The German Grand Prix showcased the ultimate mind game, with weather playing a considerable role throughout. Lap after lap, the leaders waited for the showers to come, hoping to avoid having to use the harder compound tires. But the rain stayed away, and victory would be decided by final pit stops late in the event.
The three strongest teams in Formula One each had a horse in the race, but it was McLaren's Lewis Hamilton who crossed the line first after a brilliant effort. The win was perhaps a bit unexpected, as Hamilton expressed postrace to reporters, "The last couple of months have been quite challenging. Constantly up and down. Sometimes we are close and sometimes we are miles away, so believe me with this win things feel much, much better. And we definitely want to continue this way. But to be honest it puzzles me why we have been so quick this weekend. I feel now that the car is getting better and better, even though the two small upgrades couldn't have possibly closed the gap to anyone else."
It took a flawless drive from the former world champion to notch his 16th career F1 victory, and it now means that there have been four winners in the past four races. But this race was far from decided early on, as Fernando Alonso and Mark Webber both gave Hamilton everything they had. Along with Hamilton, they were the only drivers to lead laps on the day, and another strong showing from Ferrari seems to indicate that it is back as a serious contender.
As for Hamilton, he's now won multiple races in each of his five seasons in F1, and since 2007 no other driver has more wins, podiums or points earned.
The three-way battle for the win was not the only compelling element at the Nurburgring, however. Championship leader Sebastian Vettel found himself starting the race from third, the first time he has not started on the front row since Monza, 15 races ago. Vettel struggled to keep pace with the lead pack throughout the afternoon, and he finished fourth after Felipe Massa suffered from a lengthy final stop.
It was the first race since Singapore a season ago that Vettel did not pace the field for at least a lap, ending a string of 13 events. By comparison, that streak was longer than any put up by Ayrton Senna or Alain Prost in their careers.
While Hamilton was enjoying victory, teammate Jenson Button was mired in his second straight retirement after being forced to the garage with a hydraulics issue. It capped a very long weekend for Button, one in which he struggled to match the pace of his teammate. Not since his Honda days in 2008 had Button failed to finish in two straight races.
This weekend in Hungary, Button will be one of two drivers to reach a notable career milestone. He'll be making his 200th F1 start while Nico Rosberg of Mercedes will compete in his 100th grand prix. Prior to Button, only 10 drivers in history have seen at least 200 F1 starts.
Hungary also will be the 850th grand prix in F1 history. In Formula One's last visit here, Webber was victorious after Vettel was forced to serve a drive-through penalty for leaving too large a gap during a safety car period. The event also featured a clash between Michael Schumacher and Rubens Barrichello. As Barrichello was attempting to overtake, Schumacher drove him within inches of the wall. Because of the maneuver, Schumacher was dropped 10 places at the start of the next race.
The Hungaroring will mark the last race before the summer recess, which will span nearly a month before drivers and teams return to Spa. It no doubt will be a welcomed escape from the furious pace of the 2011 F1 season thus far.
