2009 German Grand Prix: F1 Race, Qualifying & Winners

Mark Webber finally stood on the top step of a Formula 1 podium after a superb drive at the Nürburgring. Even a drive-through penalty could not prevent the Australian converting his maiden pole into victory, with Sebastian Vettel completing another Red Bull Racing one-two.

Result	Driver / Time	Team
Pole position	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing
Pole time	1:32.230
Fastest lap	Fernando Alonso	Renault
Fastest-lap time	1:33.365 on lap 49
First	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing
Second	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing
Third	Felipe Massa	Ferrari

Weekend Schedule

Date	Session	Local Time
10 July 2009	Practice 1	10:00
10 July 2009	Practice 2	14:00
11 July 2009	Practice 3	11:00
11 July 2009	Qualifying	14:00
12 July 2009	Race	14:00

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

Championship background

Jenson Button arrived at round 9 leading the 2009 F1 World Championship on 64 points, with Rubens Barrichello on 41. Brawn GP headed the constructors’ standings after the preceding race with 105 points.

Race entries

The 10 teams kept the same race line-ups for the German Grand Prix.

Free Practice

Mark Webber set the pace in opening practice while Sebastian Vettel lost around half the session to a mechanical problem. Adrian Sutil also encountered reliability trouble. The contrasting fortunes within Red Bull Racing made Mark Webber’s uninterrupted running particularly valuable as the team sought to maintain the momentum of its dominant Silverstone performance.

Lewis Hamilton’s heavily revised McLaren showed encouraging speed in FP2, giving the reigning champion reason for optimism after a difficult first half of the season. Giancarlo Fisichella had a much shorter afternoon: he spun into the tyre barrier after only three laps, leaving Force India with repair work and little useful running from his car.

Lewis Hamilton remained fastest in FP3, reinforcing the impression that McLaren’s upgrades had produced a substantial improvement. The cold conditions continued to trouble Brawn GP: Jenson Button reported difficulty getting the softer tyres up to temperature and finished outside the top ten. The championship leader therefore approached qualifying with a clear setup concern.

Free Practice 1 Classification

2009 German Grand Prix FP1, 10 July 2009

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	14	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	1:33.082	19
2	22	Jenson Button	Brawn GP	+0.381s	18
3	3	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	+0.663s	21
4	9	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	+0.713s	23
5	21	Giancarlo Fisichella	Force India	+0.757s	26
6	4	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	+0.758s	23
7	16	Nico Rosberg	Williams	+0.820s	26
8	15	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	+0.827s	13
9	17	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams	+0.870s	25
10	7	Fernando Alonso	Renault	+1.066s	16
11	6	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	+1.139s	25
12	23	Rubens Barrichello	Brawn GP	+1.145s	17
13	1	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	+1.401s	14
14	5	Robert Kubica	BMW Sauber	+1.612s	23
15	8	Nelson Piquet	Renault	+1.656s	24
16	11	Sebastien Bourdais	Toro Rosso	+1.745s	27
17	12	Sebastien Buemi	Toro Rosso	+1.796s	28
18	2	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren	+1.811s	26
19	10	Timo Glock	Toyota	+1.829s	23
20	20	Adrian Sutil	Force India	+2.010s	6

Free Practice 2 Classification

2009 German Grand Prix FP2, 10 July 2009

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	1	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	1:32.149	23
2	15	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	+0.182s	31
3	22	Jenson Button	Brawn GP	+0.220s	32
4	14	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	+0.331s	28
5	9	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	+0.362s	32
6	20	Adrian Sutil	Force India	+0.436s	32
7	23	Rubens Barrichello	Brawn GP	+0.515s	26
8	7	Fernando Alonso	Renault	+0.625s	24
9	17	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams	+0.723s	32
10	8	Nelson Piquet	Renault	+0.843s	29
11	6	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	+0.863s	36
12	3	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	+0.903s	34
13	16	Nico Rosberg	Williams	+0.979s	34
14	5	Robert Kubica	BMW Sauber	+1.012s	28
15	10	Timo Glock	Toyota	+1.023s	34
16	4	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	+1.033s	29
17	2	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren	+1.575s	27
18	12	Sebastien Buemi	Toro Rosso	+1.754s	30
19	11	Sebastien Bourdais	Toro Rosso	+1.876s	30
20	21	Giancarlo Fisichella	Force India	+6.728s	3

Free Practice 3 Classification

2009 German Grand Prix FP3, 11 July 2009

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	1	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	1:31.121	16
2	7	Fernando Alonso	Renault	+0.219s	18
3	3	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	+0.230s	20
4	15	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	+0.421s	17
5	14	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	+0.489s	16
6	4	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	+0.494s	19
7	9	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	+0.499s	23
8	16	Nico Rosberg	Williams	+0.569s	20
9	17	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams	+0.610s	20
10	6	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	+0.807s	21
11	22	Jenson Button	Brawn GP	+0.888s	22
12	10	Timo Glock	Toyota	+0.901s	20
13	20	Adrian Sutil	Force India	+0.983s	20
14	23	Rubens Barrichello	Brawn GP	+1.003s	13
15	21	Giancarlo Fisichella	Force India	+1.014s	21
16	8	Nelson Piquet	Renault	+1.102s	15
17	12	Sebastien Buemi	Toro Rosso	+1.118s	23
18	5	Robert Kubica	BMW Sauber	+1.148s	20
19	2	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren	+1.621s	18
20	11	Sebastien Bourdais	Toro Rosso	+1.762s	21

Qualifying

Mark Webber claimed his first pole after negotiating a qualifying session complicated by changing weather. Rain in Q2 caught out several contenders, including Fernando Alonso and both Williams drivers. Rubens Barrichello and Jenson Button then split Mark Webber from Sebastian Vettel in the final shootout.

