New Delhi: After the thrilling San Marino Grand Prix, which saw Fernando Alonso and Michael Schumacher fighting a near race-long battle for the lead, the circus heads to Eifel mountains and the Nurburgring for the European Grand Prix.
Michael Schumacher will be looking to keep his momentum going in his home Grand Prix at the Nurburgring, McLaren will look to kick-start their championship chase, and Fernando Alonso will look to extend his title lead with Renault.
Though not a shadow of the original Nordschleife, the modern Nurburgring is an example of a modern European circuit. Requiring medium downforce, medium cooling, medium braking and not overly stressing engines, emphasis is on a rounded package with excellent traction.
Being based on a series of mostly slow corners, the circuit is fairly narrow, but has a couple of quicker corners and a couple of overtaking opportunities.
Passing is not easy, but it is possible if the leading car fails to be effectively defensive. A quick lap requires good traction, effective bump handling and a nimble package.
Although the prediction for the Nurburgring area shows a dry race weekend is in prospect, this circuit in the mountains is famed for having its own micro-climate, meaning there is a very real chance of rain.
Both Michelin and Bridgestone are expected to bring tyres from the soft end of their ranges to the Nurburgring, though they are hedging bets.
Having the race three weeks earlier has both manufacturers concerned over lower temperatures and higher chances of rain.
Bridgestone are looking to show that their San Marino form is no fluke, whilst Michelin are defending their reputation for producing slightly faster rubber so far this year.
Both outfits are concerned over graining, but they are more worried about bringing tyres that will have a wide enough temperature window to keep their teams operating.
Accordingly, Renault are expected to bring tyres from a new range, which can be brought up to operating temperature considerably faster than their predecessors.
In the event of rain, Michelin will be looking to demonstrate that they really are a match for Bridgestone.
However, under changing conditions, both manufactures seem to have windows with greater performance, so it remains a mystery as to who has the upper hand in the event of a full wet, or mixed wet/dry race.
Overtaking here is not particularly easy, so qualifying is going to play an important part. Good race day strategy and slick pit-work will let drivers make up a few places, but recovering from a bad Saturday and charging to the front is not trivial.
With relatively low tyre wear characteristics and some chance of rain, higher fuel loads will be preferred, so most of the front runners can be expected to look for a long first stint and two stops – though any who miss the final cut will be likely to fill up on fuel and try a single stop.
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