Why would we let anyone through?" asked Button when asked about the incident after the race. "I think the
problem with Lewis is he expected me to let him past. I don't think I'm the only person he drove into today. It's
strange, when the car is so much quicker, you'd think he wouldn't get into so many fights, but there you go."
Button did later tone down his comments having seen the footage of the incident, saying via Twitter: "I
overreacted with my feelings about Lewis's move. I can understand why he thought I was giving him room".
While Hamilton escaped his brushes with Sutil and Raikkonen, he paid the price for this one. It was hardly a
terrible misjudgement, but it was a costly one. Not only did the damage cost him downforce and therefore a
few tenths per lap, but it upset the balance of the car and put more stress on the front tyres, particularly the
troublesome front-left.
During practice, sky-high track temperatures meant that the rears were the concern, but cooler conditions on
race day put more strain on the fronts. So from this moment, the two-stop plan was in jeopardy. As Hamilton
himself put it, the car certainly felt "different" after the clash.
Consideration was given to changing his front wing at the next pitstop, but the team calculated this would cost
more time than it gained.
"We had precise data on what the nose was looking like and how it was performing," explained Mercedes
motorsport boss Toto Wolff. "We were very much aware that there wasn't any structural damage on the front
wing, just the front-wing endplate and some of the fins. The front wing was not deteriorating any further and
we decided to keep it on."
PROGRESS SLOWED
Hamilton was still quick enough to make progress and consolidate his podium position. He passed Button
cleanly - with a wave of the hand, in the DRS zone on the run to the hairpin, a lap after their clash. And he
dispatched Hulkenberg for fifth a lap later.
Stops for Alonso, then Vettel and finally Bottas put Hamilton up to second on lap 41. But the front-left tyre was
not doing well and, after he complained about its condition over the radio, the team had to make the decision
to abandon the two-stopper and bring him in early.
While the first stint on softs had been 26 laps, Hamilton managed just 16 on his second. The only thing
Mercedes could do was split the remaining 25 laps into two attacking stints on super-softs.
Bottas was always going to be the problem. Like runaway leader Rosberg (remember him?), the Williams
driver was one of the few to be on a successful two-stopper. Earlier in the race, Hamilton was on target for
second but, while he was still expected to catch Bottas, the situation was not so clear-cut.
SAFETY CAR SURPRISE
Hamilton rejoined fifth, taking fourth when Vettel made his final stop on lap 45 and then using the DRS to
breeze past Alonso on the run to Turn 6 to take third on lap 49.
But with Sutil spinning at the last corner as a result of the engine cutting, leaving the Sauber abandoned in the
middle of the track at the exit, Mercedes had no choice but to cut short the first of Hamilton's final two stints
and call him in.
The penalty in terms of track position had he pitted after the inevitable safety car would be too much to take.
But, to the surprise of almost everyone, there was no safety car, with marshals eventually sent running across
the track to retrieve the car.
This strange decision from race control meant that Hamilton had to be a little cautious in the final 17-lap stint.
He re-emerged in fourth, and regained third from Alonso on lap 55, just before the Ferrari pitted. But the real
battle was with Bottas, who had been 16 and a half seconds up the road after Hamilton made his final stop.
Williams had held firm in its decision to stick with a two-stopper, with Bottas reporting earlier in the stint that
he suspected the tyres would hold up. But he had to take it easy.
At times, Hamilton was over two seconds faster than Bottas, and the gap was eliminated by the end of lap 60.
But in the remaining seven laps Hamilton could not pass.
Not only had the switch to a three-stopper and the early final stop to cover the safety car that never appeared
cost Hamilton but, as Williams engineering chief Rob Smedley explained, it was now making it easier for
Bottas to stay ahead. On the pitwall, the strategy for using the available hybrid engine power was spot on from
Williams, and Bottas drove immaculately to prevent Hamilton from attacking.
While the Mercedes-powered Williams was seriously fast on the straight, that doesn't mean that what Bottas
did was easy. But Hamilton's wing damage also made it more straightforward for Williams to hold its nerve
and not switch to a three-stopper.
