Wednesday 10 March 2010

2010 Mercedes, Lotus and Force India looking forward to Bahrain.

The 2010 Formula One Season gets underway in Bahrain next week and marks the return the Mercedes-Benz works team to the sport for the first time in 55 years. The Mercedes Formula One Team goes into the season with the prestige of being the current Constructors’ World Champions, led by Team Principal Ross Brawn, and with one of the most exciting driver line-ups on the grid as seven-times World Champion Michael Schumacher returns to the sport to partner the talented Nico Rosberg.

Michael Schumacher
“Finally the season will start! I feel like a child looking forward to Christmas. The decision to make my comeback feels like a long time ago now and I can hardly wait for the season to get underway in Bahrain. It’s funny to think that I will be competing in Formula One again when just a few months ago, I would have declined the opportunity categorically. But sometimes things change and the right circumstances come together. I feel fresher than I have for many years. I am perfectly prepared physically and most importantly, my energy is back completely. When I retired from racing in 2006, my batteries were simply empty. Now they are totally recharged and I am ready for the challenge. It is the competition at the highest level that only Formula One offers which has provided the temptation for me. It is always difficult to predict the form in pre-season testing, this year more than ever, but the final test in Barcelona proved to us that we should be competitive. We know that we will have more new parts in Bahrain which should bring extra performance to the car. It’s important to be in the leading group from the start of the season and I am confident that we will be there.”

Nico Rosberg
“The build-up to a new Formula One season is always an exciting time, particularly when you have a new team to settle into and a brand new car to get used to. It has been a really nice process integrating into the Mercedes. Everyone has been very welcoming and I feel very much at home here already. Our pre-season testing programme has gone pretty well in February. We did have some concerns that we were not able to find the right direction to extract the maximum potential from the car but by working hard, we were able to find our way and ended testing on a high. We also have a good upgrade coming for Bahrain which should develop the car further and so I am quite optimistic that we will do well. Bahrain is a track which I really enjoy so it should be a good start to the season all in all.”

Ross Brawn
“Everyone at Mercedes is proud to be representing the rich motorsport pedigree of Mercedes-Benz as we start the season as the first Mercedes works team for over half a century. In addition, knowing that we go into the new season as the reigning World Champions gives the team confidence and a fierce pride to defend our position. However this is a new season and a new challenge. We had a strong pre-season testing programme with the MGP W01 but we are not quite reached the level of preparation that we would have liked prior to Bahrain. The car shows promise and we have a strong development programme planned for the season but there is a lot of hard work ahead to ensure that we will be in the fight for the title. I am very pleased with how our new drivers Michael and Nico have settled into the team and developed a close working relationship. They have really pushed the development of the car throughout testing and they will push each other to achieve better results on the race track. This season should be a fantastic one for the fans with so many talented drivers competing and what is likely to be a very close fight for the title between the top teams and that can only be good for our sport.”

Norbert Haug
“The Bahrain Grand Prix as the first race of the 2010 Formula One season marks the beginning of a new era for Mercedes-Benz. 55 years after the last race of the Silver Arrows works team, Mercedes will start to continue this tradition. In preparation for our first season, we have covered over 6300 kilometres during 15 test days from 1 to 28 February. Judging our competitiveness for the first couple of races, my impression is that we are not quite where we want to be and I would not see our team in the role of favourites. Having said that, I am fully convinced that the whole team and our drivers Nico and Michael are fully prepared to get on top of our job and fulfil our targets which are winning races and fighting for world championships.”

Force India pic Sutton Images

Bahrain Grand Prix - Force India 2001 - Sutton Images2010 marks the third year of competition in the FIA Formula One World Championship for the Force India F1 Team. After a positive finish to 2009, the team is hoping this season will be the one that firmly establishes it as a strong, competitive outfit regularly challenging for points and podiums whenever possible.

Consistency has been the key this year: Adrian Sutil and Tonio Liuzzi are retained as drivers and the team's technical package is an evolution of last year's increasingly competitive car. Paul di Resta, from Scotland, strengthens the driver line-up as test and reserve driver. Paul will participate in some free practice sessions this year, although not Bahrain as the race drivers will need to learn the new track configuration.

Over winter testing the team fared well, completing 12 days of testing and more than 4,000km and is now looking forward to the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix.

Team Q&A
Dr Vijay Mallya, chairman and team principal
What are your thoughts ahead of what could be a crucial season for Force India?
We finished 2009 on a real high note - our first-ever points, a podium and one place up in the constructors' championship. That is enough in itself to set the bar much higher this season, but we're really determined to take it to the next level. Regular points and the odd podium have got to be the aim and we know it is possible. I have a lot of faith in the drivers and the technical staff, I think we've got into a very good rhythm together now.

Have you been encouraged by the performance over the winter?
I have been very encouraged by the entire performance, both at the track and at the factory. The testing times gave very positive headlines, but it is very difficult to know where we are until we get to Bahrain. Certainly however the initial reports from the drivers are encouraging and when that happens it's worth another three to four tenths - if they feel happy and confident in the car then that they can really attack.

What is it that has made the difference this year for Force India?
The key point was that last year we had a good baseline car and we improved throughout the year in a very structured manner. In the second part of the season we were very successful - at times we even had a potential winning car - and with that in mind we went into the winter and developed this foundation as much as possible. That stability is crucial and we have been able to focus 100% on emphasising the strong points while addressing the weaker areas. I think Mark [Smith] and his team have done an excellent job.

