1995 German Grand Prix: F1 Race, Qualifying & Winners

Michael Schumacher gave the Hockenheim crowd the home victory it had been waiting for. Damon Hill‘s early retirement opened the door, but Michael Schumacher still had to make Benetton‘s two-stop strategy work against David Coulthard‘s one-stop Williams to win the German Grand Prix.

Result	Driver / Time	Team
Pole position	Damon Hill	Williams
Pole time	1:44.385
Fastest lap	Michael Schumacher	Benetton
Fastest-lap time	1:48.824 on lap 22
First	Michael Schumacher	Benetton
Second	David Coulthard	Williams
Third	Gerhard Berger	Ferrari

Weekend Schedule

Date	Session	Local Time
28 July 1995	Practice 1	Morning; start time unconfirmed
28 July 1995	Qualifying 1	Afternoon; start time unconfirmed
29 July 1995	Practice 2	Morning; start time unconfirmed
29 July 1995	Qualifying 2	Afternoon; start time unconfirmed
30 July 1995	Warm-up	Morning; start time unconfirmed
30 July 1995	Race	14:00

All times are local. The race time is the scheduled start; weather delays and interruptions are described below.

Championship background

Michael Schumacher arrived at round 9 leading the 1995 F1 World Championship on 46 points, with Damon Hill on 35. Benetton headed the constructors’ standings after the preceding race with 58 points.

Race entries

Giovanni Lavaggi made his Grand Prix debut with Pacific, taking over from Bertrand Gachot. Aguri Suzuki returned to the shared Ligier seat in place of Martin Brundle. Pierluigi Martini continued at Minardi for what would prove to be his final Formula 1 start.

Friday Free Practice

Showers complicated Friday practice, with Jean Alesi setting the quickest lap. Aguri Suzuki crashed heavily and required a hospital check on his vision before being cleared to continue. The teams trimmed their wings for Hockenheim’s long straights, but Benetton‘s low-downforce arrangement made braking and the stadium section particularly demanding.

Friday Practice Classification

1995 German Grand Prix Practice, 28 July 1995

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	27	Jean Alesi	Ferrari	1:54.130	17
2	1	Michael Schumacher	Benetton	+5.374s	18
3	5	Damon Hill	Williams	+6.344s	15
4	6	David Coulthard	Williams	+6.649s	16
5	24	Luca Badoer	Minardi	+6.898s	18
6	28	Gerhard Berger	Ferrari	+7.043s	15
7	2	Johnny Herbert	Benetton	+7.586s	16
8	29	Jean-Christophe Boullion	Sauber	+8.212s	15
9	30	Heinz-Harald Frentzen	Sauber	+8.232s	12
10	26	Olivier Panis	Ligier	+8.772s	21
11	4	Mika Salo	Tyrrell	+9.249s	20
12	14	Rubens Barrichello	Jordan	+9.501s	18
13	3	Ukyo Katayama	Tyrrell	+9.686s	19
14	9	Massimiliano Papis	Footwork	+10.732s	12
15	23	Pierluigi Martini	Minardi	+10.956s	16
16	15	Eddie Irvine	Jordan	+11.064s	6
17	8	Mika Hakkinen	McLaren	+11.915s	14
18	10	Taki Inoue	Footwork	+13.790s	12
19	7	Mark Blundell	McLaren	+14.305s	13
20	22	Roberto Moreno	Forti	+14.483s	19
21	16	Giovanni Lavaggi	Pacific	+18.487s	9
22	25	Aguri Suzuki	Ligier	+19.308s	9
23	21	Pedro Diniz	Forti	+25.671s	10
24	17	Andrea Montermini	Pacific	+998.339s	1

Friday Qualifying

Damon Hill headed Friday qualifying as the circuit dried, with David Coulthard and Michael Schumacher following in the official session order. Changing conditions kept the provisional lead moving between drivers. The opening hour left the championship rivals close enough for Saturday to decide pole.

