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Bring it on!!

I hope Nico still has the fighting spirit even Merc has clearly changed the focus to 2011 long time ago.

And what about schumi?? Maybe he has also shift the focus forward. Is it 2011 F1 or something else only time will tell. (i personally believe he will be strong 2011 with a lot stronger Merc)

I think Singapore GP might be RedBulls to lose. Monza just wasnt good for their aero package. Macca im not sure?? El Banco with Santander Ferrari will be on top, but not so strong like at Monza.

Anyways it will be interesting and i like the fact that after Singapore WDC is still open for 5 drivers, what a season it has been...

Yes its been great so far even if monza was a boring procession.

I think Nico will maintain his motivation, he must be enjoying the situation where he's trashing the "greatest" ever driver. If romours are to be believed MS wont be with us in 2011

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Well done Lewis. New driver, new era.

It could be true but rumours are rumours. We'll just have to wait and see. There's always more to it than we know.

sessions

Autosport:

Mercedes upbeat over 2011 car progress

By Jonathan Noble Monday, September 20th 2010, 16:20 GMT


Mercedes GP team principal Ross Brawn says his team is making positive progress with its 2011 car - as he declared his confidence the outfit would be able to dial out the design weaknesses that have hampered its current campaign.

The Brackley-based outfit had gone into the season eyeing a full-scale assault on the championship, but its W01 has failed to produce the speed to allow either Nico Rosberg or Michael Schumacher to fight for a victory so far.

However, with the team's efforts now concentrated on next year, Brawn says he has had encouraging signs that the outfit has overcome a lot of the shortcomings that came through with this year's design.

"I've said before, cars are born 12 months before they are raced, and when this car [the W01] was born we had our focus on lots of things - survival of the company, we were trying to win the championship and we didn't focus enough on it," said Brawn.

"But that is the car we have now.

"However, that is not the balance we will strike for next year. Our new car is well-advanced and I can see lots of areas where we are making progress in.
"So I think I understand the reasons why we are where we are, and I know the things we have to do to be in a better position for next year. We will see."

Brawn believes, however, that one of the biggest factors in determining performance in 2011 will be how well teams adapt to the new Pirelli tyres.

The characteristics of the Italian rubber will be especially vital to the Mercedes GP team, because Schumacher has struggled so much with the weak front-end nature of the current Bridgestones.

"We have a pretty powerful tyre group and we are working closely with Daimler and Daimler experts in how we can improve that side," continued Brawn.

"I think with the Pirelli tyres it will be interesting how that suits Michael next year. We are not designing the car around Michael, we are trying to design a good race car and improve all the things that are weak with this car.

"We are not building in any characteristics, but we may find with the tyres that they will influence the characteristics of the car considerably. The power of the front tyres, the way the tyres behave, the responsiveness of the car - it will be more related to the tyres than perhaps the car."

Brawn's optimism that Mercedes GP will be in a better shape for 2011 is mirrored by Mercedes-Benz motorsport boss Norbert Haug, who thinks that circumstances will favour a step-forward in form.

"I am absolutely convinced that with hardwork and dedication we will achieve our targets," he said. "We are both working together and that is where we are. We are going to be better next year, that is for sure."

...this is what i thought also. 2011 Merc will be monster no doubt. Brawn is talking about 12 months of hard work for 2011 car.

Good stuff Timba.

sessions

Quote:

We are not designing the car around Michael, we are trying to design a good race car and improve all the things that are weak with this car.

Hint hint............

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Well done Lewis. New driver, new era.

Yeah Herman, that's an omen that things may change but lots remains on these last races. If Michael's results improve so would the teams and his wishes to fulfill the original plan.
Singapore will surely challenge him never racing there.
Nico so far has done well there and should again, but if MS can pull of a good race it would help setting the stage to finish the season well.
The weather (good chance of rain) could also contribute to a crazy finish. If some of the rain-meister skills are still intact the situation could end up favourable for both the team and Schumacher.

P.S, Anyway, lets hope so for all concerned !

sessions



Edited 3 time(s). Last edit at 2010:09:23:17:35:27 by sessions.

Official Merc Gp site:

Nico Rosberg continued his run of points-scoring finishes today with a strong drive to take fifth place at the Singapore Grand Prix from seventh position on the grid. Team-mate Michael Schumacher had a more eventful race with two out-of-sync pit stops compromising his track position and he finished the 61-lap race in 13th place.



NICO ROSBERG


“It was extremely tough out there but we achieved the best possible result for us today. Our aim for the last few races is to finish as the best behind the top three teams and today we were able to profit as two of them had issues with Felipe in qualifying yesterday and Lewis in the race today. So fifth place is good for us and it’s very satisfying for the team. I could push Jenson a little at some points which was good to see. We will be aiming to finish the rest of the season as strongly.”



