It’s time for the 2011 German Grand Prix. This year, it’s the Nurburgring’s turn to host the race after the Hockenheimring hosted last year’s edition. Naturally, there’s a lot of talk about this historic Nordschlife circuit that F1 originally raced on. For the first time, it seems as though no one is harbouring delusions of catching Sebastian Vettel. He has a three-race lead (80 points) with 10 races left. Can we hand him the title yet?

#1 Sebastian Vettel (Last Race #1)
The 2011 World Champ wants to talk about the track but I want him to talk about Top Gear. Instead, here he is talking about being shut out at home: “One of the objectives a Formula One driver sets himself, is to win his ‘home race’. Of course, you always give 100%, but at a home race you’re always more motivated, simply because you feel at home.”

#2 Mark Webber (LR #3)
Webber loves the new Nurburgring but adores the old Nordschlife circuit: “I love racing at the Nurburgring and of course it’s where I won my first race in 2009 so it already has a special place in my heart – I’m looking forward to getting back there. Actually, I was only there a couple of weeks ago when I spent a few fun hours driving around the Nordschleife which has to be the world’s most amazing race track; I’m also driving on it again this week for Renault, and taking some people around on passenger laps.”

#3 Jenson Button (LR #2)
Jenson talks about how historic the Nurburging is but spends the whole time talking about the old circuit: “This is a truly historic and equally tricky circuit and not to be underestimated. You’ve got the rest of the 14-mile original layout just next door and there have been some memorable moments in the sport, both good and bad, often in the same weekend. Think of 1976, where James Hunt won in a McLaren but Niki Lauda had an appalling accident, or 1968, where Sir Jackie Stewart was almost blinded by mist and spray but won by four minutes just driving from memory.”

#4 Fernando Alonso (LR #5)

#5 Lewis Hamilton (LR #4)
Lewis has certainly had some adventures on the new Nurburgring: “The lesson to draw from all this experience is never to make predictions when you come to the Nürburgring. The current circuit may be less epic than the original 14-mile layout, and certainly a lot safer, but it can still bite you. And the weather can turn in a matter of moments – you can have all the seasons in one afternoon.”

#6 Felipe Massa (LR #6)

#7 Nico Rosberg (LR #7)
Keke’s kid is looking forward to the race but he’s got other things he’s focusing on: “Coming to the Nürburgring for the German Grand Prix always feels very special to me. There is so much history around this amazing track, especially for Mercedes-Benz with great drivers from the past having had such successful times on the Nürburgring and the legendary Nordschleife. This year, I will have the opportunity to drive Juan Manuel Fangio’s car from 1954 on the amazing old circuit, and that will be very special.”

#8 Nick Heidfeld (LR #8)
Nick on his home country fans and what he expects from them: “They are very enthusiastic and they have every reason to be because firstly Sebastian (Vettel) is leading and fighting for the championship, and secondly we have a number of German drivers in the championship giving it their best shot. I’m proud to be one of those drivers and proud to be representing Lotus Renault GP on the grid.”

#9 Michael Schumacher (LR #10)
Seven-time is looking forward to this weekend: “This season has been a difficult one for performance predictions so far; however I can predict one thing for sure: the extra boost we are receiving will be transformed into extra motivation. We saw some improvements over the Silverstone weekend with our new exhaust system, along with improvements to how we work with the tyres, so we go to the next race weekend with a good feeling added to our fighting spirit. We definitely want to show our home crowds our best level of performance possible.”

#10 Kamui Kobayashi (LR #11)
Kobayashi Maru is looking forward to racing at the Ring: “I have only raced once at the Nürburgring, and this was when I drove in GP2 in 2009. In those races I finished ninth and third. I remember it being quite a tricky and difficult circuit because it goes up and down quite a lot. Nevertheless, I expect with it being a fast track again, like Silverstone, it should be good for us.”

