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German GP preview: Racing Point to run new aero setup

SportPesa Racing Point Formula 1 team have made a few aerodynamic tweaks to their RP19 for the German grand prix, according to team principal Otmar Szafnauer. 

The team has not scored points since Lance Stroll's ninth-place finish in Montreal at the Canadian GP in June, and are aiming to break a run of three successive non-scoring races. 

The Mercedes-powered team head into this weekend's race coming off a miserable result at their home race at Silverstone in mid July. 

Lance Stroll: "Hockenheim is a fun place to go racing. I’ve been there many times in my junior career – especially when I was racing in Formula 3 – so I know the track really well. I just like the flow of the lap and it’s a layout that creates close, side-by-side racing.

"These traditional European circuits are some of my favourites. It’s a bit like Silverstone with big grandstands full of fans – it sometimes feels like a football stadium when you’re in the final few corners of the lap. I really enjoy the atmosphere it creates."


Sergio Perez: "We usually see good racing at Hockenheim. There are a few places where you can overtake – such as the hairpin – and I enjoy driving there. It’s probably one of the best circuits for overtaking and the newest parts of the lap are really wide. You sometimes see cars going three or four wide on the approach to turn six and with such a big run-off area it’s often worth taking a risk to overtake. 

"Racing in Germany brings back the memories of when I used to live there. I was very young – having just moved from Mexico – and it was my first experience of living abroad and racing single-seaters. Those days were really good fun and I was living not too far away from Hockenheim.

I still have friends in the area and I remember how much I enjoyed the German food." 

Otmar Szafnauer: "At the half-way point of the season we certainly believe there is more potential to come from the RP19. With an incredibly close middle of the grid, there will be some weekends that play more to our strengths and it’s important that we capitalise on those."

"Silverstone was a missed opportunity to score points and a number of factors counted against us, combined with some bad luck too. “This weekend sees the arrival of some aero development items as we continue our push to bring performance to the track. We will use Friday for testing to hopefully unlock more speed from the car."

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