JUNE 20, 2002

Mercedes does some promotional work

THE European Grand Prix is like a home race for the Mercedes-Benz crew although Hockenheim is rather closer to the company's headquarters in Stuttgart. The Nurburgring, however, holds a mythical place in German racing history and Mercedes-Benz has always enjoyed the association. This year is the 75th anniversary of the old Ring and Mercedes decided to mark the event with the unveiling of a statue of Juan Manuel Fangio standing next to a Mercedes GP car. The statue was unveiled by the McLaren team drivers David Coulthard and Kimi Raikkonen. Coulthard then drove a lot of the old Ring in a 1927 Mercedes which was raced at the Ring by Rudi Caracciola.