"Absolutely no doubt," said Smedley of how Hamilton's front-wing damage helped Bottas stay ahead.
"Part of catching and passing a car is you need a really good front end to follow it through a corner. This is a
nightmare if you don't have that, you just won't be able to get close enough to pass them. We took that into
account, had that intelligence, and it worked."
In the end, Hamilton missed out on the perfect comeback drive by just under two seconds. It could have been
much worse, but it might also have been slightly better.
And with Rosberg extending his world championship lead by 10 points with an effortless win, that explains
why, for all his virtuosity in the race, a driver who had just made up 17 places during a grand prix looked far
from ecstatic on the podium.
Gary Anderson: F1's dangerous rules precedent
AUTOSPORT's technical expert GARY ANDERSON warns that Formula 1 risks making a rod for its own back
by allowing Mercedes to change brake disc supplier under parc ferme conditions
Formula 1 is producing a season of great racing, so I don't want to appear to be having a moan. But there are
several things arising from the German Grand Prix that the powers that be must take a long, hard look at.
Brakes were a big talking point at Hockenheim, with Lewis Hamilton's crash early in qualifying and
subsequent question marks over the changing of brake material.
It's becoming a very serious issue: this season, we have witnessed more brake failures of one sort or another
than we have for many years. As someone who was responsible for the safety of my F1 cars on track for
many years, let me assure you that any failure relating to the brakes is one of the most serious a driver can
encounter.
We have been very, very lucky that the consequences of such failures have not been a lot more serious.
Before somebody gets hurt the FIA must undertake a detailed analysis of the failures. If teams are pushing
the limits too far, then on safety grounds the governing body can and must step in. A regulation can easily be
written to minimise this risk.
AUTOSPORT+ feature: Gary Anderson: F1's dangerous rules precedent 31
And the rules also include a clause which states that "the stewards of the meeting may exclude a vehicle
whose construction is deemed to be dangerous".
But if it's a manufacturing problem then the use of certain materials might need to be banned until it can be
proved that they are fit for purpose.
Put yourself in the position of the driver. Can you imagine what it's like to be travelling at 320km/h and
discovering 100 metres before a 60km/h corner that you have no brakes?
I know there is plenty of run-off area, but what about the car that might be just in front of you that has fully
working brakes and is slowing very quickly...
There is also the question of Mercedes being allowed to change Hamilton's front brake material from Brembo
to Carbone Industrie discs under parc ferme conditions. This has set a very serious precedent.
The reason for the choice of material is that the initial feel was better. During qualifying, when what matters
most are one-lap runs, this makes a big difference. So from now on, can all teams use a material with a better
feel for qualifying and then change to a more durable material for the race?
The rules refer only to teams being allowed to replace a part with one that is "similar in mass, inertia and
function to the original", and the way this rule has been interpreted seems to open the door to this kind of
thing happening.
Parc ferme regulations were put in place to eliminate changes in car specification after qualifying. This
reduces the budget by eliminating the use of qualifying components of any sort. That has now all gone out of
the window.
The feel of the brakes is vital for a driver. To get confidence in a racing car, it all starts when he or she hits the
brake pedal.
Some drivers want immediate bite and stopping power and this can very easily lead to initial front locking.
Others want a more controllable increase in stopping power, allowing them to manage the braking into the
apex.
Of the many drivers I have worked with, the biggest difference was between Ralf Schumacher and Giancarlo
Fisichella at Jordan in 1997.
Ralf just wanted to monster the brake pedal, stop the car and then get off the brakes. Fisi was the opposite.
He wanted to feel the car during braking and use it to load the car up on the corner entry.
Given how important brake feel is, the FIA has opened up a can of worms in an area that, for all of F1's
problems and politics, has been working very nicely for some years.
TRACK LIMITS RULES REACH THE LIMIT
The randomness with which track limits are policed is confusing. And from a fan's point of view, I believe all
they want, and deserve, is consistency.
I watched the German GP coverage on television and the amount of discussion among commentators over
this issue rapidly became very boring. And, as usual, everyone had their own opinion.