Adrian Sutil delighted the home crowd by putting Force India seventh, ahead of both Ferraris. Nelson Piquet reached Q3 for the first time that season, while Timo Glock’s early elimination was compounded by a grid penalty for impeding Fernando Alonso.

Qualifying Classification

2009 German Grand Prix Qualifying, 11 July 2009

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Q1	Q2	Q3	Laps
1	14	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	1:31.257	1:38.038	1:32.230	22
2	23	Rubens Barrichello	Brawn GP	1:31.482	1:34.455	1:32.357	22
3	22	Jenson Button	Brawn GP	1:31.568	1:39.032	1:32.473	23
4	15	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	1:31.430	1:39.504	1:32.480	20
5	1	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	1:31.473	1:39.149	1:32.616	19
6	2	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren	1:31.881	1:40.826	1:33.859	21
7	20	Adrian Sutil	Force India	1:32.015	1:36.740	1:34.316	20
8	3	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	1:31.600	1:41.708	1:34.574	22
9	4	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	1:31.869	1:41.730	1:34.710	23
10	8	Nelson Piquet	Renault	1:32.128	1:35.737	1:34.803	24
11	6	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	1:31.771	1:42.310	—	14
12	7	Fernando Alonso	Renault	1:31.302	1:42.318	—	15
13	17	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams	1:31.884	1:42.500	—	17
14	9	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	1:31.760	1:42.771	—	17
15	16	Nico Rosberg	Williams	1:31.598	1:42.859	—	14
16	5	Robert Kubica	BMW Sauber	1:32.190	—	—	10
17	12	Sébastien Buemi	Toro Rosso	1:32.251	—	—	11
18	21	Giancarlo Fisichella	Force India	1:32.402	—	—	11
19	10	Timo Glock	Toyota	1:32.423	—	—	11
20	11	Sébastien Bourdais	Toro Rosso	1:33.559	—	—	11

Timo Glock received a 3 place grid-penalty for obstructing Fernando Alonso. As he was already 19th on the grid, he was sent to the rear.

What happened in the 2009 German Grand Prix?

Mark Webber’s breakthrough began with a setback. Contact with Rubens Barrichello at the start earned him a drive-through penalty, while Lewis Hamilton’s promising launch ended with a puncture after contact with the Red Bull Racing car. Rubens Barrichello led the early running, but Mark Webber had the speed to recover through the pit-stop sequence.

Force India briefly looked capable of a major result before Adrian Sutil collided with Kimi Räikkönen as he left the pits. The resulting damage ruined Adrian Sutil’s points chances, and Kimi Räikkönen later retired. Brawn GP struggled to make its tyres work, while Fernando Alonso produced a strong final stint to pressure the championship-leading cars.

Mark Webber crossed the line ahead of Sebastian Vettel and Felipe Massa, claiming victory in his 130th Grand Prix start. Nico Rosberg recovered to fourth, with Jenson Button fifth and Rubens Barrichello sixth. After years of near misses, Mark Webber had delivered an emphatic first win, and Red Bull Racing had taken another sizeable bite out of Brawn GP’s advantage.

After the race, Jenson Button headed the drivers’ standings with 68 points, followed by Sebastian Vettel on 47. Brawn GP led the constructors’ table on 112, with Red Bull Racing on 92.5.

2009 German Grand Prix race results

The 2009 German Grand Prix was held on 12 July 2009, with a scheduled start of 14:00 local time.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time / Retired	Pts.
1	14	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	60	1:36:43.310	10
2	15	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	60	+9.252	8
3	3	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	60	+15.906	6
4	16	Nico Rosberg	Williams	60	+21.099	5
5	22	Jenson Button	Brawn GP	60	+23.609	4
6	23	Rubens Barrichello	Brawn GP	60	+24.468	3
7	7	Fernando Alonso	Renault	60	+24.888	2
8	2	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren	60	+58.692	1
9	10	Timo Glock	Toyota	60	+1:01.457	0
10	6	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	60	+1:01.925	0
11	21	Giancarlo Fisichella	Force India	60	+1:02.327	0
12	17	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams	60	+1:02.876	0
13	8	Nelson Piquet	Renault	60	+1:08.328	0
14	5	Robert Kubica	BMW Sauber	60	+1:09.555	0
15	20	Adrian Sutil	Force India	60	+1:11.941	0
16	12	Sébastien Buemi	Toro Rosso	60	+1:30.225	0
17	9	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	60	+1:30.970	0
18	1	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	59	+1 lap	0
Ret	4	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	34	Radiator	0
Ret	11	Sébastien Bourdais	Toro Rosso	18	Hydraulics	0

Timo Glock started the race from the pit lane.

