Formula One European Grand Prix - Nurburgring

Linked from http://www.itv-f1.com/Feature.aspx?Type=General&PO_ID=40134
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European Grand Prix, 60 laps - unofficial result

1. ALONSO Mclaren 2h06m26.388s
2. MASSA Ferrari 8.1s
3. WEBBER Red Bull 1m05.6s
4. WURZ Williams 1m05.9s
5. COULTHARD Red Bull 1m13.6s
6. HEIDFELD BMW 1m20.2s
7. KUBICA BMW 1m22.4s
8. KOVALAINEN Renault 1 lap
9. HAMILTON McLaren 1 lap
10. FISICHELLA Renault 1 lap
11. BARRICHELLO Honda 1 lap
12. DAVIDSON Super Aguri 1 lap
13. TRULLI Toyota 1 lap
R. RAIKKONEN Ferrari 26 laps
R. SATO Super Aguri 41 laps
R. SCHUMACHER Toyota 42 laps
R. WINKELHOCK Spyker 47 laps
R. BUTTON Honda 58 laps
R. SUTIL Spyker 58 laps
R. ROSBERG Williams 58 laps
R. SPEED Toro Rosso 58 laps
R. LIUZZI Toro Rosso 58 laps

Fastest lap: MASSA 1m32.853s (lap 34)

Linked from http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2007/7/6520.html
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1st Fernando Alonso (McLaren), 2h06m26.358s; 2nd Felipe Massa (Ferrari), 2h06m34.513s; 3rd Mark Webber (Red Bull), 2h07m32.032s.

Q: Fernando, what a day, what a race, incredible conditions, looked as if Ferrari had the better of you in the dry but in the wet, unbelievable closing laps. Talk us through them.
Fernando Alonso: Yeah, I think the race was so exciting - to drive and also to watch, from the outside, I hope. It’s true that we had very different conditions. The first three laps were unbelievable. It was so wet and we had aquaplaning everywhere. The safety car came out and we stopped the race because it was impossible. Then, as you said, in dry conditions I think the Ferraris were a little bit quicker than us, so we probably didn’t have enough pace. And yeah, truly, the rain at the end helped us a lot and our car seemed to be a little bit better in wet conditions and luckily enough I had six laps to try to overtake Felipe.

Q: Talk us through that overtaking manoeuvre.
FA: Yeah, it was so close. The racing line was getting drier so to overtake you needed to go a little bit on the outside or the inside, on the wet part. We touched each other two times and I apologise to him (Massa) because I was so stressed when I finished the race because we nearly didn’t finish the race. Now I try to enjoy the victory and forget everything.

Q: Fernando, how do you rate this as one of your race victories? You looked ecstatic on the podium.
FA: Yeah, absolutely. I enjoyed the race so much because I like the different conditions, the different weather conditions. I always enjoy these types of races and at one point, when I was second, I said maybe it’s not the right time to rain, because I was happy with second place. Lewis was out of the points and Kimi as well, so for me eight points were good enough. But then, obviously now with the final result, I like the rain, there’s no doubt. Always when it rains, I’m quite happy and I have some fun. On the podium I was so happy because the race was quite exciting, as I said.

Q: Felipe, you too drove a brilliant race, set Ferrari’s 200th fastest race lap today. Fantastic in the dry, talk us through those early conditions and the race from your point of view.
Felipe Massa: Well, I think it was a pretty good start, so I could manage to pass Fernando and almost try and pass Kimi, but it was a good start. And then in the beginning of the race it was very difficult, everybody on grooved tyres and it was raining and it was pretty easy to go off. I almost went off two or three times. And then suddenly I came straight into the pits and just saw Kimi not coming and I thought it was really a chance to pass him as well and I did so. The car was just very good in the dry, a little bit of understeer at the beginning of the stint but then it was really really good. I was able to pull away at a very nice and controlled pace. But then, unfortunately, the rain came again and we put another… I think our car was not so bad even in the rain, but then I don’t know what happened. I took a set of tyres which was vibrating a lot from the beginning and I couldn’t manage to find the pace. Then Fernando was just getting closer and closer and we had a fight.

Q: We saw some pictures of you not looking too happy as you got out of the car; what are your thoughts on that manoeuvre from Fernando?
FM: I was really surprised when he came to say that I did that on purpose. I would never do something like that on purpose. Like I said in Barcelona, it was normal, here it was normal and it’s going to be like that. So if he was a little bit unhappy, it’s not my problem.