F1 is difficult enough to understand at the best of times. Being consistent is the simplest approach, and ideally
you also need consistency of stewards.
It's a lot easier to make decisions if you're making them all the time. If you have to rise to the occasion a few
weekends a year, then wrong decisions can and will be made and consistency will suffer.
The strange thing is that it's very easy to penalise those who exceed track limits. If it happens on a qualifying
lap, then one second can be added for every off-track excursion - you will still get a laptime, but suffer for the
excursion.
If a driver runs outside the track limits in the race, when he next crosses the start/finish line he needs to be no
closer to the car in front than he was on the lap before running wide.
During the battle between Sebastian Vettel and Fernando Alonso at the British GP two weeks ago, one of the
drivers was often using the extra little bits of asphalt on corner exit.
The teams and the FIA are in constant communication during the race weekend, so it's very easy to
implement rules to tackle this.
In fact, it should be down to the drivers and the teams to do it themselves, with the FIA acting only as referee
to ensure fairness throughout the field.
If not, we will have the same situation with inconsistent application of the rules from track to track, which will
only serve to confuse and alienate the fans.
Has Germany fallen out of love with F1?
Empty seats in the once-heaving Hockenheim grandstands set alarm bells ringing in F1 last weekend.
DIETER RENCKEN investigates the causes
Sunday's German Grand Prix was arguably the 2014 season's most thrilling round so far - certainly the most
action-packed, with superb slo-mo replays bringing out the best of Formula 1 2014-style. Hockenheim's race
featured overtaking up and down the order, with cars regularly battling into (and out of) corners three-abreast.
Lewis Hamilton fought his way to the podium from the back row for Mercedes, en route taking no prisoners,
while Turn 1 spectators were treated to a spectacular but ultimately harmless barrel roll after
Mercedes-powered pair Felipe Massa and Kevin Magnussen collided as the field funnelled into the first
corner.
To crown it all, a German (Nico Rosberg), starting from pole position in a Mercedes, won the race to
consolidate his grip on the title, while serial reigning champion Sebastian Vettel placed a fine fourth to finish
as best non-Merc runner. All this within seven days of Germany's stunning success on FIFA's pitch.
Yet German Formula 1 fans voted with their feet, with turn-out on all three days being the circuit's worst ever
for an F1 event. Indeed, Friday, when an estimated 6000 made their way through the stiles, was reminiscent
of Istanbul's worst, while Saturday, although markedly better (by a factor of 300 per cent), failed (by far) to do
Rosberg's pole justice.
AUTOSPORT+ feature: Has Germany fallen out of love with F1? 35
Indeed, so conspicuous were spectators by their absence that during Friday's FIA press conference this writer
posed the obvious question to Christian 'Toto' Wolff, Mercedes motorsport director. Here is his verbatim reply:
"Let's start with a positive question. It's not satisfying. If you compare Hockenheim Friday to Friday at
Silverstone and Friday in Austria, it's a different world and we have to understand why that is. I'm not sure
whether we have an exact number for Sunday already - you know, there are lots of people probably deciding
at short notice, depending on the weekend and we have to analyse the phenomenon. If the weekend
continues like it does now, we need to think about it."
Apart from the fact that questions are, by their nature, neutral their responses are either positive or negative
Mercedes, with its enormous Three Pointed Star-topped grandstand at the circuit, used on Saturday for an
extremely swish Night of the Stars extravaganza is clearly rattled. So the company should be, given its
enormous financial and resource commitment to F1.
The weekend? Just 50,000 punters (maximum) experienced the race live. Worryingly, last year the
Nrburgring Germany's two circuits alternate, with Hockenheim hosting even years, in probably the most
myopic deal struck with F1 tsar Bernie Ecclestone, ever fared little better, attracting a similar crowd in the
wake of the Eifel circuit's liquidation. Thus the problem is national, not unique to Hockenheim.
Overall attendance was by some distance the most disappointing of this year thus far, with only Malaysia
(always lethargic, but compounded this year by the MH370 tragedy) and Bahrain (population/capacity
constraints) faring worse. Even Spain, in the midst of a depression with a 35 per cent youth-unemployment
factor, fared better despite national hero Fernando Alonso driving a recalcitrant Ferrari.
