Mercedes GP driver Michael Schumacher predicts strong race for team in Turkey – Formula 1 news
Mercedes GP driver Michael Schumacher has claimed that his team will be quick in the upcoming Turkish Grand Prix, which is scheduled for Sunday, May 8, 2011.
The German driver was unable to perform in the opening two races of the season, but bounced back strongly in the Chinese GP.
Schumacher said, “I know that the team have been working very hard to continue the progress that we made during the last race weekend in China and, with the help of some developments planned for Istanbul, I am confident that we can enjoy an equally positive
weekend.”
Schumacher’s teammate, Nico Rosberg, was also upbeat about his chances in the upcoming races and added, “We were all disappointed in Melbourne and Malaysia but, after leading the race in Shanghai, we have confirmed the potential of our car. The team did
a very good job to take a step forward and we learned a lot from the weekend.”
Both Mercedes drivers had a terrible start to their 2011 campaign, as they had to retire from the inaugural race of the season in Australia. They had to wait for the second race in Malaysia for their maiden points this year. However, the drivers and team
were not impressed by the slow pace of the car, as they only collected two points from the race.
There were no expectations from the team in the next race at Shanghai, as they did not have much time to bring any upgrades for the race. However, they stunned everyone with their performance and scored 14 points in the race.
Rosberg was impressive throughout the race weekend and finished fifth in the race. He was also quick in the qualifiers, as he managed to start the race from fourth on the grid. His teammate had some technical issues with the rear wing of the car though,
which did not allow him to go beyond Q2 in the qualifiers.
The seven-time Formula 1 champion Schumacher started the race from 14th on the grid, but showed glimpses of his past in the race. He had an exciting race, overtaking a number of cars and finished 8th
in the end.
Mercedes GP team principal Ross Brawn was pleased with the competitiveness of the car and claimed to make more progress in the upcoming races.
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