Friday Qualifying Classification

1995 German Grand Prix first qualifying session, 28 July 1995

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time	Laps
1	5	Damon Hill	Williams	1:44.932	12
2	6	David Coulthard	Williams	1:45.306	12
3	1	Michael Schumacher	Benetton	1:45.505	12
4	8	Mika Hakkinen	McLaren	1:46.291	7
5	27	Jean Alesi	Ferrari	1:46.356	12
6	2	Johnny Herbert	Benetton	1:46.381	12
7	28	Gerhard Berger	Ferrari	1:46.482	12
8	15	Eddie Irvine	Jordan	1:46.916	11
9	26	Olivier Panis	Ligier	1:47.372	12
10	30	Heinz-Harald Frentzen	Sauber	1:47.769	11
11	7	Mark Blundell	McLaren	1:47.854	8
12	14	Rubens Barrichello	Jordan	1:48.203	9
13	29	Jean-Christophe Boullion	Sauber	1:48.526	11
14	4	Mika Salo	Tyrrell	1:49.505	12
15	9	Massimiliano Papis	Footwork	1:49.621	12
16	24	Luca Badoer	Minardi	1:50.409	12
17	10	Taki Inoue	Footwork	1:50.451	12
18	23	Pierluigi Martini	Minardi	1:51.368	12
19	22	Roberto Moreno	Forti	1:53.456	12
20	17	Andrea Montermini	Pacific	1:53.492	5
21	21	Pedro Diniz	Forti	1:54.303	12
22	16	Giovanni Lavaggi	Pacific	1:54.625	11
23	3	Ukyo Katayama	Tyrrell	1:56.518	5
24	25	Aguri Suzuki	Ligier	2:04.193	3

Saturday Free Practice

Fog greeted the circuit on Saturday morning before David Coulthard led the practice session ahead of Damon Hill. The Williams pair looked competitive, but the task remained to carry that speed into the close qualifying battle. Ferrari‘s weekend was less convincing: Jean Alesi struggled to find a satisfactory balance and extract the expected performance from the V12.

Saturday Practice Classification

1995 German Grand Prix Practice, 29 July 1995

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	6	David Coulthard	Williams	1:44.689	21
2	5	Damon Hill	Williams	+0.865s	23
3	14	Rubens Barrichello	Jordan	+1.612s	19
4	15	Eddie Irvine	Jordan	+1.631s	14
5	8	Mika Hakkinen	McLaren	+1.949s	4
6	1	Michael Schumacher	Benetton	+2.270s	17
7	27	Jean Alesi	Ferrari	+2.343s	17
8	7	Mark Blundell	McLaren	+2.715s	16
9	2	Johnny Herbert	Benetton	+2.742s	20
10	26	Olivier Panis	Ligier	+3.069s	23
11	29	Jean-Christophe Boullion	Sauber	+3.727s	23
12	30	Heinz-Harald Frentzen	Sauber	+4.091s	16
13	4	Mika Salo	Tyrrell	+4.414s	22
14	9	Massimiliano Papis	Footwork	+4.529s	15
15	3	Ukyo Katayama	Tyrrell	+4.540s	22
16	28	Gerhard Berger	Ferrari	+4.597s	5
17	24	Luca Badoer	Minardi	+5.926s	23
18	23	Pierluigi Martini	Minardi	+6.168s	17
19	10	Taki Inoue	Footwork	+6.978s	11
20	17	Andrea Montermini	Pacific	+8.379s	12
21	22	Roberto Moreno	Forti	+8.413s	15
22	21	Pedro Diniz	Forti	+9.119s	23
23	16	Giovanni Lavaggi	Pacific	+15.559s	8

Saturday Qualifying

Damon Hill secured pole by eight hundredths from Michael Schumacher, with David Coulthard only another 0.075 seconds behind. Gerhard Berger took fourth ahead of both Jordans. Andrea Montermini exceeded the twelve-lap allowance, losing his Saturday time and falling back on Friday’s effort, while debutant Giovanni Lavaggi started at the rear.

Saturday Qualifying Classification

1995 German Grand Prix second qualifying session, 29 July 1995

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time	Laps
1	5	Damon Hill	Williams	1:44.385	10
2	1	Michael Schumacher	Benetton	1:44.465	11
3	6	David Coulthard	Williams	1:44.540	11
4	28	Gerhard Berger	Ferrari	1:45.553	11
5	14	Rubens Barrichello	Jordan	1:45.765	12
6	15	Eddie Irvine	Jordan	1:45.846	12
7	8	Mika Hakkinen	McLaren	1:45.849	12
8	7	Mark Blundell	McLaren	1:46.221	11
9	2	Johnny Herbert	Benetton	1:46.315	9
10	27	Jean Alesi	Ferrari	1:46.475	11
11	30	Heinz-Harald Frentzen	Sauber	1:46.801	10
12	4	Mika Salo	Tyrrell	1:47.507	12
13	26	Olivier Panis	Ligier	1:47.528	11
14	29	Jean-Christophe Boullion	Sauber	1:47.636	11
15	9	Massimiliano Papis	Footwork	1:48.093	12
16	24	Luca Badoer	Minardi	1:49.302	11
17	3	Ukyo Katayama	Tyrrell	1:49.402	12
18	25	Aguri Suzuki	Ligier	1:49.716	12
19	10	Taki Inoue	Footwork	1:49.892	12
20	23	Pierluigi Martini	Minardi	1:49.990	12
21	21	Pedro Diniz	Forti	1:52.961	12
22	22	Roberto Moreno	Forti	1:53.405	12
23	16	Giovanni Lavaggi	Pacific	1:56.335	7

