The weekend of the German Grand Prix did not start very well with a bad qualifying session, Jarno and Ricardo finishing 10th and 15th respectively.
Unfortunately, it was only to get worse.

In the morning warm-up session Jarno had another Honda engine blow on lap 2, while Zonta put his EJ11 in the gravel trap on lap 3. Only one spare car meant Zonta got no running in the session at all. Jarno Trulli's race lasted only 35 laps before he had to park his car next to the track due to a hydraulic pump failure. This second non-finish in a row proved a big disappointment to the Italian. On to the race itself and on lap 12, and Panis was to make a mess of the early stages for Jarno.
"The race was very difficult and disappointing," he said. "I was struggling to keep pace in the first stint and then I spun off while battling with Panis for my position. He tried to overtake me at the first chicane but he jumped over it, coming out in front of me. Regulations state that he should have let me have my position back, so I tried to overtake him at the next chicane and he closed the door which I didn't expect. I had to turn quickly to avoid an accident and unfortunately spun off, which cost me valuable time and positions."

It didn't really matter, however, as his race was to end a few laps later anyway. "I don't know exactly what the problem is that caused me to stop, but the car just cut out. This has been a tough weekend and one to forget."

Zonta was forced to retire on lap six after a coming together with Verstappen which destroyed his front wing. The damage was not able to be rectified during a lengthy pit stop, so he retired a lap later. "This was definitely not the race I had hoped for," he lamented. "My start was okay and I had settled into the race pace although the car didn't feel quite right. I missed the second chicane on lap five and Panis overtook me and then Verstappen. I caught up with Verstappen and was alongside him on the straight trying to overtake, but he closed the door, touched my front wing and destroyed my race. I came in to pit for a new nose cone, but the collision had damaged the brake duct, suspension and left barge board, so I had to retire on the next lap. I'm not sure if Verstappen saw me but it was a dangerous move and very disappointing that my race was over so early."