Tirpitz's deterrent plan and the naval arms race

Was the Anglo-German naval arms race a fiction because Germany never planned to attack the Royal Navy?

No. Germany meant to deter Britain from acting rather than launch a direct attack, but the attempt to make the Royal Navy hesitate prompted British counterbuilding and created an unwinnable race.

Tirpitz sought a navy strong enough that defeating it would cost Britain so many ships that other powers could threaten its position. Germany would then be free to expand its empire because Britain would hesitate to interfere. The plan assumed that Britain would accept this calculation and allow the German fleet to grow. British shipbuilding capacity and an existing numerical lead gave Britain the means to answer each increase with construction of its own. German policy therefore produced an arms race that Germany lacked the industrial capacity to win.