More worryingly, Hockenheim followed bumper paydays in Montreal, at the Red Bull Ring and Silverstone, all
of which played to capacity crowds despite much negativity about 'taxi cab driving' and lack of noise,
peddled by such as Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo and Ecclestone himself.
As of Wednesday, Hockenheim, located an 80-kilometre helicopter flight from the Mercedes-Benz HQ in
Stuttgart, had managed to find just 45,000 takers for tickets. Georg Seiler, long-standing CEO of the
Hockenheimring owned by the eponymous hamlet situated in southern Germany near Heidelberg, told this
writer on the grid that official ticket sales had numbered 52,000.
Simultaneous estimates by three seasoned journalists 10 minutes before the start put the figure at 60 per cent
of capacity. Given that local-born Seiler, employed by the circuit since the late 70s, is adamant Hockenheim's
maximum capacity without temporary stands is 70,000, 60 per cent pans out at 42,000.
In fact, in an exclusive interview he stated that not even in its long-circuit configuration had Hockenheim
accommodated over 70,000 spectators. Strange then, that during the halcyon Michael Schumacher years the
circuit claimed attendances of over 110,000 despite the country then hosting two grands prix annually.
Certainly, traffic issues and overcrowded campesites backed the veracity of those claims.
However, if Seiler is correct promoters are notoriously optimistic where gates are concerned then, to use
a hackneyed phrase, around 10,000 punters arrived dressed as empty seats, or, worse, purchased one-day
tickets at horrific cost within the last week, then failed to pitch despite free-flowing traffic and cool skies...
Internally, blame is placed on two factors: an amateurish (in the extreme) PR campaign, which, for example,
offered an 11 (8) discount per goal scored by Germany. The national team's 7-0 rout of Brazil set
telephones ringing, at a loss of 77 (56) per ticket sold. Still, given top-end tickets ran in at almost 600
(450), the discount was scant consolation.
However, consider the plight of a family of four, faced with the dilemma of summer school holidays: Does Mr
Father take said brood to a grand prix at a basic cost of 2400 plus travel plus accommodation (two nights
minimum at steep prices) plus programme plus memorabilia, or flit to Spain (or Florida's Disneyland) for a
week (or two), then watch the race on TV?
The answer is a no-brainer, and Germans are nothing if not brainy, with the added advantage of knowing the
value of every single Euro for which they sweat more than any other nation in Europe. Yes, they have
disposable income, but it is hard-earned, and therefore cherished.
Is it coincidental that Germany's two venues charge amongst the highest prices? Hardly: the Nurburgring's
round was last year promoted in partnership with Formula One Management after the circuit plunged into
liquidation and there was no viable alternative. As long-standing F1 fans know, where and when FOM is
involved prices go nuclear.
Hockenheim? According to sources, a revenue-share deal was agreed with Hockenheim's city fathers three
years back after stalemate over hosting fees was reached during the last round of extension negotiations
committing both parties to 2018 on an even-year basis. Thus FOM is on a slice of Hockenheim's action, and
hence abject nervousness in the smoke-grey motorhome parked at the far right end of the paddock at the
sight of empty seats...
To compound matters, F1's teams are rewarded according to contractual formulae which use as a base a
percentage of F1's EBITA earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation and as such
every ticket (not) sold in Germany affects their respective bottom lines. Thus equally furrowed brows the
length of the left side of the paddock, where team hospitality units were lined up.
However, were falling attendances in Germany the nation whose good burghers invented the car and every
form of internal combustion engine (Otto 4-stroke, Diesel and Wankel) embraced by mainstream motor
makers the only pointer to Deutschland's loss of interest in F1, matters would not be critical, for ticket pricing
can be remedied.
True, the PR campaign was rated by many including team bosses as downright amateurish, with hardly a
message being communicated in English or the languages of surrounding countries. If, after all, locals stay
away, why not attract foreigners by whatever means? However, before being too harsh on said PR operation,
consider that FOM's hosting fees left scant budget for promotion...
