2011 German Grand Prix

Championship standings

Vettel leads by 80 points — at the time, the largest championship lead in Formula One history. Webber is second, 12 points ahead of Alonso in third on 112 points; Alonso moved up to third after his victory in Britain. Hamilton and Button are both on 109 points, with Hamilton holding fourth by virtue of having more second places.

Previous race

Alonso won the British Grand Prix for his first victory since the 2010 Korean Grand Prix, 16 seconds clear of Vettel. Webber was third after a late team order to hold position behind Vettel. On the final lap, Massa was closing on Hamilton, whose pace had been limited by a fuel conservation instruction; the two made contact in the penultimate corner, forcing Massa wide. Button retired from second place when a wheel nut was not properly attached during his final stop.

Between-race developments

Team Lotus announced that Karun Chandhok will replace Jarno Trulli for this race weekend. Chandhok’s last race appearance was the 2010 British Grand Prix with Hispania; he has driven in Friday practice at several rounds this season.

The ban on off-throttle blown diffusers introduced at Silverstone proved temporary. At Valencia, teams were limited only on qualifying engine maps; the British Grand Prix added restrictions on throttle use under braking. However, an agreement reached after Silverstone has suspended the ban for the remainder of the 2011 season, restoring the pre-Valencia engine map rules. All teams return to what is referred to in the paddock as “Valencia spec” diffusers.

Tyre choices

Pirelli brings the white-banded medium compound as the prime and the yellow-banded soft as the option.

Track changes

The start line has been moved 240 metres closer to Turn 1 for this race, reducing the run to the first corner and making the start marginally less critical.

Practice

Alonso set the fastest time in FP1, ahead of Webber and Vettel — raising expectations that Ferrari might challenge Red Bull in qualifying, though this did not ultimately materialise. Hamilton was fifth; Button was 11th having had no KERS in either Friday session. Buemi made a mistake in the final 30 seconds and was flung sideways across the gravel; he missed FP2 with a fuel pressure problem.

Webber led Alonso in FP2. The session featured a large number of lock-ups and off-track excursions. Schumacher ran wide at Turn 7 while exploring the circuit’s limits — waving to the home crowd — and Timo Glock also went off, spinning on wet grass at the bottom of a hill before narrowly avoiding the high kerb.