MICHAEL SCHUMACHER


“I am not particularly happy about my first experience of racing in Singapore this evening. I had two encounters with other cars which were racing incidents and meant that I had to make my stops at times which were not ideal and consequently my race was heavily compromised. I suffered with the rear tyres on my first set of options which made me slide rather than drive through corners which was tough, so I would probably say that I only enjoyed the second part of the race.”



ROSS BRAWN


“We had a small grid advantage starting from the clean side and Nico was able to make up a place which was good. We then stayed out under the first safety car when almost every car behind us came in which made us a little vulnerable but I was very pleased with our pace which enabled us to control the situation. Nico drove an excellent race today with a competitive performance that saw him pushing the McLaren-Mercedes at various stages. Michael had a more eventful race and whilst it didn’t quite go his way today, he persevered to the end of the race. It was a very good team effort to improve the car over the course of the weekend and another well-deserved points finish.”



NORBERT HAUG


“Nico drove a very clever race and brought home the best result we could have achieved under our existing circumstances. Michael had an action-packed first night race in Singapore but he kept going which speaks for him and his car, posting some competitive lap times after his second stop for a new nose. Thank you to everybody in the team for the hard work that was done here in difficult conditions when working in the garage was like being in a sauna at times. Singapore is one of the very best places to stage a race and on behalf of Mercedes-Benz, I would like to give our compliments to the organisers who have built up a benchmark race in a very short period of time. Our learning process is taking our team in the right direction and I am sure that we will have a better car and results next season. We are looking forward to the last four races and everyone will work very hard so that our team and drivers can compete with the leaders in the seasons to come.”

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The problem with MS might be that the team behind him has always been the best and money hasnt been an issue ever, and they could have developed the car around Mikes likings.

Does Merc has the same potential, as Ferrari had and Benetton back in the days???

Was Ferrari more than the dreamteam afterall??
Maybe all the money and possibilities gave the dreamteam an ideal enviroment to use their full potential.

So Nico finishes the car as high as can be expected and MS just has excuses. If he was so great he could drive around these alleged tyre problems, it the same situation for Nico and he can do it.

Yes, MS usually had the fastest car on the grid, usually he qualified on the front row where he didnt have to actually race other cars, and had all the money and resources he needed. Now he's not in the fastest car and actually has to race in the pack, he's being shown as very weak.

So either he was always very average, and flattered by the fastest car or he's now way slower then before. Either way, he's not upto the task. Bye Bye Michael.

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Well done Lewis. New driver, new era.

Our learning process is taking our team in the right direction and I am sure that we will have a better car and results next season. We are looking forward to the last four races and everyone will work very hard so that our team and drivers can compete with the leaders in the seasons to come.”


I suffered with the rear tyres on my first set of options which made me slide rather than drive through corners which was tough, so I would probably say that I only enjoyed the second part of the race.”

Michael had a more eventful race and whilst it didn’t quite go his way today, he persevered to the end of the race. It was a very good team effort to improve the car over the course of the weekend and another well-deserved points finish.”


Mercedes are developing systems for next years car... MS was basically testing because of his mishap with his first set of tyres

It is a high risk strategy and I hope egg does not end up on the face of Merc

Well that makes sense. If Michael is prepared to be in a testing mode and tolerate bad press while Nico gets the glory, MS deserves some high marks. It's true we are quick to criticize and we really don't know what goes on behind the scenes. Hopefully the changes will benefit both drivers for the remainder of the season and both can gather more points for the team.

sessions

Quote:

sessions
Well that makes sense. If Michael is prepared to be in a testing mode and tolerate bad press while Nico gets the glory, MS deserves some high marks. It's true we are quick to criticize and we really don't know what goes on behind the scenes. Hopefully the changes will benefit both drivers for the remainder of the season and both can gather more points for the team.
sessions

Well if it was the MS of old at Spa, Nico would have got a good telling off, things really have changed IMO.... The only problem is the likes of Jordan and Brundle can not understand how that 41 year old crept back into F1 and is retaining his seat despite his performance. They are therefore leading the Media attack on him

It was interesting how for BBC in Germany, MS is a legend and is good for F1 despite not making it to the top 10 in Q2
The race before, he was a has been, after Singapore he needs to be sacked
Sometimes I wonder just how stupid they think we are

The team must really see a lot more into MS than we do

If we had hired Nelson Pique Jnr or some similar driver who had scored and driven as badly as schumacher he would have been sacked by now. schumacher has no potential to improve or help the team.

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Well done Lewis. New driver, new era.

Quote:

Herman Munster
If we had hired Nelson Pique Jnr or some similar driver who had scored and driven as badly as schumacher he would have been sacked by now. schumacher has no potential to improve or help the team.

In terms of potential I think Haug and Brawn will disagree with you

It seems they vare really excited about the 2011 car