#11 Vitaly Petrov (LR #9)
Petrov talks about his promotion for the 2014 Russian Grand Prix in Sochi: “I think it’s been very important to come to Sochi and demonstrate all the sport has to offer. Formula One is getting more popular in my country, and we have a Russian Grand Prix in a few years (2014) so now is a good time to say ‘look, this is what F1 is all about!'”

#12 Jaime Alguersuari (LR #14)

#13 Adrian Sutil (LR #13)
Sutil reminisces on his early days at the Ring: “The Nurburgring is a great place to go racing. It’s my home grand prix and the atmosphere is always very special there. Plus, there’s a lot of history associated with the place. When I go back there it reminds me of my early racing days when I was just starting out in cars and driving in Formula BMW and F3. I’ve spent a lot of time there and I know the circuit very well.”

#14 Sebastien Buemi (LR #12)

#15 Sergio Perez (LR #15)
Sergio lived in Germany for a bit too. Who’da thunk it: “After being in Silverstone, the Nürburgring is another historical race track and, like in the UK, is in another country where I have lived. I am very much looking forward to going back to Germany and having a good race there. For me, after having missed two Grands Prix this year, it is very important now to push forward for the rest of the season and especially before the summer break, which is a very intense period with three races in one month.”

#16 Rubens Barrichello (LR #16)
Rubens doesn’t mention the fact that Top Gear says he’s no longer the fastest F1 driver after Vettel’s turn as the Star in a Reasonably Priced Car: “Nurburgring is very special to me as I won there for Ferrari and I really like the track a lot. The circuit has a lot of camber changes and so it is pretty difficult to get the best car set-up, but that just makes it all the more interesting. There is normally a chance of rain as well which adds another element into the mix.

#17 Paul di Resta (LR #17)
Dario’s cousin may have run DTM but has never run the full Grand Prix circuit: “Although I’ve been to the Nurburgring a few times, I’ve never raced on the full grand prix track. It was always the shortened version used for the DTM races. So I only know parts of the track. During my visits there I’ve learned that the weather can be quite unpredictable. It’s usually quite cold and it rains a lot.”

#18 Pastor Maldonado (LR #18)
Pastor shockingly remembers all his good results while racing at the Nurburgring: “I first raced at the Nürburgring in the Formula Renault 3.5 Series in 2006 and qualified on pole but I had problems in the race. I also raced at the track during my time in GP2, scoring my best result of fourth in 2007.”

#19 Heikki Kovalainen (LR #19)

#20 Jarno Trulli (LR #20)

#21 Timo Glock (LR #21)
Tim O’Glock is excited to race in front of his home crowd: “I’m looking forward to seeing the German fans. It will be great to feel their support and to have my friends and family around me. It’s always such a special feeling, it’s hard to describe. As I do at every race, I will do everything possible to achieve another strong result for the team.”

#22 Jerome d’Ambrosio (LR #22)
Jerome cuts through the usual PR bull and tells us about some of what makes racing on the Nurburgring difficult: “This circuit is known for its understeer, so during the practice sessions we will work hard to minimise this effect. But the biggest challenge will be to make sure the tyres stay up to temperature as the weather conditions here aren’t usually very high.”

#23 Vitantonio Liuzzi (LR #23)
Liuzzi ignores the replacement rumours and talks about the new Nurburgring: “I’m looking forward to the German Grand Prix. It is my favourite circuit and I love racing on it. Not only because it is always a pleasure to race in front of so many fans and spectators but Nurburgring is a challenging track where I have raced many times in my career with other Formulas and teams. I like the fact that it is still an old fashioned track with a lot of history and its mix of speed and technical aspects.”

#24 Daniel Ricciardo (LR #24)
Danny Boy knows he still has a lot to learn: “I’m satisfied with my first race finish in Silverstone at the wheel of the HRT Formula 1 team car. It was nice to finish and get the first race and experience under my belt. Ideally I would have liked to be closer to my rivals but that’s the aim for this race. I have learnt that there is a lot more to the tyres and managing them than I thought. For now this is one of the main things I need to learn quickly about.”