2009 German Grand Prix Fastest Laps

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Lap	Time	Avg. Speed
1	7	Fernando Alonso	Renault	49	1:33.365	198.498
2	9	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	52	1:33.654	197.885
3	14	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	37	1:34.003	197.151
4	15	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	42	1:34.089	196.970
5	17	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams	49	1:34.238	196.659
6	22	Jenson Button	Brawn GP	53	1:34.252	196.630
7	16	Nico Rosberg	Williams	50	1:34.403	196.315
8	3	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	53	1:34.458	196.201
9	5	Robert Kubica	BMW Sauber	47	1:34.537	196.037
10	6	Nick Heidfeld	BMW Sauber	42	1:34.559	195.991
11	23	Rubens Barrichello	Brawn GP	54	1:34.676	195.749
12	8	Nelson Piquet	Renault	46	1:34.876	195.337
13	21	Giancarlo Fisichella	Force India	54	1:35.301	194.465
14	20	Adrian Sutil	Force India	43	1:35.366	194.333
15	1	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	46	1:35.367	194.331
16	10	Timo Glock	Toyota	40	1:35.369	194.327
17	2	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren	59	1:35.524	194.011
18	4	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	4	1:36.080	192.889
19	12	Sebastien Buemi	Toro Rosso	24	1:36.279	192.490
20	11	Sebastien Bourdais	Toro Rosso	10	1:37.498	190.083

Only drivers with a recorded lap time appear. Average speeds are in km/h. No fastest-lap bonus point was awarded.

2009 Post-Race F1 Championship Standings

Championship standings after the 2009 German Grand Prix.

2009 Post-Race F1 Drivers' Championship Standings

POS	Driver	Nationality	Car	PTS
1	Jenson Button	British	Brawn GP	68
2	Sebastian Vettel	German	Red Bull Racing	47
3	Mark Webber	Australian	Red Bull Racing	45.5
4	Rubens Barrichello	Brazilian	Brawn GP	44
5	Felipe Massa	Brazilian	Ferrari	22
6	Jarno Trulli	Italian	Toyota	21.5
7	Nico Rosberg	German	Williams	20.5
8	Timo Glock	German	Toyota	13
9	Fernando Alonso	Spanish	Renault	13
10	Kimi Räikkönen	Finnish	Ferrari	10
11	Lewis Hamilton	British	McLaren	9
12	Nick Heidfeld	German	BMW Sauber	6
13	Heikki Kovalainen	Finnish	McLaren	5
14	Sébastien Buemi	Swiss	Toro Rosso	3
15	Robert Kubica	Polish	BMW Sauber	2
16	Sébastien Bourdais	French	Toro Rosso	2
17	Giancarlo Fisichella	Italian	Force India	0
18	Adrian Sutil	German	Force India	0
19	Nelson Piquet	Brazilian	Renault	0
20	Kazuki Nakajima	Japanese	Williams	0

2009 Post-Race F1 Constructors' Championship Standings

POS	Car	PTS
1	Brawn GP	112
2	Red Bull Racing	92.5
3	Toyota	34.5
4	Ferrari	32
5	Williams	20.5
6	McLaren	14
7	Renault	13
8	BMW Sauber	8
9	Toro Rosso	5
10	Force India	0

2009 Formula 1 Race Calendar

Round	Grand Prix	Circuit	Date
1	2009 Australian Grand Prix	Albert Park Circuit, Melbourne	29 March
2	2009 Malaysian Grand Prix	Sepang International Circuit, Sepang	5 April
3	2009 Chinese Grand Prix	Shanghai International Circuit, Shanghai	19 April
4	2009 Bahrain Grand Prix	Bahrain International Circuit, Sakhir	26 April
5	2009 Spanish Grand Prix	Circuit de Catalunya, Montmeló	10 May
6	2009 Monaco Grand Prix	Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo	24 May
7	2009 Turkish Grand Prix	Istanbul Park, Istanbul	7 June
8	2009 British Grand Prix	Silverstone Circuit, Silverstone	21 June
9	2009 German Grand Prix	Nürburgring, Nürburg	12 July
10	2009 Hungarian Grand Prix	Hungaroring, Mogyoród	26 July
11	2009 European Grand Prix	Valencia Street Circuit, Valencia	23 August
12	2009 Belgian Grand Prix	Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot	30 August
13	2009 Italian Grand Prix	Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, Monza	13 September
14	2009 Singapore Grand Prix	Marina Bay Street Circuit, Singapore	27 September
15	2009 Japanese Grand Prix	Suzuka International Racing Course, Suzuka	4 October
16	2009 Brazilian Grand Prix	Autódromo José Carlos Pace, São Paulo	18 October
17	2009 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix	Yas Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi	1 November