Q: Mark, great speed in qualifying and the car reliable through to the finish and your first podium since 2005.
Mark Webber: Yeah, it’s a podium I can enjoy as well. It was a special day for us, no question about it. The start was not good at all. I had a huge amount of clutch slip, so I was on the back foot going into turn one and then I saw, in turn two, the BMWs which got together, and then the rain was already starting pretty quickly which was absolutely phenomenal. I didn’t expect it to come that quick, because we thought it would come at least five or six laps into the race. It was there straight away. Then we obviously had to make some decisions, which wasn’t too difficult at the start, to go to intermediates but then the aquaplaning that we had in second or third gear on the run down to turn five and in some other sections… it was just a sheet of water on the track. The FIA did a good job to put the safety car out to try to control and then suspend the race which was sensible. And then after that, we obviously went onto intermediates and then grooves and then we did a really really long stint on the grooves and I struggled a little bit in the middle stint with the rears, but then I was obviously going a lot longer than Heikki and Alex and those guys. That was when I did the damage in terms of securing what was then going to be a podium, when I saw Kimi retire which I must say I wasn’t that disappointed about: when you see someone (retire) when you can gain some positions. And then at the end, I thought ‘my God, we’ve got it all in the bank, it’s all fine, let’s maybe start to wind the engine down and look after a few things’ and then I saw the rain coming towards us and I thought ‘oh my God, they’re not going to give it to us easy.’ It’s interesting to hear Felipe’s comments in terms of the vibrations that I had on the last set were massive. I think it’s not unusual for us to get this on intermediates. I was much happier if it stayed a bit dry towards the end of the race, given what was at stake. Alex was pretty close at the end but Red Bull deserve… these guys have been through a torrid start to the season, no question about it, and both cars in the points today - David in fifth – the whole team deserve it… the amount of effort that’s gone in the background. You can say what you want, you can say it’s improving, you can say this but we continue each week to come back with the same old broken record stuff but results are what count and today we’ve got a few points on the board, albeit due to a little bit of attrition but at the end of the day, it’s a 300kms race and we were there at the end and it was really for the team today that we got the points.

Q: Fernando, suddenly the World Championship is right there in your face, and equally, an unbelievable day for Spain today, two of the main supporting events won by Spanish drivers, you’ve won the Grand Prix of Europe and a certain Spaniard is doing quite well in the British Open today as well.
FA: Yes, I don’t know the full results in the other sports but as you said, for the championship, for myself, it becomes an important race but as we always said, the championship is so long, you never know what is going to happen in 15 days time in Hungary. It could be completely the opposite, anything can happen. We’re still working in the same direction, the same approach. No doubt it will be tight at the end for all four drivers who are fighting but step-by-step, hopefully I can make it.

PRESS CONFERENCE

Q: Fernando, you were saying just now that you seemed to be quicker in the wet conditions; did you think it was going to be wet, did you adjust the car accordingly?
FA: No, no. No, we didn’t expect the rain, so it was just how the car works in dry conditions and wet conditions, the difference between the two teams. You never know what they are in terms of drivability of the engine, chassis, suspension. All these small details seem to help us today in wet conditions. If we again have another wet race from now until the end of the season and we are still competitive, maybe it’s right, only for this race we cannot be clear in this.

Q: The other incident, apart from that with Felipe was in the pit lane; you nearly had a collision with Giancarlo there.
FA: Yes. So much traffic in the pit lane. I was ready to leave the box but everybody was coming in, so the lollipop was still down and they kept waiting for a space. They saw a little opportunity before the Renault and you know the delay you have coming out from the box etc. It was just so close. That was quite close. As you said, with Felipe at the end it was close but as I said before, I apologise if I said anything to him, because it’s motor racing and it’s a fight. We finished the race, so I don’t want to talk any more about this and I want to enjoy the win.

Q: Felipe, do you think it was a little bit of set-up? Could you see where you were missing out in the wet conditions?
FM: No, no. I don’t think it was set-up problem. I just think, at the beginning of the rain it was ok, it was not a problem. Maybe Alonso was quite close but it was not possible to pass and the car was behaving quite well. Then in the end I just took a set of tyres that were vibrating a lot, I don’t know what happened, and I couldn’t keep the pace anymore. Maybe something was wrong, the balance of the tyres was completely upset and it was vibrating a lot. I couldn’t keep the pace and Fernando was much quicker so it was difficult to hold. So he passed me.

Q: But even, in fact, on your last set of dry tyres you were losing time to him.
FM: No it was not true. I was really controlling the pace. He was getting closer but not so quickly, I could have gone quicker for sure. I proved already in the first stint that our car was quicker and we were pulling away in a nice way so it was just controlling the gap… But then the rain came, so it was really a shame for me because the race was already finished.

