Memorable F1 moments: the 2019 German GP is the race of the decade that turned into a Mercedes nightmare

It was supposed to be a normal race of the 2019 Formula One season, but one of the craziest grand prix events in history took place at Germany’s Hockenheimring as Mercedes celebrated. At the end of it, Daniil Kvyat stood on the podium, with Sebastian Vettel fighting his way up from last position to second. Let’s follow in the footsteps of the race that Max Verstappen dominated in the Red Bull.

A special race for Mercedes

For Mercedes, the German GP was a double cause for celebration. The home team was at the start of its 200th race in F1. The team led by Toto Wolff was also marking the 125th anniversary of the brand’s entry into motorsport.

For the German Grand Prix, the stable had a special paint job and the whole team dressed up in costumes. Everything was shaping up to be a perfect weekend. Plus, Lewis Hamilton was leading the drivers’ championship at the time. And so, too, did Mercedes rule the constructors’ championship.

Qualifying

In the battle for pole position, the then five-time world champion reigned supreme. Hamilton was more than three-tenths of a second behind second-placed Verstappen, and was also able to benefit from the help of teammate Valtteri Bottas, who finished third in qualifying.

The second row was completed by Verstappen’s teammate Pierre Gasly, for whom it was one of his last starts in the colours of the “Red Bulls”. Kimi Räikkönen, who qualified fifth in his Alfa Romeo, had a great fight for the best position for the opening metres of the Grand Prix.

Qualifying on home soil could not be influenced by Sebastian Vettel, who was unable to set a time due to a technical failure. This is also why he decided to deploy the third component of the Electronics Control, which would otherwise have sent him down ten places.

The penalty did not pass Lando Norris by. The McLaren driver had three new components fitted to his monoposto and dropped to nineteenth place at the start. An interesting feature of qualifying was the middle part of the session, where only three hundredths of a second separated ninth-placed Nico Hülkenberg and thirteenth-placed Daniel Ricciardo.

Race

The drivers left the start of the 2019 German Grand Prix behind the safety car due to heavy rain. In the first three laps, spectators at the screens could thus listen to complaints and sarcastic remarks about the weather at Hockenheim. After that, however, the race directors gave the start order.

And from a strong position. All 20 monoblocs were ordered to start on a blue-marked set of tyres in extreme wet. The first metres were not at all good for the Red Bulls, who were coming off their slots at a very slow pace. Finn Räikönnen capitalised on this problem, and was in third position at the end of the first lap.

After the first laps, the weather started to speak into the storyline of the race. After the safety car caused by Sergio Pérez’s accident, almost all the drivers took turns in the pits to change to a temporary set of tyres. Those who stayed on the blue-marked tyre saw a drop down the starting order after the safety car was captured in pit lane.

VSC and the dry tyre gamble

A fantastic start befell both red monoposts. Vettel jumped six places to fourteenth, Charles Leclerc four places to sixth. On lap fourteen, a technical problem slowed Daniel Ricciardo’s race, resulting in the activation of the virtual safety car.

Just moments later, Carlos Sainz lost concentration and was just centimetres away from finishing the race. On lap 22, the teams began to take risks on a drying track with dry tyres. The first daredevil was Kevin Magnussen, followed by Vettel in the Ferrari.

Verstappen made his pit stop a few laps later. He was the first to put on a medium hard set, which he then struggled with a lot. Laps 26 to 29 brought a huge turn of events. First, Norris’ technique failed, then the spectators watched two accidents at the penultimate corner.

The first one cost Leclerc the race. The Monegasque failed to keep his car on the road and ended up in the barrier. The safety car took to the track, which Mercedes wanted to take advantage of to give Hamilton a free pit stop. However, the British driver failed to keep the monoplane on the track at the same point as Leclerc and headed for the tyre wall. Unlike his rival, he only damaged his front wing and continued the race.

However, he had to pit, where he was definitely not counted on. And the otherwise perfect Mercedes put on a display of chaos. The pit stop eventually lasted an interminable 50.3 seconds. At the end of it, the British driver dropped to fifth place.

The restart and the end of one home hope

After returning to race pace, the “Silver Arrows” showed their speed, moving past the first Verstappen. Further ahead, Vettel was also moving forward, his comeback remaining slightly behind the huge amount of action at the front of the grid.

On lap 41, attention turned to the second German driver. A brilliantly paced grand prix was ruined by a mistake from Nico Hülkenberg, extinguishing his hopes of scoring his first career podium. Only fifteen formulae continued in the race.

The rain stopped again in the final quarter of the Grand Prix, offering another batch of pit stops. Lance Stroll was the first to brave the last stop, followed by Verstappen and Hamilton. In addition, the British driver had to serve a five-second penalty for going around the pole at pit lane from the wrong side.

The end of the race

After the last pit stops, Stroll was in the lead for a while and his gamble worked out perfectly. He did end up fourth, but few would have predicted this result with twenty laps to go. Verstappen quickly returned to the top spot, with no other drivers coming close.

To make matters worse for Mercedes, both Hamilton and Bottas made mistakes at the first corner. While the five-time world champion still avoided the barrier, the Finnish driver did not. Quite simply, a celebration of the stable turned into a much unwanted party at the Hockeheimring.

The Grand Prix was over in the following moments for Gasly as well. The Frenchman drove into the back of Alexander Albon’s monoposto and his wing became wedged under the car after a ninety degree turn. Only thirteen formulas remained in the battle to at least reach the finish line.

It was mainly Ferrari-driving Vettel who changed the order in the top places. His drive saw him move up to second place, with Kvyat finishing third. Verstappen remained undaunted in first place and, in addition to the win, scored a point for the fastest lap.

The order after crossing the finish line was not final. The penalty for breaking the rules did not pass both Alfa Romeo drivers, who thus indirectly helped WIlliams to the only point of the 2019 season. Robert Kubica could enjoy the tenth place.

The race itself was voted by the public as the best Grand Prix of the decade 2010 to 2019. And although there are several major competitors, the German’s battle for 25 points in 2019 offered the spectators one of the greatest dramas. With a happy ending for Verstappen.

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