2011 German Grand Prix: F1 Race, Qualifying & Winners

Lewis Hamilton won a closely fought German Grand Prix ahead of Fernando Alonso and Mark Webber. The leading trio traded the advantage through overtaking and pit stops, while Sebastian Vettel finished outside the podium for the first time that season.

Result	Driver / Time	Team
Pole position	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing
Pole time	1:30.079
Fastest lap	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren
Fastest-lap time	1:34.302 on lap 59
First	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren
Second	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari
Third	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing

Weekend Schedule

Date	Session	Local Time
22 July 2011	Practice 1	10:00 – 11:30
22 July 2011	Practice 2	14:00 – 15:30
23 July 2011	Practice 3	11:00 – 12:00
23 July 2011	Qualifying	14:00
24 July 2011	Race	14:00

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

Championship background

Sebastian Vettel arrived at round 10 leading the 2011 F1 World Championship on 204 points, with Mark Webber on 124. Red Bull Racing headed the constructors’ standings with 328 points.

Race entries

Karun Chandhok made his only race appearance of the season, substituting for Jarno Trulli at Team Lotus alongside Heikki Kovalainen.

Free Practice

Fernando Alonso led FP1 as Ferrari appeared capable of challenging Red Bull. Jenson Button lacked KERS, limiting McLaren’s assessment of its pace, while Sebastien Buemi slid across the gravel near the end. The cool Nürburgring conditions added to the task of understanding tyre performance before the afternoon’s longer runs.

Mark Webber impressed over both short and longer runs in FP2, while Fernando Alonso again challenged near the front. Numerous lock-ups and excursions reflected the search for grip. Jenson Button’s revised exhaust failed, ending his session early, and Sebastien Buemi missed the running altogether because of a fuel-pressure problem.

Sebastian Vettel led FP3 in cool conditions that made tyre warm-up important. Many drivers produced their best laps on a second attempt on the softer compound, although Fernando Alonso was immediately competitive. That left some uncertainty over Ferrari’s ultimate speed heading into qualifying, while McLaren still appeared behind on a single lap.

Free Practice 1 Classification

2011 German Grand Prix FP1, 22 July 2011

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	1:31.894	30
2	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	+0.323s	24
3	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	+0.374s	27
4	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	+0.787s	23
5	3	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	+1.102s	18
6	4	Jenson Button	McLaren	+1.734s	22
7	8	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	+1.893s	33
8	14	Adrian Sutil	Force India	+1.938s	27
9	15	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India	+1.964s	26
10	7	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	+1.969s	31
11	10	Vitaly Petrov	Renault	+2.200s	22
12	19	Jaime Alguersuari	Toro Rosso	+3.221s	23
13	18	Sebastien Buemi	Toro Rosso	+3.477s	20
14	11	Rubens Barrichello	Williams	+3.495s	24
15	9	Nick Heidfeld	Renault	+3.550s	22
16	17	Sergio Perez	Sauber	+4.477s	22
17	20	Heikki Kovalainen	Team Lotus	+4.498s	29
18	12	Pastor Maldonado	Williams	+4.948s	29
19	16	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	+4.988s	27
20	23	Narain Karthikeyan	HRT	+6.610s	22
21	21	Karun Chandhok	Team Lotus	+6.871s	19
22	22	Daniel Ricciardo	HRT	+7.385s	24
23	24	Timo Glock	Virgin Racing	+8.215s	23
24	25	Jerome d'Ambrosio	Virgin Racing	+8.534s	22

Free Practice 2 Classification

2011 German Grand Prix FP2, 22 July 2011

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	1:31.711	34
2	5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	+0.168s	38
3	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	+0.373s	28
4	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	+0.643s	36
5	7	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	+0.700s	31
6	8	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	+0.846s	32
7	3	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	+1.013s	28
8	9	Nick Heidfeld	Renault	+1.387s	17
9	10	Vitaly Petrov	Renault	+1.427s	22
10	14	Adrian Sutil	Force India	+1.500s	34
11	4	Jenson Button	McLaren	+1.514s	17
12	15	Paul di Resta	Force India	+1.588s	34
13	17	Sergio Perez	Sauber	+2.402s	34
14	11	Rubens Barrichello	Williams	+2.633s	34
15	19	Jaime Alguersuari	Toro Rosso	+2.776s	37
16	16	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	+2.780s	35
17	12	Pastor Maldonado	Williams	+3.285s	35
18	20	Heikki Kovalainen	Team Lotus	+4.042s	42
19	24	Timo Glock	Virgin Racing	+5.229s	32
20	21	Karun Chandhok	Team Lotus	+5.537s	33
21	25	Jerome d'Ambrosio	Virgin Racing	+5.602s	33
22	23	Vitantonio Liuzzi	HRT	+6.434s	31
23	22	Daniel Ricciardo	HRT	+9.026s	5
24	18	Sebastien Buemi	Toro Rosso	No time	3

Free Practice 3 Classification

2011 German Grand Prix FP3, 23 July 2011

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	1:30.916	15
2	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	+0.133s	16
3	5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	+0.222s	12
4	3	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	+0.662s	13
5	4	Jenson Button	McLaren	+0.707s	14
6	8	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	+0.778s	19
7	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	+1.228s	13
8	14	Adrian Sutil	Force India	+1.475s	20
9	7	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	+1.607s	16
10	12	Pastor Maldonado	Williams	+1.835s	18
11	10	Vitaly Petrov	Renault	+1.861s	18
12	15	Paul di Resta	Force India	+1.897s	21
13	9	Nick Heidfeld	Renault	+2.156s	18
14	11	Rubens Barrichello	Williams	+2.263s	17
15	17	Sergio Perez	Sauber	+2.615s	20
16	16	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	+2.755s	20
17	18	Sebastien Buemi	Toro Rosso	+3.032s	21
18	19	Jaime Alguersuari	Toro Rosso	+3.209s	19
19	20	Heikki Kovalainen	Team Lotus	+4.469s	13
20	24	Timo Glock	Virgin Racing	+5.808s	21
21	23	Vitantonio Liuzzi	HRT	+5.888s	23
22	25	Jerome d'Ambrosio	Virgin Racing	+5.978s	23
23	21	Karun Chandhok	Team Lotus	+6.043s	18
24	22	Daniel Ricciardo	HRT	+6.638s	22

Qualifying

Mark Webber headed qualifying for Red Bull Racing, with Lewis Hamilton second and Sebastian Vettel third.

Mark Webber took pole ahead of Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel. Karun Chandhok replaced Jarno Trulli at Team Lotus for the weekend, while Sébastien Buemi was excluded from qualifying for a fuel irregularity.

Qualifying Classification

2011 German Grand Prix Qualifying, 23 July 2011

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Q1	Q2	Q3	Laps
1	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	1:33.096	1:31.311	1:30.079	18
2	3	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	1:32.934	1:30.998	1:30.134	15
3	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	1:32.973	1:31.017	1:30.216	16
4	5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	1:32.916	1:31.150	1:30.442	16
5	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	1:31.826	1:31.582	1:30.910	19
6	8	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	1:32.785	1:31.343	1:31.263	22
7	4	Jenson Button	McLaren	1:33.224	1:31.532	1:31.288	14
8	14	Adrian Sutil	Force India	1:32.286	1:31.809	1:32.010	18
9	10	Vitaly Petrov	Renault	1:33.187	1:31.985	1:32.187	16
10	7	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	1:32.603	1:32.180	1:32.482	18
11	9	Nick Heidfeld	Renault	1:32.505	1:32.215	—	16
12	15	Paul di Resta	Force India	1:32.651	1:32.560	—	15
13	12	Pastor Maldonado	Williams	1:33.003	1:32.635	—	13
14	11	Rubens Barrichello	Williams	1:33.664	1:33.043	—	18
15	17	Sergio Pérez	Sauber	1:33.295	1:33.176	—	14
EX	18	Sébastien Buemi	Toro Rosso	1:33.635	1:33.546	—	11
16	19	Jaime Alguersuari	Toro Rosso	1:33.658	1:33.698	—	11
17	16	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	1:33.786	—	—	5
18	20	Heikki Kovalainen	Team Lotus	1:35.599	—	—	9
19	24	Timo Glock	Virgin Racing	1:36.400	—	—	12
20	21	Karun Chandhok	Team Lotus	1:36.422	—	—	11
21	25	Jérôme d'Ambrosio	Virgin Racing	1:36.641	—	—	12
22	23	Vitantonio Liuzzi	HRT	1:37.011	—	—	11
23	22	Daniel Ricciardo	HRT	1:37.036	—	—	11

Sebastien Buemi was excluded from qualifying for an irregularity with the fuel in his Toro Rosso.

Vitantonio Liuzzi received a five-place grid penalty for a gearbox change.

What happened in the 2011 German Grand Prix?

Hamilton passed Webber at the start, while Alonso moved ahead of Vettel. Vettel briefly regained the position after Alonso ran wide, but the Ferrari soon passed again and the leading three began to pull away.

Webber used an earlier stop to gain track position, but Hamilton fought back as the strategies unfolded. Vettel spun and became involved in a separate contest with Massa, while Heidfeld retired after contact with Buemi.

Hamilton gained the decisive advantage during the later stop sequence, immediately attacking on his tyres as rivals rejoined. Alonso secured second ahead of Webber, but neither could overturn Hamilton’s lead at the finish.

Vettel beat Massa to fourth through their final pit stops. Adrian Sutil finished sixth ahead of Rosberg and Schumacher, while Button retired with a hydraulic problem. Hamilton’s victory moved him to third in the championship.

Further down the points places, Nico Rosberg, Michael Schumacher, Kamui Kobayashi and Vitaly Petrov completed the scoring positions. Lewis Hamilton set the fastest lap, but no bonus point was awarded under the 2011 rules.

After the race, Sebastian Vettel headed the drivers’ standings with 216 points, followed by Mark Webber on 139. Red Bull Racing led the constructors’ table on 355, with McLaren on 243.

2011 German Grand Prix race results

The 2011 German Grand Prix was held on 24 July 2011, with a scheduled start of 14:00 local time.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time / Retired	Pts.
1	3	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	60	1:37:30.334	25
2	5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	60	+3.980	18
3	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	60	+9.788	15
4	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	60	+47.921	12
5	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	60	+52.252	10
6	14	Adrian Sutil	Force India	60	+1:26.208	8
7	8	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	59	+1 Lap	6
8	7	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	59	+1 Lap	4
9	16	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	59	+1 Lap	2
10	10	Vitaly Petrov	Renault	59	+1 Lap	1
11	17	Sergio Pérez	Sauber	59	+1 Lap	0
12	19	Jaime Alguersuari	Toro Rosso	59	+1 Lap	0
13	15	Paul di Resta	Force India	59	+1 Lap	0
14	12	Pastor Maldonado	Williams	59	+1 Lap	0
15	18	Sébastien Buemi	Toro Rosso	59	+1 Lap	0
16	20	Heikki Kovalainen	Team Lotus	58	+2 Laps	0
17	24	Timo Glock	Virgin Racing	57	+3 Laps	0
18	25	Jérôme d'Ambrosio	Virgin Racing	57	+3 Laps	0
19	22	Daniel Ricciardo	HRT	57	+3 Laps	0
20	21	Karun Chandhok	Team Lotus	56	+4 Laps	0
Ret	23	Vitantonio Liuzzi	HRT	37	Electrical	0
Ret	4	Jenson Button	McLaren	35	Hydraulics	0
Ret	11	Rubens Barrichello	Williams	16	Engine	0
Ret	9	Nick Heidfeld	Renault	9	Collision	0

2011 German Grand Prix Fastest Laps

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Lap	Time	Avg. Speed
1	3	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren	59	1:34.302	196.526
2	2	Mark Webber	Red Bull Racing	60	1:34.468	196.180
3	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing	47	1:34.587	195.933
4	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	51	1:34.609	195.888
5	5	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	60	1:34.626	195.853
6	7	Michael Schumacher	Mercedes	49	1:35.628	193.800
7	8	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	51	1:36.181	192.686
8	10	Vitaly Petrov	Renault	50	1:36.186	192.676
9	4	Jenson Button	McLaren	33	1:36.258	192.532
10	14	Adrian Sutil	Force India	57	1:36.653	191.745
11	16	Kamui Kobayashi	Sauber	50	1:36.659	191.733
12	15	Paul di Resta	Force India	54	1:36.715	191.622
13	17	Sergio Perez	Sauber	53	1:37.033	190.994
14	19	Jaime Alguersuari	Toro Rosso	59	1:37.415	190.245
15	12	Pastor Maldonado	Williams	50	1:37.568	189.947
16	18	Sebastien Buemi	Toro Rosso	48	1:37.863	189.374
17	20	Heikki Kovalainen	Team Lotus	54	1:39.050	187.105
18	9	Nick Heidfeld	Renault	7	1:39.452	186.349
19	11	Rubens Barrichello	Williams	8	1:39.679	185.924
20	25	Jerome d'Ambrosio	Virgin Racing	57	1:39.787	185.723
21	24	Timo Glock	Virgin Racing	57	1:39.982	185.361
22	21	Karun Chandhok	Team Lotus	56	1:40.435	184.525
23	22	Daniel Ricciardo	HRT	57	1:40.489	184.426
24	23	Vitantonio Liuzzi	HRT	28	1:40.683	184.070

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

2011 Post-Race F1 Championship Standings

Championship standings after the 2011 German Grand Prix.

2011 Post-Race F1 Drivers' Championship Standings

POS	Driver	Nationality	Car	PTS
1	Sebastian Vettel	German	Red Bull Racing	216
2	Mark Webber	Australian	Red Bull Racing	139
3	Lewis Hamilton	British	McLaren	134
4	Fernando Alonso	Spanish	Ferrari	130
5	Jenson Button	British	McLaren	109
6	Felipe Massa	Brazilian	Ferrari	62
7	Nico Rosberg	German	Mercedes	46
8	Nick Heidfeld	German	Renault	34
9	Vitaly Petrov	Russian	Renault	32
10	Michael Schumacher	German	Mercedes	32
11	Kamui Kobayashi	Japanese	Sauber	27
12	Adrian Sutil	German	Force India	18
13	Jaime Alguersuari	Spanish	Toro Rosso	9
14	Sergio Pérez	Mexican	Sauber	8
15	Sébastien Buemi	Swiss	Toro Rosso	8
16	Rubens Barrichello	Brazilian	Williams	4
17	Paul di Resta	British	Force India	2
18	Pedro de la Rosa	Spanish	Sauber	0
19	Jarno Trulli	Italian	Team Lotus	0
20	Vitantonio Liuzzi	Italian	HRT	0
21	Pastor Maldonado	Venezuelan	Williams	0
22	Jérôme d'Ambrosio	Belgian	Virgin Racing	0
23	Heikki Kovalainen	Finnish	Team Lotus	0
24	Timo Glock	German	Virgin Racing	0
25	Narain Karthikeyan	Indian	HRT	0
26	Daniel Ricciardo	Australian	HRT	0
27	Karun Chandhok	Indian	Team Lotus	0

2011 Post-Race F1 Constructors' Championship Standings

POS	Car	PTS
1	Red Bull Racing	355
2	McLaren	243
3	Ferrari	192
4	Mercedes	78
5	Renault	66
6	Sauber	35
7	Force India	20
8	Toro Rosso	17
9	Williams	4
10	Team Lotus	0
11	HRT	0
12	Virgin Racing	0

2011 Formula 1 Race Calendar

Round	Grand Prix	Circuit	Date
1	2011 Australian Grand Prix	Albert Park Circuit, Melbourne	27 March
2	2011 Malaysian Grand Prix	Sepang International Circuit, Sepang	10 April
3	2011 Chinese Grand Prix	Shanghai International Circuit, Shanghai	17 April
4	2011 Turkish Grand Prix	Istanbul Park, Istanbul	8 May
5	2011 Spanish Grand Prix	Circuit de Catalunya, Montmeló	22 May
6	2011 Monaco Grand Prix	Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo	29 May
7	2011 Canadian Grand Prix	Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve, Montréal	12 June
8	2011 European Grand Prix	Valencia Street Circuit, Valencia	26 June
9	2011 British Grand Prix	Silverstone Circuit, Silverstone	10 July
10	2011 German Grand Prix	Nürburgring, Nürburg	24 July
11	2011 Hungarian Grand Prix	Hungaroring, Mogyoród	31 July
12	2011 Belgian Grand Prix	Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot	28 August
13	2011 Italian Grand Prix	Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, Monza	11 September
14	2011 Singapore Grand Prix	Marina Bay Street Circuit, Singapore	25 September
15	2011 Japanese Grand Prix	Suzuka International Racing Course, Suzuka	9 October
16	2011 Korean Grand Prix	Korea International Circuit, Yeongam	16 October
17	2011 Indian Grand Prix	Buddh International Circuit, Greater Noida	30 October
18	2011 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix	Yas Marina Circuit, Abu Dhabi	13 November
19	2011 Brazilian Grand Prix	Autódromo José Carlos Pace, São Paulo	27 November