The 2nd German Grand Prix is upon us, less than a week after the flag fell at the Austrian Grand Prix giving no time for the teams to test their cars. As a consequence, form is very hard to predict and following on from the A-1 Ring, hopes are high for another exciting race.

Circuit Length: 2.82 miles/4.54 km Race length: 67 laps (188.940 miles/305.252 km)

What happened last time?

The Field

Arrows-Yamaha
A solid, if uninspiring performance at the A-1 Ring bodes well for Arrows-Yamaha at the Nurburgring. Pedro Diniz was soundly thrashed by Damon Hill when it mattered, but was impressive in the practice sessions. That said, perhaps this is why Damon was quicker in qualifying, having taken the time to get the car working well before the sessions that count. The drivers have always said that the weak link in the team was the engine and now it seems that the Yamaha v10 is starting to come good. I would predict that Damon would beat Pedro, but not by as much as we have seen. As for their finishing position, God only knows, but if Bridgestone get it right again, points are on the cards.

Rothmans Williams-Renault
A solid 1-3 finish by Williams in Austria has given them a commanding lead in the Constructors Championship and brought Jacques Villeneuve to within one point of Michael Schumacher. Jacques won at the Nurburgring last season and there is every reason to expect a Williams to be at the top step of the podium this time around. My money would have to be on Jacques over Heinz-Harald Frentzen, with the former getting back on the pace again and charging for his first World Championship. Williams will no doubt ask Frentzen to aid his team mate's challenge if he can and I would expect a driver as intelligent as Heinz-Harald to follow these instructions. When all is said and done, a 1-2 could easily be on the cards.

Marlboro Scuderia Ferrari
Austria was almost as bad as Italy for Ferrari. Michael Schumacher has egg on his face after making the rookie mistake of missing the yellow flags, Eddie Irvine was wiped out through no fault of his own and generally the cars were off the pace. There is no reason why Ferrari cannot bounce back from this to get back at the front again at the Nurburgring. However, in previous years the team has seemed to lose momentum after a set of poor results and in such a critical time for the Championships they cannot afford another slip up. When all is said and done, Michael will get the best from the car and Eddie will be close behind, the question is, can the team provide the equipment to carry them to the podium.

Mild Seven Benetton-Renault
Benetton are reaching the end of an era and it is beginning to show. At the end of this season they will be retiring two experienced drivers and their last Rory Byrne/Ross Brawn designed chassis and it seems that the team understand neither. Benetton were relatively competitive at the Nurburgring last year and there is no reason to expect it to be any different this time out. Jean Alesi should be the quicker of the two and I cannot see Gerhard Berger reversing this. A podium finish is possible, and points likely, but a win is more than likely beyond them.

West McLaren-Mercedes
What will it take to get Mika Hakkinen to win a race? The Finn has led several races this season only to be denied by mechanical failures, invariably engine related. David Coulthard usually seems to be a benificiary of this and would probably have finished third had his team mate not retired in Austria. This aside, the McLaren renaissance seems upon us, with either silver car competing for the honours over most race weekends. With "Luxembourg" the home Grand Prix for Mercedes, both sides of the partnership will be putting an extra effort into their time at the Nurburgring. I would expect Mika to beat David in both qualifying and the race, but whether his luck will hold out for an entire race is unlikely. Still, it would be nice for Mika to score his maiden win in front of the Mercedes brass.

Benson and Hedges Total Jordan-Peugeot
After a solid, but undistinguished, race at the A-1 Ring, Jordan will be hoping for better at the Nurburgring. The potential for race victories is there and it is my belief that after their first win, the floodgates will open and Jordan Grand Prix will join the upper echelons of F1. Giancarlo Fisichella is still the "Man most likely to succeed", but I am sure the team would prefer Ralf Schumacher to record their first win as he will be staying for 1998. If the team and drivers get it together in qualifying, don't count them out of a win, and even if they do not excel, points are fairly likely.

Gauloises Blondes Prost-Mugen Honda
For Prost Grand Prix, the Luxembourg Grand Prix marks the return of #1 driver Olivier Panis after a 4-month absence from the sport. It seems fair to assume that Jarno Trulli will be the one replaced just after a superb race in Austria. Quite how Olivier will perform is unknown, but following good tests at Magny-Cours, it is likely that he will be on the pace from the word go. Shinji Nakano must have been dreading the return of his French team mate as it will mark the end of his increased role in testing and possibly his streak of competitive form. The Japanese driver seems set to take a testing position alongside Ricardo Zonta at Jordan in 1998, but quite how this would lead to a race seat is beyond me. If Panis is fit enough for a full race distance, scoring points or a podium is a distinct possibility, but for Nakano these chances are remote.

Red Bull Sauber-Petronas
Sauber are now apparently the official home for badly treated ex-Benetton drivers after their signing of Jean Alesi. Jean has said that he has been surprised by the competitiveness of Sauber in 1997 and I would agree with them. The Swiss team have a huge budget and impressive facilities and with Ferrari power it is now only a matter of time until they make the leap to race winners. Johnny Herbert is still the class act amongst Sauber drivers and will no doubt see off Gianni Morbidelli again this weekend. Quite how high he will finish is really down to how many cars in front of him retire.

Tyrrell-Ford
Tyrrell seem to be set for another poor race, competing with each other and the #2 drivers of the midfield teams. As I have commented before, Jos Verstappen and Mika Salo are so evenly matched that choosing a victor from the pairing is a lesson in futility. For two talented drivers and such a good chassis it seems a shame that the v8 that powers them is so much slower than the v10 engines run by the teams directly above them. With the Ford v10 next season, Tyrrell could be transformed...

Minardi-Hart
Minardi are in the unenviable position of being easily inside 107% during qualifying, but being so far off the pace in race conditions that they are unable to race anyone except themselves. As is now customary, Ukyo Katayama (apparently not CART bound any more) should have the measure of younger team mate Tarso Marques. A question mark hangs over the latter however as there is a chance that Jarno Trulli may replace him.

Stewart-Ford
Wow! Stewart have a lot to be worried about this season, but the Austrian Grand Prix is certainly not one of them. Both Jan Magnussen and Rubens Barrichello performed excellently (the playing field having been levelled by no team having significant experience of the track) and both should have safe seats for next year now. Quite how they will far at the Nurburgring, a track everyone else is familiar with is unknown, but if Bridgestone get it right, they could be on the pace from the off. Rubens is still the faster of the two, but Jan is edging ever closer and could be a threat soon. Expect points if things go their way.

Enjoy the race...