Hockenheim welcomes F1 with heavy rain

After a two-year break from the calendar, Hockenheim welcomed formula one back on Thursday with a torrential downpour of rain.

Renault’s Robert Kubica reckoned the wet weather, preceded by a warm but cloudy day at the venue, would hang around at the German circuit all weekend.

He said drivers would perhaps only get their first sample of Bridgestone’s extreme tyre allocation on Sunday.

Lotus’ Mike Gascoyne was more optimistic, predicting a wet Friday but better weather on both Saturday and for the race.

At Red Bull, in the wake of the Silverstone front wing saga, a huge crowd of media unsurprisingly gathered to hear if Mark Webber and Sebastian Vettel are still at war.

The pair were both well-behaved for the PR event, leaving team boss Christian Horner to joke about a pair of limited edition watches given to them by team sponsor Casio.

"We have spares, they are all in the same specification, so I can’t see there being any issues with watches this weekend," smiled the Briton.