Q: You had a quite a fright when you saw what I understand was Fisichella’s wheel centre on the track.
FM: Yes, I saw something on the track. First of all my engineer said we have some debris on the main straight but I was looking and I didn’t find it and I said it was close to braking. Then I just saw the part of his car in front so I was lucky. It could have been a big accident.

Q: Mark, it must be a great relief to be on the podium again?
MW: You don’t say mate. It’s a bloody huge relief for the whole team and for myself. We’ve been ripped off quite a lot in the past but it is always down to preparation. It’s not due to luck, it’s not due to this and that. No-one is interested in excuses, we have to get the results ourselves. Today wasn’t from our position and we didn’t drive to a podium in terms of pace but we were there to get a podium in a very, very difficult motor race. The whole team did a good job in terms of calling the race from the pit wall, obviously from the cockpit you have to make some decisions yourself in terms of what tyres you put on. It was a very challenging grand prix. We showed in qualifying that we were pretty solid in terms of that midfield group. Obviously we can’t compete with these guys [Ferrari and McLaren], but that middle fight is crucial to us. I’m absolutely stoked. Very, very happy to get a podium, it’s a big chunk of points for the team and for myself and David [Coulthard], so it’s good for Red Bull too, I think to jump ahead of Toyota and yes… looking forward to Budapest.

Q: You so nearly lost the position at the NGK chicane. Tell us what happened there.
MW: The fun started at the last lap. I thought yeah ‘everything is fine, we’re ok.’ I went down to the first corner and braked and the front right just locked up. I thought ‘oh my god I have to recover it, recover it.’ I lost a lot of time to Alex then, got it back, I was quite calm. The NGK chicane was ok, then when I started braking, I think the rears were so heavily grained that I think the engine braking was having a bit of fun trying to cope with that as well. So I locked the rears quite heavily and so I had to be quite defensive to finish the lap. But Alex was fair, we fought hard and he knows that he and I think along the same way so it’s my time to have a little bit of luck after Canada. So today I get it.

QUESTIONS FROM THE FLOOR

Q: (Dan Knutson – National Speed Sport News) Mark, given the reliability problems for you this year, how much tension was there for you over those last laps thinking the car might just break again?
MW: Absolutely horrible, because I wasn’t that confident to be honest because if you look at our reliability record it has been quite poor and there are still a lot of components that we need to get more confidence in to be honest in a grand prix. So once we had done our second stops, and I had a comfortable third going on the slick tyres and I thought ‘just stay together, just stay together’ and I saw the rain coming and I knew there was going to be a few variabilities before the race was over. But there is absolutely nothing I can do about that, I have to just keep pushing and if the car stops… I have plenty of experience with that, but I don’t have very much experience with being up here. I’m bloody happy to be here so it’s good.

Q: (Jaime Rodriguez – El Mundo) Fernando congratulations. We could see you were very happy on the podium. Did this victory have a different taste for you after everything that has happened in the last weeks?
FA: No, same taste. But obviously for the championship it is more important. When you win and your main opponents for the championship finish second or third the gap doesn’t close enough to be so out there. You are happy for the win but more than the win it is also ten points from Kimi and Lewis and two from Felipe. So I was happy also for that.

Q: (Livio Oricchio – O Estado de Sao Paulo) Massa, what do you have against Alonso? And Alonso what do you have against Massa?
FA: Nothing, nothing it all. As I said, I will not talk any more about this. If I say something to him I apologise already in front of everybody, so I want to enjoy the win and there is nothing at all. I was not too happy at the end of the race because we touched each other but now, five minutes later on the podium I realised that this is motor racing, so I will not talk any more.
FM: I don’t have anything against anybody, I just do my race and I follow the rules of the sport, that’s all. If somebody tells me something I did wrong and I didn’t, I will be unhappy. That is normal. But if he has apologized, then that’s fine. He knows he was not right after the race.

Q: (Andrea Cremonesi – La Gazzetta dello Sport) Considering that it was wet weather and the track was very slippery, which manoeuvre of Felipe did you not like?
FA: I will not talk any more. I like how we finished, I will not talk any more. I won the race.

