Mercedes wants a reliable car for Schumacher in Valencia

Expected in Montreal, on a circuit that, with its long straight, seemed designed for the Mercedes W03, the Silver Arrows ended up being relatively discreet, both in qualifying and in the race: « The performance of our car and our tire management was good overall, in Canada, however our competitiveness was compromised by reliability issues and mistakes. It’s a disappointment that is deeply felt by everyone in the team and we have worked hard to understand the reasons and find solutions, » analyzes Ross Brawn, director of the German team.

Michael Schumacher, victim of a DRS issue during the race, was thus forced to retire once again this season in Canada, but he approaches the European Grand Prix with relative optimism: “All our attention is now on Valencia, and I’m sure everyone’s motivation is even stronger because the Canadian weekend did not go as well as hoped. Our motto these past few days has been to roll up our sleeves and focus on the work ahead: everyone within the team has taken this approach to heart, so we can head to Valencia in an optimistic mood.” Nico Rosberg is just as confident: “I was at the factory this week and I know how hard everyone is working to improve the car, so we hope to have a solid weekend in Valencia to reward their efforts.”

The winner of the last Chinese Grand Prix also believes that the track is somewhat similar to Montréal and that it should therefore suit the Mercedes W03. The European Grand Prix will be the third consecutive race on a temporary circuit after Monaco and Canada, recalls Norbert Haug, Vice-President of Mercedes-Benz Motorsport. Seven corners are negotiated at less than 100 km/h, and the car goes from 285 to 100 km/h on five different occasions during the lap. The weather is generally hot and sunny, which naturally affects track temperatures. Nico’s race and lap times in Canada, where the track temperatures exceeded 40 degrees, showed that our car could handle such extreme conditions well with the right settings.

Thus, approaching the European Grand Prix, for Ross Brawn, achieving zero defects in reliability is Mercedes’ highest priority, a goal shared by Norbert Haug: Our priority for the next race is to achieve the same level of reliability on Michael’s car as we have seen so far with Nico’s, who has finished all the races this season. Since his victory at the Chinese Grand Prix on April 15, no other driver has scored more points than Nico: the goal is to continue on this path.

On the circuit side, the two Silver Arrows drivers admit to enjoying the stop in Valencia: « The port area is particularly nice, and given its location, the circuit is really interesting, so we’ll see how we perform there. You can always feel a bit of the America’s Cup atmosphere in Valencia, which makes this event special and one we always enjoy taking part in, » explains Michael Schumacher. Nico Rosberg agrees with the seven-time world champion: « Valencia is a pretty cool city and it’s always nice to go there. The circuit is another urban track but it’s quite unique because it’s faster and more open than places like Monaco or Singapore. »