Sebastian Vettel
I always enjoy the atmosphere at the Hockenheimring. When you arrive at track in the morning, the circuit's already filled with fans, and when you're in the car you can see lots of German flags in the grandstands. The signing session is always very busy too. It's those little things I really enjoy about Hockenheim. We get a lot of encouragement. During practice you know that the fans in the grandstands are there to support you and stand by you, no matter what. Of course, you want to give as much as possible back to the fans, but sometimes it's not in your hands. However we will attack at the weekend and give everything.
Daniel Ricciardo
Hockenheim's quite a short track, but it's another of those with a little bit of everything. I don't think the track asks particularly big questions of the driver, though it requires you to be quite brave through the fast Turn One and the right-hander into the stadium; that's largely about having the confidence in the car to get you through those corners quickly. The other thing you need is good stability under the heavy braking for the hairpin. All in all, it's a balancing act. You'd like to have the downforce for the stadium and to keep it steady on the brakes, but equally you don't want too much drag on the straights.
The Track
Back in days of yore, the Hockenheimring was one of the F1 calendar's more unique venues, featuring two monstrously long straights through dense forest, broken only by a couple of chicanes. The problem was that what overtaking occurred tended to happen at those chicanes, and most fans in the grandstands only got to the see the action on big screens.
Thus the whole thing was redeveloped for the 2002 season. The forest sections were done away with, and though old-timers still lament the passing of the engine-breaking straights, what we've been left with is a far more fan-friendly race circuit that not only provides good views of the action but which is still capable of giving us good racing.
The first section of the track is high-speed and ideally would be run in medium to low downforce configuration. The trouble is that the final stadium section is fiddly and technical, and it needs much higher levels of grip. Therefore, it's all about balancing those desires – power and pace versus precision and poise.
There are a couple of good overtaking spots, at the hairpin and at Turn 8 in front of the Mercedes Tribune, so you'll likely see some good overtaking. F1's Drag Reduction System attempts to increase the chances of that happening, and for the first time at Hockenheim we will this year have two DRS zones: the first after Turn 1 and the second after Turn 4.
It's still going to be tough on power units too. The last time F1 went to Hockenheim in 2012, upwards of 65 percent of a lap was run at full throttle. If the figure is in anyway similar this time, F1's new hybrid powerplants are going to get a thorough workout.
In terms of what you can see, the general admission areas at the Spitkehre hairpin are a good place to watch, as you'll get to see the drivers at top speed and then watch in amazement as they brake down from 315km/h to just 55km/h for the corner in just 2.6 seconds. It's also a good overtaking spot, so you might see some changes of position there.
After that, it's all about the stadium section where – though the cars aren't moving at their fastest – you will see some good action. Every section of grandstand has a view of a video wall, so you won't miss anything. However, the more expensive sections are also covered, which rain or shine can be a good thing; when it's hot in this part of Germany in the summer, it is baking hot.
Hockenheim
The German Grand Prix returns to Hockenheim for the first time since 2012, with the event still in race-sharing mode with the Nürburgring. That once again means a jaunt to the Baden-Württemberg region and a stay in Heidelberg, Mannheim or even in pretty Speyer.
And that's no bad thing. Heidelberg is a great town, with a world famous university that gives it a youthful vibe and a chocolate box old town beside the Neckar that offers plenty of options for having fun when you're not at the track, which is about 20 minutes away by car.
Mannheim, about 25 minutes away by car, is more industrial and more of a business city but as such it's got a different buzz and is a little more fast-paced than more touristy Heidelberg. As for Speyer, it's a lovely little town of 50,000 on the banks of the Rhine. It too has a picture postcard old town, or “altstadt” and is just 15 minutes by car from the track.
Hockenheim itself is a fairly unremarkable village between two autobahns and would not be a first choice to stay in, even if you could find somewhere to stay there.
As for the race, well it's what you'd expect. Although Hockenheim doesn't have the motor racing allure of the Nürburgring, it does have a good atmosphere. There's a vocal and passionate crowd that turns out in force to support their homegrown drivers (though not with the manic fervor of the “Schumi” era when a veritable crimson tide would flood the place), and you can eat a lot of wurst and drink quite a lot of beer over the grand prix weekend. How bad can that be?
Sebastian's favorite German things
We caught up with Sebastian ahead of his home grand prix in Germany this weekend to find out what some of his favorite things are about home.
Favorite football club?
SV: Easy, that's Eintracht Frankfurt
Favorite German football player?
SV: It would be Franz Beckenbauer
Favorite German band?
SV: CRO
Favorite German song?
SV: That would be "Ich bin ein Mann" by Ted Herold
Favorite German food?
SV: "Bratwurst mit Kartoffelbrei", the German version of sausages and mash!
How do you like your wurst?
SV: Currywurst
Favorite German saying/phrase?
SV: "Alles klar, Keiner weiss Bescheid" – it's a saying that means everything is sorted and you are good to go
Favorite German city?
SV: I really like Berlin
Favorite thing about home town?
SV: That my family and friends are there
Favorite joke?
SV: Germans don't joke
Favorite German TV program?
SV: "Tatort" - It's a long-running German/Austrian/Swiss crime television series set in various parts of these countries
Favorite German actor?
SV: Jürgen Vogel - known for "The Wave" (2008), "The Free Will" (2006) and "Life is all you get" (1997)
Favorite activity to do at home / what is the first thing you do when you go back home to Germany?
SV: No question - first thing is to enjoy mum's kitchen!
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