Mercedes happy with Suzuka practice yet looking for more
Finally, after a long time Michael Schumacher seems satisfied as he returns from the Suzuka track.
The Formula One cars rallied at the track today (Friday) morning for the first two practice sessions for the Japanese Grand Prix, scheduled to take place this Sunday. After a long time, the seven times world champion was able to finish ahead of his teammate,
Nico Rosberg.
The German finished both the first and second practice sessions at 8th place while his teammate, who has stood ahead of him in almost all of the races this season, ended the first practice at 10th place while the second at 11th.
The 41-year-old has some great memories to cherish from his earlier races on the track. He has bagged six wins at the Japanese Grand Prix during his original career. The driver had a poor weekend in Marina Bay last month at the Singapore Grand Prix. However,
he hopes to have a better finish here this Sunday.
"It's a great feeling to be driving this track again," Schumacher talked to the media after the two practices. He considers this race as a big fun and great challenge for all the drivers. While talking about the track, he gladly added that although the entire
track is brilliant but the first sector is the coolest of all and the most demanding as well.
"If you get it right, you enjoy it big time. I'm pleased with our practice today as the car looks better than I had expected here and I didn't face any real issues.” After experiencing two smooth practice sessions, the racing icon now hopes to see a clean
qualifying on Saturday. He believes that only a good place on the grid would be able to grant him a reasonable ending on the final race day.
On the other hand, Schumacher’s teammate, Rosberg wasn't much happy as he faced a less cheerful day owing to both technical issues as well as set-up problems.
"It's been quite a challenging Friday for me," the younger German racer exclaimed. "Unfortunately, my morning was hampered by a gearbox issue which cost me some running time at the end of the session which wasn't ideal. From then on, I just haven't been
as happy with the car here.”
The driver faced several under-steer problems which were not resolved till the end of the day. The team is expected to work till late tonight to make sure similar issues are not faced once again at tomorrow morning's practice.
However, Rosberg seems happy with the way the car has reacted with the option tire which gives him a little hope that tomorrow could be a better day.
Moreover, Norbert Haug, the boss of Mercedes Motorsport stated that although the session hasn't been a complete disappointment but he isn't satisfied either. He proclaimed that the cars were alright but still far from being competitive for the leaders' pace.
He admitted that this was a relieving session as the team has witnessed several worse ones all through the season. He reckons that the team would be working hard tonight so that tomorrow, they could come up with a better pace.
He further exclaimed that their good pace today gives him some hope for the final race day where he thinks that both the drivers would be able to give a flawless race.
Haug concluded saying, "Michael and Nico did a good job today taking into account the current capabilities of our car. Our target is to repeat this level of performance tomorrow and on Sunday."
Tags: