With Germany boasting 25% of the current F1 grid, there was a lot of national interest in the Hockenheim race, the first time Formula 1 has visited the track for two years. It meant a busy schedule for Timo Glock, who was brought up just 45 minutes away from the circuit. Timo also had a number of family and friends at the track but managed to take time out to win a tent-building contest among the German drivers run by Premiere TV. It was held just outside the track and appealed to the thousands of German fans who traditionally camp at Hockenheim. It was all celebrated with a bratwurst afterwards.

His prize was a giant bag of charcoal and there was no chance he was leaving his first winner's trophy for Panasonic Toyota Racing behind - it soon found a home in the team motorhome. From there Timo went directly back to the pit lane to conduct VIP track rides in a Panasonic Toyota Racing-branded Auris.

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McLaren-Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton moved four points clear at the head of the World Championship after his fourth win of the year.

It came despite Hamilton being the only one of the lead two-stopping drivers not to pit at the safety car which emerged following Timo’s accident. “It meant that I was left having to try to open a 23s gap in seven laps, so I’m not sure how that was going to work out,” Hamilton said.

It didn’t and he rejoined fourth and had to overtake team-mate Heikki Kovalainen, Felipe Massa’s Ferrari and Nelson Piquet Jr’s Renault to claim the win.

Piquet scored his first Formula 1 podium with second place after benefiting from the safety car while Massa was third.

The safety car also worked in Nick Heidfeld’s favour and the BMW Sauber driver finished the race in fourth position while Kovalainen was fifth in the other McLaren-Mercedes.

Kimi Raikkonen could not match the McLaren pace and had to be content with and sixth place. He ran behind Jarno’s TF108 in the opening stint until getting ahead through running three laps further on his first stint.  
 
Red Bull Racing has confirmed that Sebastian Vettel, who turned 21 at the start of the month, will join Mark Webber in the team’s 2009 line-up. Scot David Coulthard announced at Silverstone that he will finish his F1 racing career at the end of the year. Vettel finished eighth, just behind Robert Kubica.

Race Report

Panasonic Toyota Racing left the German Grand Prix, round 10 of the FIA Formula 1 World Championship, without a point from a race that had promised much.

Timo Glock suffered a heavy accident when he hit the wall midway through a promising race while Jarno Trulli looked set for points before suffering from balance issues in his third stint. He lost eighth spot late in the race despite a valiant fight.

After a brilliant qualifying from Jarno, which put him fourth on the grid, another strong showing was expected just a couple of hours from the team’s Cologne base, while Timo had a strong strategy on his side from 11th.

Jarno lost a place to Robert Kubica when he was forced to make room for Fernando Alonso at the hairpin on the opening lap, however. He then battled hard to keep Alonso behind him and consolidated his position when both pitted together on lap 19. He looked all set for a top six finish after a strong opening half of the race but after changing to prime Bridgestone Potenza tyres under the safety car, he suffered balance issues and lost pace, bringing him into the clutches of Sebastian Vettel, who took eighth in the final laps.

“Everything was looking good early in the race but after our second stop, when we switched our strategy because of the safety car, it became really difficult,” said Jarno.
 
“I was having problems with the balance. I struggled a lot and in the last 10 laps it was really tough. But I was in eighth place and fighting really hard to get a point. I was holding off Vettel but unfortunately I locked up the front and couldn't recover so I lost the position.”

Timo was the first of those on the grid with a free strategy and he used that to good effect, running an excellent 29-lap opening stint from which he emerged eighth, just 4secs behind Jarno.

Shortly afterwards, however, he suffered the accident which required precautionary checks at a local hospital, although he was ultimately fine.

Chairman and Team Principal Tadashi Yamashina said: "For us the priority is that Timo is okay. At the moment it is too early to determine exactly what the cause of the incident was but of course we are investigating. He was doing a strong race and was looking set for another points finish so it was a real pity. It has been a difficult day but we must look forward and fight to have both cars in the points at the next race."

Panasonic Toyota Racing retains fourth place in the constructors’ championship with 25 points, one clear of Red Bull Racing. Renault now has 23 points.

The series now heads to the high downforce Hungaroring on August 3 before the three-week summer break.