Combined Qualifying Classification

Each driver’s faster time from the two qualifying sessions determined the overall order.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Friday Time	Saturday Time	Best Time	Laps
1	5	Damon Hill	Williams	1:44.932	1:44.385	1:44.385	22
2	1	Michael Schumacher	Benetton	1:45.505	1:44.465	1:44.465	23
3	6	David Coulthard	Williams	1:45.306	1:44.540	1:44.540	23
4	28	Gerhard Berger	Ferrari	1:46.482	1:45.553	1:45.553	23
5	14	Rubens Barrichello	Jordan	1:48.203	1:45.765	1:45.765	21
6	15	Eddie Irvine	Jordan	1:46.916	1:45.846	1:45.846	23
7	8	Mika Häkkinen	McLaren	1:46.291	1:45.849	1:45.849	19
8	7	Mark Blundell	McLaren	1:47.854	1:46.221	1:46.221	19
9	2	Johnny Herbert	Benetton	1:46.381	1:46.315	1:46.315	21
10	27	Jean Alesi	Ferrari	1:46.356	1:46.475	1:46.356	23
11	30	Heinz-Harald Frentzen	Sauber	1:47.769	1:46.801	1:46.801	21
12	26	Olivier Panis	Ligier	1:47.372	1:47.528	1:47.372	23
13	4	Mika Salo	Tyrrell	1:49.505	1:47.507	1:47.507	24
14	29	Jean-Christophe Boullion	Sauber	1:48.526	1:47.636	1:47.636	22
15	9	Massimiliano Papis	Footwork	1:49.621	1:48.093	1:48.093	24
16	24	Luca Badoer	Minardi	1:50.409	1:49.302	1:49.302	23
17	3	Ukyo Katayama	Tyrrell	1:56.518	1:49.402	1:49.402	17
18	25	Aguri Suzuki	Ligier	2:04.193	1:49.716	1:49.716	15
19	10	Taki Inoue	Footwork	1:50.451	1:49.892	1:49.892	24
20	23	Pierluigi Martini	Minardi	1:51.368	1:49.990	1:49.990	24
21	21	Pedro Diniz	Forti	1:54.303	1:52.961	1:52.961	24
22	22	Roberto Moreno	Forti	1:53.456	1:53.405	1:53.405	24
23	17	Andrea Montermini	Pacific	1:53.492	No time	1:53.492	5
24	16	Giovanni Lavaggi	Pacific	1:54.625	1:56.335	1:54.625	18

Sunday warm-up

Michael Schumacher led the warm-up, offering encouragement to the home crowd before the hot afternoon. The strategic split was important: Benetton intended two stops, while Williams planned one. David Coulthard would therefore need to judge the pace carefully against a rival whose fuel load and stopping pattern were different.

Warm-up Classification

1995 German Grand Prix Warm-up, 30 July 1995

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	1	Michael Schumacher	Benetton	1:47.452	10
2	6	David Coulthard	Williams	+0.150s	8
3	8	Mika Hakkinen	McLaren	+0.288s	9
4	5	Damon Hill	Williams	+0.679s	11
5	14	Rubens Barrichello	Jordan	+1.047s	11
6	27	Jean Alesi	Ferrari	+1.188s	8
7	2	Johnny Herbert	Benetton	+1.663s	12
8	30	Heinz-Harald Frentzen	Sauber	+1.673s	11
9	26	Olivier Panis	Ligier	+1.706s	12
10	28	Gerhard Berger	Ferrari	+1.729s	12
11	15	Eddie Irvine	Jordan	+1.838s	10
12	7	Mark Blundell	McLaren	+2.146s	8
13	29	Jean-Christophe Boullion	Sauber	+2.539s	10
14	4	Mika Salo	Tyrrell	+2.774s	9
15	25	Aguri Suzuki	Ligier	+3.501s	11
16	3	Ukyo Katayama	Tyrrell	+3.647s	10
17	9	Massimiliano Papis	Footwork	+3.663s	12
18	24	Luca Badoer	Minardi	+4.755s	11
19	23	Pierluigi Martini	Minardi	+5.385s	11
20	10	Taki Inoue	Footwork	+5.587s	10
21	17	Andrea Montermini	Pacific	+5.662s	11
22	22	Roberto Moreno	Forti	+8.014s	9
23	16	Giovanni Lavaggi	Pacific	+8.840s	9
24	21	Pedro Diniz	Forti	+172.557s	1

What happened in the 1995 German Grand Prix?

