Saturday: Rosberg frustrated, Schumacher sorry at Mercedes
The Mercedes drivers were unable to confirm the hopes placed on them during qualifying; Nico Rosberg couldn't improve his provisional best time as he was caught in traffic. As for Michael Schumacher, he took full responsibility for his failure in Q2, admitting he had been too conservative.
Nico Rosberg – 15th and 6th:
We had a lot of potential going into qualifying, but unfortunately, I can’t be happy with the outcome. We were fast all the way through, but when I was about to start my final lap, Lewis slowed down in the last corner. I had to start my flying lap behind him, which made any improvement impossible. We know it’s tricky in the last sector here, and we agreed to stop letting these things happen; it’s so frustrating.
It will be an interesting race tomorrow from a strategy point of view, and I hope there will be opportunities to gain positions.
Michael Schumacher – 7th and 12th:
« What a tight qualification! Of course, I’m not particularly happy that I couldn’t make it to Q2, but it was clearly my fault: I didn’t perform the best lap possible. On my first run, I was too aggressive in turn 12 in my first timed lap, then I had to abort my second attempt and return to the pits because the tires were no longer in good enough condition to improve.
After that, I was a bit too conservative in my second stint, and it cost us because the times were tight today. On the other hand, my starting position opens up the range of strategic options for tomorrow. I have new tires available, which is the positive aspect of my situation. We will definitely make the most of it.
