Former Mercedes boss saddened by state of German motorsport

Germany: a country proud of its many beloved car manufacturers and birthplace of a good number of successful drivers, engineers, team owners and teams in several racing classes. Germany's fame in motorsport manifested itself until recently in hosting two major F1 races: at Hockenheim and the Nürburgring. But, much to the regret of many a racing fan or car enthusiast, these glory days are over.

Norbert Haug, former vice-president of Mercedes' motorsport arm, speaks about a number of issues surrounding F1 at Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland, including the declining popularity of the sport in Germany. "Between 1994 and 2016, there were German world champions in the running, seven titles by Michael Schumacher, four in a row by Sebastian Vettel and finally Nico Rosberg in 2016 in the Silver Arrow."

With the 'Silver Arrow', Haug refers to Mercedes and also emphasises that team's success as a partner of McLaren and Brawn. Of course, the more recent successes in the constructors' championship as an independent team should not be missed either. However, things have still gone downhill for Germany in the last few years: Hockenheim was dropped from the calendar after 2019 and the Nürburgring only made a brief return in 2020 as a result of the coronavirus crisis. A shame, as both circuits are known to produce epic races (Hockenheim even did so as recently as 2019).

Hülkenberg and Schumacher

Unfortunately, German race weekends do not earn FIA enough money and this is mainly due to the declining popularity of the sport in the country. What does not help either is that Sebastian Vettel has just left the sport. "As recently as 2010, there were seven German Formula 1 drivers in a season; today there is only one, Nico Hülkenberg, in a team that is second-rate at best," Haug said.

The German still sees hope for Germany in the presence of Mick Schumacher as a reserve driver at Mercedes. "In my opinion, this is indeed a real stroke of luck for Mick, and Mercedes is doing well to contract a German driver to its Formula 1 team. Nothing is impossible if Mick tackles the tasks assigned to him with concentration, diligence and eagerness to learn, and that is exactly what I am assuming."

Haug concludes that anything is still possible if Mick learns good lessons from his time at Mercedes. Hopefully, the young driver's potential success for Germany, as a true car nation, will have a positive impact.