Driver Q&A
Adrian Sutil (car 14, VJM03/03)
Adrian, you've now finished the VJM03's winter testing programme - how did this go?
The baseline car we have now after 12 days of testing looks very good and promising. The changes we have made during the winter have all had a positive effect. Testing went well and although there was a lot of rain over the period, the last two days in Barcelona were OK. We did our long runs and a lot of work with the tyres so we are fully prepared. We are pretty confident that our car is good enough to be in the top ten in Bahrain.

From the testing, it is possible to see how the competition is faring?
You can see a little bit, but you can't be 100% sure as you never know what the other teams are doing with their programme. That said, you can tell that some of the big teams like McLaren and Ferrari look very strong on both the long runs and qualifying runs and are always on the top of the timesheets. I am expecting them to be on the top again in the race weekend but we are not far away and that's a really good sign.

One new addition to the team is a new team-mate for you in the form of Paul di Resta. You've raced against him before?
Yes, it was a long time ago, but in F3 in 2005 we raced against each other. I think he is a very good driver and it's great to have him on board in the team as he can help develop the car with us. He will do some Friday sessions too so will get some experience, it's a good opportunity for everyone.

Looking forward to Bahrain, what would be a good result for you?
Hopefully in the top ten and I think that should be possible. I would hope we could score a few points. For everything else, it is very difficult to say what else will happen, but I am fine with any position within the top 10 - that's my goal for the moment.

Tonio Liuzzi (car 15, VJM03/01)
You covered a lot of kilometres in pre-season testing. How did that go for you?
I had five and a half days in the car and I learnt a lot of things about the car over this time. We had several test items to get to the optimum level for the start of the season and generally every item we tested had a positive effect. The car responds very well to any change, it's definitely going in the right direction. For sure the weather didn't help, but fortunately the car showed formidable reliability and performance, so in my mind there is a really strong preparation for Bahrain and the rest of the season.

How would you judge this car compared to the other cars you have driven in your career?
In my five years of F1 this is definitely the best car I've driven, It's the most balanced, and knowing that has made me feel so much stronger and confident. Of course you can never know exactly where you are compared to the others but we can go to Bahrain feeling optimistic and positive.

And Bahrain has a new track lay-out. Have you had a chance to look at this?
I've had a look on Google earth and on the simulator. I think they have just made it much longer and slower and I'm not a big fan of this type of track as I love high speed corners and circuits. I don't think there will be any more overtaking opportunities as the track goes through too tight an area. But it's the same for everybody and we need to get used it. We'll see when we walk the track on Thursday.

What are your aims for this race?
For the first race we want to show that our winter work has paid off. Points are our target for the time being and getting into the top ten, as high as possible. Being realistic, a few points should be feasible and hopefully everything goes as well as in testing with good reliability for the first race.

Paul di Resta, test and reserve driver
Paul, it must have been a bit of a whirlwind since February when you were announced as the test and reserve driver. What have you been doing since then?
It's certainly been busy! I've been in Spain during all the F1 tests and it's been quite a hectic schedule with three tests in three weeks. I've also spent some time at the factory, getting to know the team and the engineers and generally settling in. I had two half days in the car in quite difficult rainy conditions, which was not ideal, but I did at least learn about what to expect when it does rain and how to find that level when you need to change tyres: hopefully it's something I will have to deal with later in my career. But it's nice to get a feeling for the car going into the season, the strong points and how we deal with weaker spots. Any experience for me at the moment is valuable.

You've also been testing the DTM cars as well, sometimes switching literally overnight. How has that been going - has it given you a taster of how things will go this year when you are swapping F1 for DTM?
F1 and DTM are quite different to each other but so far I have done a switch from F1 to DTM and then one back again. The last time I didn't even notice it had happened, so already I am learning how to deal with it. Both cars require a different mindset but I am sure I will be able to do it with more experience without really having to think about it.

What are your feelings heading into Bahrain?
For sure I am very excited. It's a great thrill to be going there as part of an F1 team. Although I'm not going to be driving during free practice, Bahrain is a great track, I've raced there before in F3, and I can't wait to get on the plane and head off for the first weekend. I'm realistic there are lots of challenges ahead of us and only in Bahrain will we really know where car is on the field, but everyone is very excited to see this. I can't wait.



Lotus Racing Set For Bahrain



Lotus heading to Bahrain 2010 - pic Lotus RacingBy 3am on Saturday morning Lotus Racing had finally finished packing up the six airfreight boxes needed for the journey to Bahrain and the beginning of the 2010 Formula One TM season. Two cars and a 60-strong team have now made their way to the Kingdom of Bahrain and the Bahrain International Circuit for the first race of much anticipated 2010 season.

On 12th September 2009 Lotus Racing gained entry onto the grid. As the team gears up for the first Grand Prix, the whole team, including the drivers Jarno Trulli and Heikki Kovalainen, remain upbeat and honest about their expectations for the first few races. Trulli commented, "It would be nice to score a point, but it is not going to be easy. We have to be realistic."

Chief Technical Officer, Mike Gascoyne said, "Our test season was extremely productive - in general we've had very good reliability, and the team is in very good shape going to the first race."

Lotus Racing remain confident of their continuing progress. Team Principle Tony Fernandes commented, "We are all looking forward to Bahrain; to have Lotus Racing on the grid will be a momentous occasion for all involved and, indeed, for our fans, whose support has been absolutely fantastic since we launched just under six months ago. Yes we are a little slower than the major leading teams, however we will get there, with passion, hard work and a clear vision - our aim for this first Grand Prix will be to finish and steadily but surely improve, race by race."

Lotus Racing will spend the week preparing in Bahrain and look forward to hitting the track in anger for the first practice session on Friday, exactly six months to the day after gaining their entry place into 2010 Formula One World Championship.

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