What Happened To The German Grand Prix?

[OSTKURVE]

I have not followed F1 as closely as I used to so yesterday as I was watching ITV's qualifying coverage I was taken by surprise as Sebastian Vettel walked viewers through the course from an aerial view from a helicopter.

When did this reconfiguration of the circuit take place? I remember some years back then ESPN commentator Bob Varsha mentioning that German environmentalist had been staging protest & demanding an end to the German Grand Prix in order to protect the forest.

Have the ADAC & the FIA conceded to the demands of the environmentalist? The new layout resembles the "short course" the D2 STW Cup used to run.

Hockeinheim was a legendary circuit & one of my personal favorites & I think the sport has been dealt another crushing blow by altering the circuit.

Ecclestone has removed the Nurburgring from the calendar & relocated the European Grand Prix to a street circuit which I think is a travesty & he's taken the British Grand Prix away from Silverstone because the BRDC won't meet his price tag, Magny Cours has just met a similar fate.

What other iconic circuits are facing an impending doom? F1 will soon be a shell of its former self @ this rate.

[duke_toaster]

The reconfiguration took place after 2001.

[ScotsBrutesFan]

Hockenheim was changed around 2002(ish)

[Bononi]

Boring ?

[Bononi]

Boring ?

[kristof14]

[QUOTE=OSTKURVE

Ecclestone has removed the Nurburgring from the calendar & relocated the European Grand Prix to a street circuit which I think is a travesty & he's taken the British Grand Prix away from Silverstone because the BRDC won't meet his price tag, Magny Cours has just met a similar fate.

What other iconic circuits are facing an impending doom? F1 will soon be a shell of its former self @ this rate.[/QUOTE]

Hockenheim was reconfigured in time for the 2002 Grand Prix, the old circuit has no been torn up and replanted with trees.

The German GP now alternates between Hockenheim and the Nurburgring.

The Euro GP has been moved to a place with what is likely to be a higher attendance. Germany struggles to get enough people to 1 GP never mind 2.

[JeremySmith]

The German Grand Prix has departed Germany and relocated to Dubai...

[Bononi]

Originally Posted by JeremySmith

The German Grand Prix has departed Germany and relocated to Dubai...

Don't push Jeremy or it might come true !

[RotorFan]

Maybe the OP is talking about the fact that the old parts of the circuit have been ripped up completely and aren't available to race on, rather than what circuit the GP uses.

[Dead-Eye]

I still don't understand why they had to destroy the old circuit. It would have been no problem at all to build the new version (which, granted, probably produces better racing with current F1 cars) as an alternative to the original configuration.
Of course, the problem with that is that F1 was the only major series that used the old circuit. DTM used the old short version and nothing else would have justified keeping it.
Though I can't help thinking that it would have worked magnificently as an LMS round

[Flaming_Wuzzle]

Originally Posted by Dead-Eye

I still don't understand why they had to destroy the old circuit. It would have been no problem at all to build the new version (which, granted, probably produces better racing with current F1 cars) as an alternative to the original configuration.
Of course, the problem with that is that F1 was the only major series that used the old circuit. DTM used the old short version and nothing else would have justified keeping it.
Though I can't help thinking that it would have worked magnificently as an LMS round

Environmental reasons i.e. the number of trees that they were knocking down to make the new circuit had to be offset by ripping up the old track and planting new trees there.

[Dead-Eye]

And to think that I once considered voting green *shudders*
Not that I actually did it

[marcel82]

it's not like they would have painted new stripes, put down new tarmac etc every once in a while just to keep the nostalgia-army happy. if it's not gonna be used, might as well turn the area back into a forest.

[mclaren2007]

Talking of classic circuits to be removed from the calendar. In 1985, F1 lost two of the greatest circuits ever to hold a race, Kyalami and Zandvoort. Bother of these have been replaced with boring uninspiring new circuits that are a shadow of their former selves. When the Osterreichring was closed in 1988 and replaced by the less challengingm, hairpin infested A1 Ring, one of the last remaining old style circuits was lost.

Another circuit to feel the force of new safety is Monza. This was a classic circuit, now interupted by chicanes. The 2006 race was almost cancelled, because of a noise issue.

[JeremySmith]

This an never ending moan and groan about the new circuits versus the old, either we accept or we stop watching our favorite form of entertainment...While I appreciate everyones views on the subject, what can we do about it? any thoughts?

[Yannick]

It came as quite a surprise to me to see the half-empty Motodrom during the race this year. The Mercedes Tribüne seemed to be fully occupied, though. That must have changed the audience reception of drivers in certain parts of the circuit considerably.
Hockenheim is obviously lost since 2002. They even got high debts because of this reconstruction. Let's hope they will be gentle to Donington.

[Andy77]

Originally Posted by JeremySmith

This an never ending moan and groan about the new circuits versus the old, either we accept or we stop watching our favorite form of entertainment...While I appreciate everyones views on the subject, what can we do about it? any thoughts?

Maybe it would be an idea to start and build the cars to fit the circuits and not the other way round. It was done like this until we had to face the first of the odd Tilkodromes

[mclaren2007]

Imola did change all that.

[Bononi]

Originally Posted by Yannick

It came as quite a surprise to me to see the half-empty Motodrom during the race this year. The Mercedes Tribüne seemed to be fully occupied, though. That must have changed the audience reception of drivers in certain parts of the circuit considerably.
Hockenheim is obviously lost since 2002. They even got high debts because of this reconstruction. Let's hope they will be gentle to Donington.

Even with german drivers in the grid, TGF's retirement have its consequence in the crowds there...

[Andy77]

I am not sure if I can speak for germans not going but I can say that I feel completely jerked by our most beloved poison dwarf, german politicians, H.Tilke and the Hockenheim owners at all.
We once had a very demanding 22 km circuit which unfortunately got written off because of safety standards and the german gp got moved to the Motodrome at Hockenheim, another quite interesting circuit. For drivers it may have been boring but from the technical side of things it was very interesting.
I mean, not that I could buy a Ferrari or something at all, but in all honesty would you buy a car where the engine blows of at its ultimate test 2/3rds down the way ?
then came the day when the worlds most famous circuit re-designer, f1 worlds anyway, made a huge parking lot out of what once was a highspeed circuit where it was interesting to spot a coming car by the engine sound.

And after all people really wonder why the grandstands are half emptied ?
When I saw the plans for Hockenheim's re-design I imediatly swore that I never return to a race on that circuit.

After all there is a speech about the worlds most famous circuit infield designer: Thankfully he never got his hands on the Nordschleife. It would turn into a 20 squaremile big flat skidpad with some white lines tracing out the circuit

[Chiefy]

The one saving grace for me, where the new Hockenheim is concerned, is that camera-on-a-rail which chases the cars to the hairpin, EXCEPT that I didn't see it once this past weekend! Such a shame considering how neat an innovation it was. I'm always quite surprised that more new tracks don't use the idea (Shanghai or Fuji with those long straights would be perfect).