Then, Germany's strict compliance code decrees that corporates may no longer entertain as lavishly as they
once did. However, this effect was greater at the top end (Paddock Club), although obviously a trickle-down
effect exists.
Then, the World Cup, held in the run-up to the race, stole column inches as sports editors chased breaking
news about the national team. Silverstone did not, of course, suffer such issues. Still, to wait until the final
week before mounting a major news campaign points to bigger problems.
Austria's immaculately staged (and promoted) grand prix just four weeks before Hockenheim's race, too, had
an effect. The Red Bull-owned circuit's catchment area includes southern Germany, and thus many German
fans, attracted by lower ticket prices, a novel, more scenic circuit and simple variety, voted with their cars and
headed south in June. Certainly, Germans galore were in evidence in Spielberg.
Then there is the utterly unfathomable rotation agreement: the ideal time to sell tickets to punters is when the
feel-good factor is hottest, i.e. the day after the race. Circuits traditionally open sales for the following year
immediately after the current event. Hockenheim does not, though, have that luxury save if it wishes to aid
the Nurburgring, with which it is at war.
However, which fan on Monday morning considered booking for Hockenheim's 2016 race when not even next
year's Eifel fixture is secure? Indeed, Monday Musings in Hockenheim centred on Mayor Dieter Gummer
pulling the plug once and for all...
All this is a far cry from a dozen years ago, when Germany hosted two sell-out grands prix, plus had fans flock
across to Austria, Hungary and further afield as they sought F1 fixes. Every circuit banked on the arrival of the
Red Army Faction Michael Schumacher's fan club which block-booked whole grandstands. When did one
last see such mass hysteria; when did hotels last have German menus during race weekends?
Germany's dwindling TV ratings point to a greater problem: on a year-to-date basis, free-to-air broadcaster
RTL has recorded a 20 per cent loss the same deficit as experienced by Hockenheim. Indeed, so
concerned are RTL's directors that they sent a delegation to Canada after numbers dropped 40 per cent for
Monaco, once the broadcaster's biggest draw card.
When both live attendance and (free) TV are similarly hit it is clear Germany has fallen out of love with F1.
This in turn begs the question whether Germany was ever really in love, or simply adored Michael
Schumacher, for prior to his arrival the country had but two grand prix winners: Wolfgang von Trips (two wins)
and Jochen Mass (awarded victory in a shortened race), the last-named incidentally a non-arrival as a
steward this weekend past.
Saliently Mercedes switched to F1 after Schumacher made his debut, while BMW went cold when it realised
Ralf was the best it could attract. The VW Group? As far from entering F1 as ever despite gazillions spent on
the World Rally Championship and World Endurance Championship (the latter with Audi and Porsche).
A former German karate campaigner with two world cups and two world championships to her name this
weekend made the observation that her country has a peculiar sports psyche, embracing its first superstar in
any genre then that's it.
Whether it be boxing (Max Schmelling), men's tennis (Boris Becker), women's tennis (Steffi Graf), cycling (Jan
Ulrich), golf (Bernard Langer) or F1 (Schumacher), Germans threw themselves into the sports fervently,
idolising their stars.
Variously boxing gymnasiums, tennis clubs, cycling associations, golf courses and go-kart tracks sprang up
across the country, with fathers showering kids with gloves, racquets, bicycles, golf clubs and karts as the
case may be. Then? Interest lost; on to the next sport and superstar.
Football remains an exception: it is the national sport, with the national team bringing unifying pride to this
once-fragmented country.
Germany worships trailblazers in whatever endeavour, with their successors being also-rans unworthy of
idolisation. Hence a Martin Kaymer will never achieve the status afforded Langer regardless of results; who
recalls Michael Stich won Wimbledon just six years after Becker? Ulrich's 1997 Tour de France victory
precipitated a cycling boom in Germany, but who recalls the three German cyclists to have won stages this
year?
Sebastian Vettel and Nico Rosberg are similarly overshadowed by Schumacher's status as the first German
world champion despite SebVet statistically outranking his illustrious predecessor in a number of categories.
