Nico Rosberg: His Views On Mercedes GP’s F1 Season So Far
Mercedes GP’s Nico Rosberg is in an excellent position. Although the German driver has yet to record a race win, he has truly come into his own in the paddocks ever since he’s managed to outclass his seven-time world champion team mate Michael Schumacher. In a recent interview Rosberg admitted it had been a huge boost for his confidence to have out shone his veteran partner in the season so far, but said it was not possible for him to evaluate how much of a challenge it was going to be for Michael Schumacher to make a return to winning form.
Yet the German was careful to make it clear he was taking nothing for granted, stating he could not afford to get carried away with the progress so far since he expected Schumacher to represent a highly potent threat in the coming times. Rosberg said it had not been too much of a challenge to adjust with his new team and things were proceeding merrily for both the driver and his employers.
When asked how demanding it had been to gel in with his superstar team mate who has a reputation for a highly uncompromising attitude when it came to racing, Rosberg revealed he did not find Schumacher to be the “beast” people widely regarded him as. Instead working with Schumacher had been an excellent learning experience Nico insisted. He said that the two of them made a highly compatible pair and it was very convenient how they often shared similar views on team matters.
Rosberg was then asked to shed some light on last weekend’s team orders controversy at the German Grand Prix when Ferrari rather damningly told Felipe Massa to make way for team mate Fernando Alonso to take the lead. Nico was keen to avoid pointing fingers at anyone, stating he did not know whether or not Ferrari had used team orders. Rosberg said he believed it was purely Massa’s decision to relinquish the lead to his team mate, and that the Brazilian’s discretion to give utmost preference to team interests was remarkable. Pondering over how he would react if faced with a congruous situation, Rosberg remarked it was highly unlikely that Mercedes would ever make such a demand towards him.
Rosberg insisted that he was not bothered by his elusive race victory, saying it was only other people’s opinion that he felt pressured to record a win. Of course, the German elaborated, he would love to celebrate his first triumph soon, but it was not the nagging issue on his mind. Nico also played down his chances for the championship battle, stating it was obvious he had little chance of putting up a realistic fight for the ultimate title since Mercedes now stood at the fourth spot in aggregate team rankings.
Rosberg, who has recorded three podium positions this season, said that his team was in high spirits as the years campaign went ahead of the halfway mark. He said that the atmosphere within the squad was excellent, thanks to the expert leadership of Ross Brawn and Norbert Haug. Nico lauded the mature approach adopted by the team management, saying that there was no panic in the camp over the dearth of race victories, for his side remained every bit optimistic that their new upgrades would produce results soon.
Rosberg revealed that Mercedes had some crucial updates on the roster, the fruits of which would hopefully become evident by the close of the 2010 campaign. The German said that his side had an edge over the likes of McLaren and Ferrari when it came to incorporating the details of fresh 2011 regulations as far as car development was concerned. When asked about his chances for this weekend’s Hungarian Grand Prix where he had enjoyed a strong outing last year, Rosberg said that he hoped to emulate his previous year’s fourth place result on Sunday. Although the practice run was slightly disappointing for both Mercedes team mates, Rosberg said that ideally he would like to make it to the podium in Hungary this year.
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