Damon Hill led the opening lap but spun into the barriers at the first corner on lap two. Williams later identified a driveshaft failure, rather than a straightforward driving mistake. Michael Schumacher inherited the lead and set about creating enough time to make an additional pit stop without losing the advantage.

David Coulthard‘s single-stop plan kept the contest alive, but Michael Schumacher delivered the required pace and emerged ahead after his second visit to the pits. Gerhard Berger recovered from a jump-start penalty to take third, helped by retirements among the cars ahead. Johnny Herbert finished fourth, with Jean-Christophe Boullion scoring his first points in fifth and Aguri Suzuki sixth.

Michael Schumacher became the first German to win a championship German Grand Prix and extended his lead over Damon Hill to 21 points. His Benetton stopped after the finish, but even the delayed return to the stadium could not diminish the celebrations. The home supporters finally had their winner.

After the race, Michael Schumacher headed the drivers’ standings with 56 points, followed by Damon Hill on 35. Benetton led the constructors’ table on 71, with Ferrari on 53.

1995 German Grand Prix race results

The 1995 German Grand Prix was held on 30 July 1995, with a scheduled start of 14:00 local time.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time / Retired	Pts.
1	1	Michael Schumacher	Benetton	45	1:22:56.043	10
2	6	David Coulthard	Williams	45	+ 5.988	6
3	28	Gerhard Berger	Ferrari	45	+ 1:08.097	4
4	2	Johnny Herbert	Benetton	45	+ 1:23.436	3
5	29	Jean-Christophe Boullion	Sauber	44	+ 1 lap	2
6	25	Aguri Suzuki	Ligier	44	+ 1 lap	1
7	3	Ukyo Katayama	Tyrrell	44	+ 1 lap	0
8	17	Andrea Montermini	Pacific	42	+ 3 laps	0
9	15	Eddie Irvine	Jordan	41	Throttle	0
Ret	8	Mika Häkkinen	McLaren	33	Engine	0
Ret	30	Heinz-Harald Frentzen	Sauber	32	Engine	0
Ret	24	Luca Badoer	Minardi	28	Oil leak	0
Ret	16	Giovanni Lavaggi	Pacific	27	Gearbox	0
Ret	22	Roberto Moreno	Forti	27	Halfshaft	0
Ret	14	Rubens Barrichello	Jordan	20	Engine	0
Ret	7	Mark Blundell	McLaren	17	Engine	0
Ret	26	Olivier Panis	Ligier	13	Water leak	0
Ret	27	Jean Alesi	Ferrari	12	Engine	0
Ret	23	Pierluigi Martini	Minardi	11	Engine	0
Ret	10	Taki Inoue	Footwork	9	Gearbox	0
Ret	21	Pedro Diniz	Forti	8	Brakes	0
Ret	5	Damon Hill	Williams	1	Driveshaft/spun off	0
Ret	4	Mika Salo	Tyrrell	0	Clutch	0
Ret	9	Massimiliano Papis	Footwork	0	Gearbox	0

1995 German Grand Prix Fastest Laps

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Lap	Time
1	1	Michael Schumacher	Benetton	22	1:48.824
2	6	David Coulthard	Williams	5	1:49.714
3	8	Mika Hakkinen	McLaren	14	1:49.900
4	28	Gerhard Berger	Ferrari	20	1:49.926
5	14	Rubens Barrichello	Jordan	6	1:49.927
6	15	Eddie Irvine	Jordan	30	1:50.646
7	27	Jean Alesi	Ferrari	10	1:50.672
8	26	Olivier Panis	Ligier	7	1:50.690
9	7	Mark Blundell	McLaren	6	1:50.781
10	2	Johnny Herbert	Benetton	25	1:50.929
11	30	Heinz-Harald Frentzen	Sauber	14	1:51.426
12	25	Aguri Suzuki	Ligier	25	1:51.760
13	29	Jean-Christophe Boullion	Sauber	20	1:52.033
14	3	Ukyo Katayama	Tyrrell	25	1:52.791
15	24	Luca Badoer	Minardi	4	1:52.859
16	10	Taki Inoue	Footwork	5	1:53.541
17	5	Damon Hill	Williams	1	1:53.989
18	23	Pierluigi Martini	Minardi	5	1:54.210
19	17	Andrea Montermini	Pacific	23	1:54.341
20	22	Roberto Moreno	Forti	4	1:56.038
21	16	Giovanni Lavaggi	Pacific	3	1:58.836
22	21	Pedro Diniz	Forti	2	2:02.176

