Wanderer was ex-Mercedes man.

The mystery man who interrupted the German Grand Prix by going walkabout was a disgruntled former Mercedes employee, it has been revealed.

Never before has a Formula One event - or many others - been forced to display the message ''Man on Track'' on its timing screens but, on lap 24 at Hockenheim, that is exactly what happened, as an interloper wearing a white raincoat with the words Mercedes-Benz emblazoned on its back sauntered onto the grass verge by the side of the road.

Following his eventual detention by the circuit security team, the mystery man has been revealed as a 47-year old Frenchman who, in his own words, wanted to protest against his dismissal by Mercedes-Benz. He claimed he had been dismissed on 'health grounds' having worked for the company for 22 years. The raincoat he wore had a protest message, in French, written on it for the benefit of the television cameras which picked up his meanderings, which included crossing the circuit between the Clark and Ost Kurves.

The stranger had apparently already been moved on by police after attempting to get onto the circuit at the start of the race, but was not detained and went on to cut his way through the fence 500 metres before the Jim Clark chicane. The Hockenheimring is charging him with trespass.

The need for the Safety Car to slow the field as he was caught, however, brought the leaders - Mercedes-powered Mika Hakkinen and David Coulthard - back in range of the pack, eventually allowing Rubens Barrichello to catch and pass both en route to his maiden F1 win.

Although it is the first time such an event has been recorded on the official timing screens, however, there was a similar incident a decade ago in Phoenix when an escapee from a lunatic asylum lay down in the middle of the track during a practice session causing it to be red flagged.