Clearly F1, and more particularly Mercedes-Benz, should be worried about Hockenheim's empty stands but
of greater concern are the sport's dropping TV audiences (down 30 per cent over five years).
CVC Capital Partners, de facto owner of the sport's commercial rights, last week secured a billion-dollar loan
to pay dividends to itself and its fund partners. Observers believe this to be the fund's big payday ahead of an
exit within 12 months.
Oh that just a fraction of that billion-dollar windfall is spent on a far-reaching global market-research
programme to establish just where the sport has gone wrong under its ownership.
Why Formula 1 does matter
With significant world events invading grand prix racing's usually impenetrable cocoon over the past week,
EDD STRAW argues that the sport is not meaningless
When news of the downing of Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 started to permeate the German Grand Prix
paddock last Thursday, the consensus was it put into perspective the irrelevance of Formula 1.
Compared to the loss of lives and the grieving families, how could Lewis Hamilton's brake failure, Nico
Rosberg's victory or the Hockenheim grandstands being emptier than they once were possibly be of the
slightest consequence?
But against a backdrop of a passenger plane being shot down, not to mention escalating violence in Gaza and
the countless places around the world where hideous atrocities occur on a daily basis but attract little
coverage, F1 does matter.
That probably sounds like an outrageous piece of self-justification. After all, if F1 is a facile and meaningless
undertaking, what does it make those working in the media covering it?
Equally pointless, especially with 'proper' news organisations staffed by individuals risking life and limb
reporting the things really affecting people, often in the most horrific ways.
AUTOSPORT+ feature: Why Formula 1 does matter 41
There are times when, as a journalist, you feel you should be covering matters of import in world affairs. That
this would be a career that could really make a difference.
After all, some of the most inspiring journalism produced around the world comes in such circumstances. By
comparison, an F1 race report, an interview with one of the great and good of the paddock, or even a column
about why the whole enterprise matters, seems more like playschool than real work.
But the self-destructive futility of humanity's murderous tendencies, petty border disputes rooted in nationalist
agendas that would ideally have died out in the last century and warmongering affecting, and in many cases
taking, the lives of millions represents the worst of humanity.
For all the corruption, greed and self-interest that infests F1, at its heart is an endeavour encapsulating the
best of humanity.
It is about the pursuit of excellence.
And no matter in what area, be it sports or science, the arts or architecture or anything else you might
mention, excellence is always worthwhile. It is the antithesis of the destructive horrors that infest parts of the
world. It is about creation, not destruction.
The design and build of racing cars in itself does not benefit humanity. But it does enrich it. Nobody should
ever receive a Nobel prize for their involvement in the sport. But F1 cars are spectacular feats of engineering,
the product of the most pure of human intentions, namely to raise the technological bar ever higher.
An F1 car doesn't directly help anybody, save perhaps for the economic impact of the existence of the team
that made it, but to argue that misses the point.
Human endeavour cannot only be measured simply in terms of utility and the sport does add to the depth of
collective knowledge and experience of our species, even if it's only in a modest way. But in harness with the
millions of other such undertakings, it is testament to what we can achieve.
Science and technology has always had this role. One of humanity's greatest feats is becoming a nascent
spacefaring specifies, the crowning glory coming when Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin set foot on the Moon
in July 1969.
Less famous is one of the missions that followed six years later after the cancellation of Moon shots. The
world was still gripped by the Cold War, yet the USA and Russia collaborated to dock an Apollo Module with a
Soyuz capsule in the orbit of Earth.
The motivation for this project was largely political, but it still required tremendous efforts both to make the two
crafts compatible and to rendezvous in the first place. And the two sides, culturally conditioned to hate,
collaborated to brilliant and inspiring effect.
Even against a background of detente, the totemic value of scientists from both sides literally and
metaphorically rising above the polarisation of humanity below it was a powerful one. Did it directly benefit
anyone? No. But it really mattered.
This is a grandiose comparison for F1, but it illustrates the point. We can achieve great things, even if only for
the sake of doing them. Returning to space exploration, while the Moon missions were also politically
motivated, there is an inherent truth in President Kennedy's famous speech setting the objective.