Q: (Michael Schmidt – Auto Motor und Sport) In the beginning of the race many people went off at the first corner, you obviously didn’t. Were you warned from the pits that there was a lake on the inside?
FM: I was really lucky because I braked reasonably late when we just came on lap 2 or something and it was really wet. I was really lucky because I completely locked the wheels and I though I was going to spin off but I could manage to control and fortunately I didn’t manage to spin off. I think Fernando had a difficult moment as well behind me.
FA: I was the same, braking at the same point as Felipe, locking in the same way the tyres and we ran very wide into turn one, just on the limit. I was taking the reference of him for braking and things like that. We all had problems at that corner, I think 22 drivers had problems there.
MW: Yeah Jenson was quite quick at that point. I thought he was, not risking a lot, but anyway that is what he was doing. But anyway it was good information for me when I saw the spray stop and him sideways. Then he was looking at me going backwards so I knew it was a bit too late for him and I braked earlier.

Q: (Livio Oricchio – O Estado de Sao Paulo) Alonso, you are only 2 points behind your teammate. Does it change your approach to the championship?
FA: No, not at all. I have said many times, the championship is very long and I think there are seven or eight races to go still. So every weekend is an unpredictable weekend. Even here Ferrari is very, very quick and they were quicker than us on track conditions in normal conditions. Suddenly you have a mechanical problem in Kimi’s car and you have rain at the end and McLaren wins the race. This is motor racing and in the next seven races I would not put any money on any driver, anyone can win because the races are a bit unpredictable. Knowing that I approach every race always thinking to do my best. Sometimes you have a better result, sometimes not so good. If I am at two points now, then in Hungary I will do my best. Hopefully I can keep scoring more points than the leader.

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The original Nurburgring was probably the greatest and grandest road course ever conceived – a gut-wrenching 14-mile roller-coaster ride through the fir-clad Eifel mountains in western Germany.

* It was built in 1925 as a means of alleviating local unemployment and serving as a testing facility for the burgeoning German motor industry.

* In fact, the old Ring comprised two circuits which could be used either together (producing a total of 172 corners!) or as separate entities. The Nordschleife (North Loop) measured 14.2 miles and the Sudschleife (South Loop) a ‘mere’ 4.8 miles. The pits and paddock were located at the intersection of the two layouts.

* The Nordschleife is still used today for a bonkers 24-hour touring car event, which has an entry that regularly tops the 150 mark.

* For 15 euros members of the public can get an idea of the heroic feats of yesteryear by driving around the Nordschleife in their own cars.

* The Nurburgring was the scene of some of the greatest individual performances in the history of motor sport. Pre-war hero Tazio Nuvolari scored an epic victory for Alfa Romeo in 1935; Juan Manuel Fangio capped his illustrious career with an extraordinary come-from-behind win in his Maserati 250F in 1957; Stirling Moss and Jackie Stewart were masterful in 1961 and 1968 respectively.

* Stewart scored perhaps his most famous victory in the ’68 German Grand Prix, winning by over four minutes in driving rain and thick fog.

* Moss and Stewart both scored their last grand prix victories at the Nurburgring, in 1961 and 1973 respectively.

* The German GP left the Nordschleife after the 1976 race in favour of the Hockenheim autodrome near Heidelberg. It was decided the track was too dangerous following the near-fatal accident that befell Niki Lauda.

* Lauda was a vociferous critic of the Nurburgring and had called for his fellow drivers to boycott the race in ’76, but was outvoted. The race went ahead and Lauda had a horrendous crash in which his Ferrari burst into flames. He suffered grievous burns and was given the last rites, but miraculously survived and, in an extraordinary feat of personal courage, returned to the cockpit six weeks later at Monza.

* The circuit, however, had had its last hurrah as a grand prix venue and was struck off the calendar. Its length made it unsuitable for the emerging TV age and, quite apart from the natural hazards such as unprotected hedges and trees, it was impractical to marshal adequately.

* A new track was built for 1984 and was christened with a race for Formula 1 drivers of various eras in identical Mercedes 190s. A young rookie by the name of Ayrton Senna upstaged a star-studded line-up that included Alain Prost, Keke Rosberg, Alan Jones, James Hunt, Stirling Moss, Phil Hill, Denny Hulme and Jack Brabham.

* In October that year, the F1 circus finally returned to the spiritual home of German motor racing for the European Grand Prix (the German GP having already been held at Hockenheim).

* The ‘new Nurburgring’ was universally acknowledged as one of the safest tracks in the world, but – unlike the revised Spa – was regarded as a travesty of the original version, being full of constant radius corners and run-off areas the size of Brighton Beach that kept the spectators a long way from the action.

* Italian racer Teo Fabi scored the Toleman team’s only pole position at the only German GP to be held at the new track, in 1985. The team was bought out by Benetton the following year, and would eventually become Renault.

