MAY 11, 2015

Hockenheim not bad guys after German GP axe

The sorry saga of the now-axed 2015 German grand prix has nothing to do with Hockenheim.

The sorry saga of the now-axed 2015 German grand prix has nothing to do with Hockenheim.

That is the claim of circuit chief Georg Seiler, after some F1 fans and even insiders reacted with pleasant surprise when it emerged at the weekend that Germany will definitely be back on the calendar next year.

But according to the Hockenheim boss, 2016 was never in doubt.

"We still have a contract for next year," he told the Swiss newspaper Blick in Barcelona, "and we will honour it."

Hockenheim only became embroiled in the 2015 saga when the originally-scheduled German GP host, the Nurburgring, ran into its now well-known ownership troubles.

F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone held talks with Hockenheim about standing in at short notice.

"For many people," Seiler explained, "we were now the bad guys because of what happened to the German grand prix for this year.

"But if the Nurburgring suddenly cancels and we are the only alternative, it is simply too late for us to make a reasonable organisation in March," he added.

(GMM)