How Verstappen won a stop-start German Grand Prix at Hockenheim

Max Verstappen crossed the line first at Hockenheim, but the race he won was anything but orderly. Rain forced every car onto wet tyres, four safety car periods reshuffled the order again and again, and the pole-sitter finished the day with a penalty and a damaged front wing.

Why was the 2019 German Grand Prix run on wet tyres?

Heavy rain made the track unsuitable at the start, so all 20 cars had to begin on wet tyres. Race officials used a rule for the first time at a Grand Prix to decide how a wet start would be handled.

That rule gave the race director three options: a standing start, a rolling start with no safety car, or suspending the race. The director picked a standing start after the formation lap and three laps behind the safety car, and the race distance was cut to 64 laps from a scheduled 67.

Hockenheim's last Formula One race began on wet tyres, went behind the safety car four times and ended with Verstappen in front.

What happened in practice and qualifying?

Ferrari looked quick in practice, with Sebastian Vettel fastest in the first session and Charles Leclerc just over a tenth clear of him in the second. Lewis Hamilton took pole, while Vettel started from the back after missing the 107% limit in Q1. A 10-place penalty for a third Control Electronics unit did not change his slot.

Practice was otherwise mostly clean. Kevin Magnussen's car failed in the first session and caused a brief red flag, and Pierre Gasly crashed on the exit of turn 16 in the second. Lando Norris took a third MGU-K, Energy Store and Control Electronics, and the penalty ended up costing him three places, to 19th.

How did the race start and what went wrong early on?

The standing start was messy. Both Red Bulls, driven by Verstappen and Gasly, dropped several places, and Kimi Raikkonen used the chaos to climb to third before the first lap was over. Sergio Perez then hit the wall, bringing out the first safety car on the second lap.

Charles Leclerc, who had started 10th, was up to sixth by the end of that lap, while Vettel had climbed from 20th to 14th. The first safety car period ended on lap 5. Vettel and Alexander Albon had already pitted for intermediates as the track dried, and most of the field followed on the next lap.

Those who had stayed on wets, among them Magnussen, Stroll, Norris, Russell and Kubica, eventually pitted too, but by then they had lost too much time and dropped to the back. Daniel Ricciardo's exhaust failed on lap 14 and brought a virtual safety car. Sainz went wide at turn 16 in his McLaren on lap 18 and aquaplaned across the drag strip area. He missed the barriers, and a local yellow flag was shown before he drove off under his own power.

How did the tyre gamble play out?

By lap 22 the track had dried enough for teams further down the order to risk slicks, starting with Magnussen on soft tyres and then Vettel. It soon became clear to every team that slicks were a poor bet, and by lap 34 all of them were back on intermediates.

Verstappen fitted medium tyres and then spun a full 360 degrees at turn 14, though he recovered. Norris lost power on lap 26, bringing a second virtual safety car, and Bottas pitted from second on lap 27 for mediums as well. Leclerc, meanwhile, went off into the tyre barrier at turn 17 as Hamilton left the pits on soft tyres. His Ferrari was left stranded in the gravel, which ended his race and brought out the second full safety car.

The rain had stopped by lap 46, and a clear dry line had formed. Half the field pitted for dry tyres that lap, including Verstappen and Bottas, and Hamilton took the lead ahead of both. The drivers still on intermediates, Hamilton included, switched to slicks on lap 47.

What caused Lewis Hamilton to lose the lead?

Lewis Hamilton started from pole but lost the lead during the second safety car period. He lost control at turn 17 and damaged his front wing against the wall, and a 50.3-second stop followed. A five-second penalty for a pit lane infringement made the afternoon harder still.

The penalty followed a pit lane entry made on the wrong side of a bollard, and it was handed down shortly after the safety car restart. Because he had to serve it, Hamilton was relegated to 12th after his stop on lap 47. He then spun at turn 1 on lap 53 and dropped to 13th, although penalties handed to others later moved him up to ninth.

Why was Verstappen's pit stop so significant?

Verstappen's stop during the third safety car lasted 1.88 seconds, the fastest Formula One pit stop time ever. It beat the 1.91 seconds set at the 2019 British Grand Prix. A few drivers pitted during that same safety car, and all of them kept intermediates except Lance Stroll, the only driver to fit slicks.

The lead changed hands quickly after that. Stroll inherited it for a short while, until Verstappen and then Daniil Kvyat passed him within a lap, leaving Stroll third.

Who finished on the podium and how did the penalties change the order?

Max Verstappen won from Sebastian Vettel, who had started last, and Daniil Kvyat, who took the final podium of his career. Lance Stroll finished fourth. Two Alfa Romeo drivers were penalised 30 seconds for driver aids at the start, which moved Lewis Hamilton up to ninth and Robert Kubica into the points.

Kvyat's third place gave Toro Rosso its first podium since Sebastian Vettel's win at the 2008 Italian Grand Prix. It was also the last podium of his Formula One career, and as of 2026 no Russian driver has reached one since.

Verstappen collected the fastest lap point and the spectators' Driver of the Day award. Phil Turner, the Red Bull chief mechanic, stood alongside him to collect the manufacturer's prize. It was Verstappen's second win in the last three races.

Alfa Romeo appealed the penalties after the race, and the FIA International Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal. Without the penalties, Mercedes would have left Germany pointless, something that had not happened since the 2018 Austrian Grand Prix.

Race result highlights

What happened in the closing laps?

Vettel climbed from fifth to second in the closing laps, passing Sainz, Stroll and Kvyat on the way. Bottas's crash on lap 56 triggered the last of four safety cars, which wiped out Verstappen's lead of more than ten seconds. That safety car period ended on lap 60, and Verstappen was more than seven seconds clear by the final lap.

Pierre Gasly was classified even though his race ended in the closing stages. His car was terminally damaged in a collision with Alexander Albon two laps after the safety car period ended, and he had covered more than 90% of the distance.

Robert Kubica's tenth place also carried weight. It was his final career point and the last scored by a Polish driver, and it was Williams's only point of the 2019 season.

Why does the 2019 German Grand Prix still matter?

As of 2026 it was the last German Grand Prix held in Formula One, because the race was not contracted for 2020 and beyond. It was also the final F1 race at Hockenheimring, and no Russian driver has stood on the podium since.

Mercedes arrived with a heritage livery for its 125th year in motorsport and its 200th Formula One start. Hamilton's 39-point lead and the team's 164-point advantage meant both would still lead their championships after the weekend, whatever happened at Hockenheim.