Nurburgring, Germany, August 5th
With practice for the German Grand Prix on the Nurburgring starting only five days after the unhappy Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort there was a general air of unreadiness on Friday lunch time. It was only a feeling, for in fact all the teams present were in pretty good condition considering the shortage of time for preparation. Those teams sponsored by tobacco companies had some real time-wasting work to do, for the German Government had decreed that there would be no forms of advertising by tobacco companies at the Grand Prix, with the result that BRM, Lotus, Williams and Graham Hill had to erase their sponsors’ names from the cars, the transporters, the drivers’ and mechanics’ overalls, the team personnel clothing and so on.
This stripping of the power of John Players, Marlboro and Embassy was as a result of pressure being applied by German tobacco firms who do not approve of racing or any other sports, and the German Government gave support to this faction. In consequence Fittipaldi and Peterson were entered by JPTL and were driving JPS, Graham Hill was entered by E. Racing and was driving a Shadow, Regazzoni, Beltoise and Lauda were driving BRM cars, entered by BRM of Bourne, and Frank Williams entered two ISO cars driven by Ganley and Pescarolo. As I have always considered a Lotus 72 to be a Lotus 72, a BRM to be a BRM and Frank Williams cars to be Williams Specials, the whole scene in Germany bore some resemblance to reality.
