German Grand Prix (2011) RESULT

German Grand Prix 2011

Back at the Nurburgring for 2011, the German Grand Prix sees Vettel off the front row of the grid. Is that enough to keep the young German off the podium?

We’ve said it before, and we’ll say it again. The Germans and the British are very alike. One has the sense of humour turned up to 11 and the other their sense of order. But we like many of the same things, and one of those is F1.

F1 is essentially a British sport and the best of the F1 cars are made in the UK – even those you wouldn’t expect. And British drivers count for a much higher percentage of the grid than you would expect. But not as much as the Germans.

Germany currently boast eight drivers on the grid – a third of the total – with the current world champion Sebastian Vettel and all-time great Michael Schumacher among them. So there was a very real expectation that the 2011 German Grand Prix would bring a big smile to German faces. But it didn’t.

This was Lewis Hamilton’s race and he fought like a bulldog to win. Actually, he was more like a Jack Russell after a rat – he never gave up. This was Hamilton as his best; terrific driving without the belligerence and petty mindedness we’ve sometimes seen of late.

Hamilton got the better of Webber off the line and stormed away, but Webber managed to slip past Hamilton at the end of lap 12. That was when Hamilton did his best Jack Russell impression, tenaciously fighting back and retaking Webber. It seemed then that no one would take this win from Hamilton.

The pit stops allowed Webber to leapfrog Hamilton once more, but that was reversed in the final pit stop. Alo0nso managed to take advantage of Webber and Hamilton’s scrap to jump them both, but Hamilton managed to pull off a move round the outside of Alonso and Webber to take the lead and the victory.

Vettel had a very ordinary day, but still finished in fourth place – and the highest placed German. Button had a day to forget, never really on the pace at the start but looking as though his two-stop strategy might put him up just behind the top three until he dropped out with hydraulic problems half way through the race.

The 2011 German Grand Prix might not have been a great day for German F1 fans, but it was a cracking scrap.