During that speech, he said: "We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not
because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organise and measure the
best of our energies and skills."
F1 is not easy, it is hard and to succeed requires just the kind of collaboration Kennedy talked about.
After all, would we be better off if Adrian Newey were working on missile guidance systems? Or James Allison
on designing fighter jets? Surely not. They are better deployed in creative endeavours.
And it's not just about those on those who design, produce and operate the cars within the teams. One of the
greatest privileges of covering F1 is to see the absolute best in the world ply their trade week-in, week-out.
They too are pursuing excellence and to watch the greatest drivers at their best is to see people raising the
bar simply for the sake of doing so.
The details, who wins on a given day, might be inconsequential. But endeavours like F1 are exactly why we
can be optimistic about our existence.
Global horrors make it difficult even to look ourselves in the eye.
But grand prix racing is one of the myriad human undertakings that allows us to look in the mirror and realise
that, for all of the awfulness around us, we are not all bad.
It is proof we can create as well as destroy.
The greatest Spa 24 Hours?
As the Spa 24 Hours celebrates its 90th anniversary this weekend, GARY WATKINS retells the story of the
incredible 1992 finish with the help of protagonists Steve Soper and Eric van de Poele
Steve Soper wasn't best pleased. He was shaved, showered and ready to fly home to see his new-born
daughter. But Bigazzi team owner Gabriele Rafanelli could smell victory and had other ideas.
Rafanelli reckoned Soper and team-mates Jean-Michel Martin and Christian Danner could still win the 1992
Spa 24 Hours touring car classic. That was why he wanted his star driver back behind the wheel of the
second-placed BMW M3. The boss got his way and set up a thrilling dash to the flag that resulted in what
remains the closest finish in the 90-year history of the Belgian enduro.
Soper, who by his own admission was no fan of 24-hour races, wasn't sure that putting his dirty overalls back
on was going to be worth the effort. The leading Schnitzer BMW driven by Eric van de Poele, who was
teamed with Joachim Winkelhock and Altfrid Heger, had been in front since Saturday evening in what was
always going to be a race fought out by the five factory M3s split across three teams. Now the leader was the
better part of a lap up the road and, in Soper's eyes, out of reach.
"I told Gabs that I was back off to London, and he told me that I wasn't going anywhere," recalls Soper, who'd
already made a mad dash back and forth to London on Friday night to be present at the birth of his first
daughter.
"Gabs reckoned we could still win the race, but that was normal for him. We were going to win every race we
entered, even if there was a rod hanging out of the engine."
AUTOSPORT+ feature: The greatest Spa 24 Hours? 45
Spa stalwart Martin had taken over from Soper and Danner was due to complete the final stint, but Rafanelli
knew that Soper was the right man to try to chase down the rival Schnitzer car.
"I wanted someone angry enough to drive like crazy and get the car to the front to win the 24 Hours," explains
Rafanelli. "Steve was that man. I told him he was getting back in the f***ing car."
The Schnitzer car had been the better part of two laps ahead after Soper had touched a backmarker and had
to make a quick stop for repairs at 10am on Sunday morning, but the need for a new driveshaft with just over
two hours to go robbed van de Poele and his team-mates of one of those laps.
That explains why Rafanelli had the scent of victory. The Schnitzer car had come into the pits for what turned
out to be a four-and-half-minute stop just before the 22-hour mark. The time remaining on the clock when van
de Poele returned to the track was ever so slightly longer than a Group A Bimmer would normally go on a tank
of fuel. The Bigazzi team was confident that the leader was going to have to stop again.
What Soper calls "a heated discussion" with his team boss almost certainly played a part in the dramatic finish
to the race after he was reluctantly strapped back into the car in the penultimate hour.
"When I did get in, I was probably more hyped up and aggressive than I would normally have been at the end
of a 24-hour race," explains the British tin-top legend. "I drove like crazy. At the start of my stint I was probably
taking two or three seconds a lap out of the leader, then all of a sudden, I was taking five or six out of him."