Only drivers with a recorded lap time appear. No fastest-lap bonus point was awarded.

1995 Post-Race F1 Championship Standings

Championship standings after the 1995 German Grand Prix.

1995 Post-Race F1 Drivers' Championship Standings

POS	Driver	Nationality	Car	PTS
1	Michael Schumacher	German	Benetton	56
2	Damon Hill	British	Williams	35
3	Jean Alesi	French	Ferrari	32
4	Johnny Herbert	British	Benetton	25
5	David Coulthard	British	Williams	23
6	Gerhard Berger	Austrian	Ferrari	21
7	Rubens Barrichello	Brazilian	Jordan	7
8	Olivier Panis	French	Ligier	7
9	Eddie Irvine	British	Jordan	6
10	Mika Häkkinen	Finnish	McLaren	5
11	Mark Blundell	British	McLaren	5
12	Heinz-Harald Frentzen	German	Sauber	5
13	Martin Brundle	British	Ligier	3
14	Jean-Christophe Boullion	French	Sauber	2
15	Aguri Suzuki	Japanese	Ligier	1
16	Gianni Morbidelli	Italian	Footwork	1
–	Mika Salo	Finnish	Tyrrell	0
–	Pierluigi Martini	Italian	Minardi	0
–	Ukyo Katayama	Japanese	Tyrrell	0
–	Andrea Montermini	Italian	Pacific	0
–	Luca Badoer	Italian	Minardi	0
–	Domenico Schiattarella	Italian	Simtek	0
–	Taki Inoue	Japanese	Footwork	0
–	Pedro Diniz	Brazilian	Forti	0
–	Nigel Mansell	British	McLaren	0
–	Bertrand Gachot	Belgian	Pacific	0
–	Jos Verstappen	Dutch	Simtek	0
–	Karl Wendlinger	Austrian	Sauber	0
–	Roberto Moreno	Brazilian	Forti	0
–	Giovanni Lavaggi	Italian	Pacific	0
–	Massimiliano Papis	Italian	Footwork	0

1995 Post-Race F1 Constructors' Championship Standings

POS	Car	PTS
1	Benetton	71
2	Ferrari	53
3	Williams	52
4	Jordan	13
5	Ligier	11
6	McLaren	10
7	Sauber	7
8	Footwork	1
9	Minardi	0
10	Tyrrell	0
11	Pacific	0
12	Simtek	0
13	Forti	0

1995 Formula 1 Race Calendar

Round	Grand Prix	Circuit	Date
1	1995 Brazilian Grand Prix	Autódromo José Carlos Pace, São Paulo	26 March
2	1995 Argentine Grand Prix	Autódromo Oscar Alfredo Gálvez, Buenos Aires	9 April
3	1995 San Marino Grand Prix	Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari, Imola	30 April
4	1995 Spanish Grand Prix	Circuit de Catalunya, Montmeló	14 May
5	1995 Monaco Grand Prix	Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo	28 May
6	1995 Canadian Grand Prix	Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve, Montréal	11 June
7	1995 French Grand Prix	Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours, Magny-Cours	2 July
8	1995 British Grand Prix	Silverstone Circuit, Silverstone	16 July
9	1995 German Grand Prix	Hockenheimring, Hockenheim	30 July
10	1995 Hungarian Grand Prix	Hungaroring, Mogyoród	13 August
11	1995 Belgian Grand Prix	Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot	27 August
12	1995 Italian Grand Prix	Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, Monza	10 September
13	1995 Portuguese Grand Prix	Autódromo do Estoril, Estoril	24 September
14	1995 European Grand Prix	Nürburgring, Nürburg	1 October
15	1995 Pacific Grand Prix	TI Circuit-Aida, Aida	22 October
16	1995 Japanese Grand Prix	Suzuka International Racing Course, Suzuka	29 October
17	1995 Australian Grand Prix	Adelaide Street Circuit, Adelaide	12 November