Feature

2016 German Grand Prix preview

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What time does the German Grand Prix start? What channel is the German Grand Prix on? The answers to all of that and more in F1i’s race preview

The final race ahead of Formula One’s mid-season break is upon us, and a return to Hockenheim awaits before the chance to catch your breath. The sixth race in eight weeks sees F1 race in Germany for the first time since 2014 after the race dropped off the calendar last year. Such a hectic schedule this season has delivered plenty of action, controversy and changes in momentum, and that’s just at Mercedes. Lewis Hamilton took the championship lead for the first time this year in Budapest, but only after questioning Nico Rosberg’s pole position lap with the FIA. Hockenheim sees that battle continue, while Ferrari will also look to fight back against the Red Bull threat in what will be Sebastian Vettel’s first home race driving for the Scuderia.

FORM GUIDE

Mercedes finally enjoyed a clean weekend in Budapest to secure its third one-two of the season, with Hamilton unlucky to miss out on pole position but making amends in the race. Red Bull was a threat during qualifying but eventually Ferrari looked quicker over a race distance, even if Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen kept Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen respectively at bay. Red Bull expects Hockenheim to be less favourable to its car, with more overtaking opportunities also pointing to a better circuit for Ferrari. Williams will also hope to find some of its 2014 form which saw Valtteri Bottas hold off Hamilton for second place here, with Force India having shown it is quick everywhere in recent races.

2014 RESULT

Pole position: Nico Rosberg (Mercedes), 1:16.540

Top three: Nico Rosberg (Mercedes), Valtteri Bottas (Williams), Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes)

Fastest lap: Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes), 1:19.908

SESSION TIMES (All times local)

FP1: 10:00 - 11:30

FP2: 14:00 - 15:30

FP3: 11:00 - 12:00

Qualifying: 14:00 - 15:00

Race: 1400

TYRE CHOICES

©Pirelli Motorsport

WEATHER FORECAST

Rain continues to follow Formula One around, but this weekend the weather should have less of an impact on the competitive sessions. Friday carries the biggest threat of rain, with afternoon showers forecast which could hit FP2. That throws up the prospect of teams racing without much long run data from Friday practice. However, there is only a 20% chance of wet weather on Saturday and Sunday, with both days expected to be warm and relatively dry.

UK TELEVISION TIMINGS (All times UK)

Sky Sports F1 - Live coverage

FP1 - 0845

FP2 - 1245

FP3 - 0945

Qualifying - 1200

Race - 1130

Channel 4 - Highlights

Qualifying - 1745

Race - 1800

PODIUM PREDICTION

1st - Nico Rosberg

2nd - Sebastian Vettel

3rd - Kimi Raikkonen

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Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.