What you haven't seen yet: Germany edition

2010. szeptember 7. 10:18 | még nem szólt hozzá senki.  szerző: Viktor Adorján

No weekend has been as eventful as the Race of Germany was with the changeable weather, the cold temperatures, the effects of a penalty and racing incidents spiced up the events that saw the rise of tension in the paddock. Check what you haven't seen yet from Germany!

Hotel

All due respect but we must see that Motorsport Arena Oschersleben hasn't got as rich history as some of the other venues and the location of the circuit is not helping either to make the venue an unforgettable place. However the hotel located next to Turn 1 is a nice place for racing fans as several racing related artistic pieces and other items are placed in the hall and the bar.

Back in Brands Hatch it was the bookstore that made us amazed and in Oschersleben the hotel was the place that formed some kind of bridge between the racing and the world outside the paddock.

Fog hits Oschersleben

This year weather was always a key factor in Oschersleben as a wide range of different conditions appeared over the course of the three days. From the bright and reasonably warm sunshine across the heavy downpour until the massive fog almost everything came into play (except the snow but probably it wouldn't have been a surprise either). This photo was taken shortly after the warm up on Sunday morning when it was a surprise that the session event took place.

As a few of the team personnel was driving towards the circuit before the session they were on the opinion that the fog might make it impossible for the helicopters to fly which would force the organizers to postpone or cancel the session. Eventually they were wrong and the session was held but it was surprising to see (or not to see) the circuit covered by the clouds. It was like testing on the Hungaroring in November in a very unreasonable time.

Unusually far from the top

It was strange to walk as far as until the 15th spot on the grid to find Norbert Michelisz's blue SEAT Leon TDI. Especially with the though in the back of the mind that Michelisz gained 5th on qualifying only to start from almost his worst grid positions so far this season. He has never been as far from the first place at the beginning of Race 1 as he was in Oschersleben but it was very encouraging that the possibility was there to improve on the situation.

At the end of Race 1 Michelisz claimed 8th position, the place he was coming for which meant that he was given the first spot on the grid, something which was a great reward for the efforts done since Brno to overcome the penalty. This is when this world is showing its nicer face for the team.

 Sensible engine

Everything was going according to the best possible scenario on Race 1 until Norbert Michelisz reported over the radio that he has got a problem with the engine which was losing power periodically then gained back. Michelisz managed to bring the car home on 8th and successfully fended off the attacks by Kristian Poulsen. The team started to look for the cause even before the car returned into the pits and they found out that a dysfunctional sensor is likely to be the cause.

Replacing the item wouldn't have been a big task for the mechanics but making it work in the electronics systems would have taken time so the team left without a choice and remained the car basically unchanged. Fortunately it worked out and the problematic part worked fine on Race 2.

Don't touch it

As soon as the racecar got back into the garage FIA officials put these vinyls onto it in order to apply the Parc Fermé conditions. The car had to be surrounded by separators and nobody was allowed to get his or her hands onto it until the end of the Parc Fermé. 15 minutes were available then to prepare the SEAT for Race 2.

In special situations it can be requested to release the car from the Parc Fermé but then the driver has to start from the back of the grid. This time this option didn't even came into the minds but back in Brno there was a real chance of this being asked due the serious damages that the car suffered on Race 1.

This is your place

Chief mechanic Jordi Marti shows the way to Norbert Michelisz before the beginning of Race 2. It was the first time the Hungarian driver could start from the front of the grid but the procedures are not (necessarily) changing once the car is starting from the front or the back. Here the mechanics awaited Michelisz like any other time but it is clear that it is a big difference to see the car so far ahead of the others.

Unfortunately having a BMW on P3 right behind Michelisz meant that the Hungarian driver lost the lead immediately but successfully kept Michel Nyjkaer's SEAT behind him and comfortably held position two until Tiago Monteiro hit his car on Lap 5.

A busy starting grid

The start of a world class racing event is always one of the busiest period of the weekend may it be Formula 1, endurance, stock car or WTCC race but the grid in Oschersleben was looking even more full of people than usually. The interest was visible not only on the grid but on the grandstands and the paddock as well. Germany embraced WTCC last weekend which is notable especially if we take into account that World Series by Renault and Superbike were also racing in Germany on other circuits.

By the calculations of the organizers a total 44000 people attended the 2010 Race of Germany which is not the highest ever seen but still a large crowd. It was nice to see and feel that the supporters were not favoring strictly the local interests, Norbert Michelisz also received welcome from the fans just like Michel Nykjaer for example whose supporters travelled to Oschersleben from Denmark to cheer for him in the start/finish straight.

Multitasking

While Norbert Michelisz and his crew was busy with the preparations for Race 2, SEAT Leon EuroCup driver Gábor Wéber and SEAT Leon Supercopa racer Norbert Kiss were sharing their thoughts on the aftermath of Race 2 of the EuroCup field. Because of race engineer Gergő Bári's absence Kiss acted this weekend as the engineering chief, therefore got involved into various racing situations that affected the success of the drivers racing for Zengő-Dension Team.

Wéber was still fuming after he was given a 5 place grid penalty for Valencia because of his practice start at the beginning of the reconnaissance lap and explained his argument with the stewards to Kiss and team manager György Juni. Both drivers got upset by the state of things but when Michelisz started to fight his own battle both Wéber and Kiss put their case aside and concentrated on Michelisz's race. As the replays shown on Eurosport proved, they could get very enthusiastic about the incidents concerning their former rival...

A heated discussion

The incident between Michelisz and Monteiro made the team personnel clearly upset especially knowing that at the time of the accident Monteiro was practically out of the fight as he had already given a drive through penalty for committing the same move against Michel Nykjaer.

When Monteiro served his penalty, team principal Zoltán Zengő clearly showed his discontent for the Portugal who quickly paid a visit on the team's pitwall after the race. This is when the photo was taken as Monteiro explained his views to Zoltán Zengő, team principal of Zengő-Dension Team and Lehel Kákonyi, CEO Assistant of Dension. In the end they settled down but Zengő made it clear that it was something that should never happen again.

Alone for a second

Race 2 was finished more than two hours ago, the garage is about to be dismantled and the truck is being loaded for leaving but Norbert Michelisz is still there. It is one of the very few moments of the weekend when he is alone and nobody is within three meters to him. He admitted that if it was up to him he would have already left but he and his race engineer Arnau Niubó were called to give a report to the stewards regarding the collision with Robert Huff. This time not Michelisz is the subject of the investigation but he was involved so he must wait for his turn.

This is certainly a moment which is the part of racing as much as driving the car or enjoying the limelight and the support of the fans. On Sunday afternoon the driver is left alone and got a second to review and think over what happened on Race 2 before he is called in front of the stewards.

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