Van de Poele was under strict instructions from the beginning to conserve fuel to try to make it to the end, but
Schnitzer didn't make the decision to forgo another pitstop until the race had just over half an hour to run.
Heger had been suited and booted in the pitlane and a new set of Yokohama tyres wrapped in their heated
blankets.
"I'd done a bit of Group C and had learnt a few fuel-saving tricks," recalls van de Poele. "I was really confident
that we could do it, but Charly [Lamm, Schnitzer's team boss] got a little bit anxious and decided not to take
any risks on the fuel. There was no telemetry in those days, remember."
The lead was still up near the minute mark with 15 minutes to go, but then Schnitzer started showing the
'SLOW' board to van de Poele and waving bits of paper with 7500 scrawled on them. The message was clear:
he had to cut his revs if he was to make the finish without a splash.
Soper reckons van de Poele was thrown off his rhythm by the instructions being sent to him: "It messed his
pace up and all of a sudden I was catching by seven, eight or even 10 seconds a lap, but I was trying to
calculate how many laps we had left and was conscious that we were running out of time."
Van de Poele couldn't believe how tardily he was being told to drive: "That BMW engine had all the power at
the top end, so I was so bloody slow. I thought BMW would kill me if I ran out of fuel, so what could I do?"
Van de Poele's biggest problem in trying to control the gap to his pursuer was a lack of information. The team
had lost radio communication with the car during the night and, as he points out, "the information I was getting
from the pitboard was one lap late".
The messages Soper was receiving weren't exactly spot on either. He was given the last-lap board early and
arrived at the old Bus Stop chicane for what he erroneously thought was the final time right on van de Poele's
tail. The Belgian defended, and Soper tapped him across the grass. The Bigazzi car was still ahead, but
Soper had the momentum and took the lead before La Source.
The race wasn't over, however. Van de Poele now received the belated message 'ATTACK' as he passed his
pit and came back at Soper around the final lap of the circuit.
Contemporary reports suggest that van de Poele was ailing in the car, the result of ultra-hot conditions and
the team overlooking to fit his drinks bottle at the last, frantic stop. The stories were fuelled by a trip to the
medical centre for the Belgian after he climbed out of the car.
"Everyone said it was my mistake because I was completely exhausted," he explains. "But that's not right. All
the time I was in the car, I was 100 per cent. But when I opened the door and got some cold air, I was
suddenly done.
"I think I did the second fastest lap by our car of the whole race at the end. We were still competitive and the
only reason we didn't win was because we had lost the radio. But for that, I would have been able to control
the gap without problem."
Van de Poele, spurred on by his team, came back at Soper. It was, however, always going to be a tough ask
for him to overtake: Schnitzer had opted for a longer final-drive ration in the name of fuel economy, whereas
Bigazzi went for the more 'racy' diff.
Van de Poele got close at Stavelot, but the Briton hung on to win by just 0.49s. The second-placed BMW still
had a couple of litres in its tank, even though the car had gone 45 laps on a tank of petrol, whereas a normal
stint as 42 to 44 laps. Today both Lamm and van de Poele reckon the correct tactic would have been to make
a splash.
"In hindsight," says Lamm, "we should have pitted him early, put him on new tyres and said, 'let's go'."
Van de Poele describes his defeat at Spa '92 as the biggest disappointment of a career that would make him
the most successful driver in the history of the event on five wins.
"We lost that bloody race because of the radio," he says. "With the radio, I would have been able to control
the race, no problem. My disappointment was unbelievable: I still go crazy when I think of that race."
Soper admits that he was nonplussed about the whole affair. His strongest emotion after the finish was
annoyance at having to don his overalls again: "It didn't mean much at the time because I was so irritated at
having to drive again."
That annoyance was fuelled by Bigazzi's celebrations after the race. Shower number two after a
champagne-soaking on the podium was followed by Soper being dumped in a muddy pond in the paddock.
"I ended up showering three times in the space of a couple of hours," he remembers. "All I really wanted to do
was to go home and see my daughter."

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Features published on AUTOSPORT+ Jul 17, 2014 - Jul 23, 2014

Why F1 stars have lost their mystique - by Jonathan Noble

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