How cold Nurburgring weather added heat to third-place battle

Severely limited practice and chilly conditions at the Eifel Grand Prix didn't stop the Formula 1 fight for third place from heating up, with Racing Point, McLaren and Renault all facing different quandaries

Jake Boxall-Legge Oct 12, 2020, 3:40 PM

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"The Nurburgring in October?", you presumably exclaimed with surprise when graced with one of the piecemeal calendar additions that Formula 1 stapled onto the most left-field schedule seen in generations. "That'll be really cold, won't it?".

It was never going to be the Algarve at this time of year (funnily enough that's next up), but although some degree of inclemency was always going to be a factor when hosting an F1 round in western Germany during the autumnal months, the Friday wash-out and subsequent biting cold had a big effect on the curiously titled Eifel Grand Prix. Team wear suppliers had to delve into the kit boxes to supply personnel with thick coats, bobble hats and thermal socks (which Daniel Ricciardo admitted he'd worn two pairs of to keep his feet toasty), while the umbrellas got more of a work-out than the cars did when practice was called off.

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Author Jake Boxall-Legge

Jake Boxall-Legge Autosport’s Technical Editor. Having studied Automotive Engineering with Motorsport at the University of Hertfordshire, West Country-born Jake's original ambition was to design racing cars. During a year between studies in which he accidentally rekindled a love of writing, he took up a Master's in Motorsport Engineering at Oxford Brookes. Halfway through his master's year, he was offered a place on the Autosport Academy, conducting occasional freelance duties before becoming the press officer for Formula 2 and GP3 in 2018. Autosport offered him a return to the fold later that year to serve as its Technical Editor. His voice appears on a number of videos and podcasts, and can often be found writing about terrible Formula 1 cars in excruciating detail. In his spare time, Jake enjoys baking and blames his failure to make it past the Great British Bake-Off interviews on his tenuous grasp on choux pastry. His dream is to open a brunch cafe - and his willingness to make outrageous puns in inappropriate situations has earned him the contempt of his colleagues.