* The Nurburgring disappeared from the calendar after the ’85 race due to commercial disputes between promoters and a general lack of enthusiasm. But it was resurrected – once again under the guise of the European GP – in 1995.

* The passage of time, and the emasculation of so many of the world’s great circuits, ensured a more favourable reception this time round, and most F1 people agreed it wasn’t such a bad place after all.

* Michael Schumacher won that damp ’95 race in superbly combative style, passing Jean Alesi’s Ferrari around the outside at the top chicane with only a few laps to spare.

* He would go on to take another four wins at his home track, although the second did not come until the wet 2000 race.

* Jacques Villeneuve scored his first grand prix win at the Nurburgring in 1996, staving off a determined challenge from Schumacher in a grandstand finish.

* Johnny Herbert claimed Stewart Grand Prix’s only victory in the dramatic 1999 race, which was led by seven different drivers.

* Ferrari is the most successful team at the Nurburgring, having won on 14 occasions.

* The first sector of the lap was modified in 2002 by Hermann Tilke to create more overtaking opportunities. Whereas the pit straight used to have a fairly short braking area into a third-gear S-bend, it now ends in a hairpin requiring very hard braking down to first gear. The changes have generally had the desired effect although the circuit is more fiddly and less flowing than before.

	1) Australian Grand Prix - Melbourne
	2) Bahrain Grand Prix - Manama
	3) Belgian Grand Prix - Spa Francorchamps
	4) Brazilian Grand Prix - Sao Paulo
	5) British Grand Prix - Silverstone
	6) Canadian Grand Prix - Montreal
	7) Chinese Grand Prix - Shanghai
	8) European Grand Prix - Nurburgring
	9) French Grand Prix - Magny Cours
	10) Hungarian Grand Prix - Hungaroring
	11) Italian Grand Prix - Monza
	12) Japanese Grand Prix - Shizuoka Prefecture
	13) Malaysian Grand Prix - Sepang
	14) Monaco Grand Prix - Monte Carlo
	15) Spanish Grand Prix - Barcelona
	16) Turkish Grand Prix - Istanbul
	17) United States Grand Prix - Indianapolis

	1) BMW Sauber
	2) Ferrari
	3) Honda
	4) McLaren
	5) Red Bull
	6) Renault
	7) Spyker
	8) Super Aguri
	9) Toro Rosso
	10) Toyota
	11) Williams

Linked from http://www.formula1.com/race/circuitdetail/779.html
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The original Nurburgring, the Nordschleife, ran for an awe-inspiring 22.5 kilometres (14 miles). It was so long and so complicated that drivers simply could not remember a racing line. The Nurburgring was, in fact, two circuits: the Nordschleife and the Sudschleife. In total they had an amazing 172 corners.

It was safety which sealed the demise of the legendary track. Following Niki Lauda's terrifying accident there in 1976 in which he suffered horrendous burns, the Nurburgring's license to hold Formula One events was withdrawn.

The track underwent huge redevelopment to create a new circuit and in the spring of 1984 a race was held featuring 20 identical Mercedes 190Es and a grid composed of some of the best-ever Formula One drivers. Niki Lauda, Carlos Reutemann, Keke Rosberg, Alain Prost, Ayrton Senna, James Hunt, Stirling Moss, Jack Brabham, Phil Hill, John Surtees and Denny Hulme were just a few of the names to take part. Senna, then a relative youngster, won from Lauda and Reutemann.

The European Grand Prix was held at the new track later that year, and again in 1985, but it disappeared again after commercial difficulties. With the ascendancy of Michael Schumacher, from nearby Kerpen, the track was once again back in Formula One in 1995. Posing as the Luxembourg Grand Prix for 1997 and 1998, it then once more became the home of the European Grand Prix until 2006. It plays host to the German Grand Prix in 2007 at the start of a new agreement which will see the race alternate between there and Hockenheim.

The track may not be as challenging as the old circuit, but it is still possible to take a trip down memory lane - literally. For just a few euros one can take a car onto the old track and soak up what was one of the most feared and yet respected circuits in the history of motorsport.
The Nurburgring is located in the Eifel region of Germany, 60km north-west of Koblenz and 90km south-west of Koln. Road connections are good to the major international airports of Koln/Bonn and Dusseldorf Rhein Ruhr which is some 120 km away.

From Cologne take the A1-E29 motorway and take the Nurburgring exit. From Koblenz take the A48-E44 motorway then the A61 towards Cologne, and take the Wehr Nurburgring exit.