Well, there’s a surprise

26/03/2017 By in Formula One Tags: , , , Leave a comment

L-r: Hamilton, Vettel and Bottas.

 

Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel has beaten Lewis Hamilton’s Mercedes. It’s the former’s first win since the Singapore GP in September 2015.

Hamilton started in pole and it looked as though it might be another Merc 1-2, but Vettel had an advantage on pace and tyre wear, forcing Mercedes into an early pit stop with Hamilton then held up by Max Verstappen.

“A big congratulations to Sebastian and Ferrari. I know this win has been a long time coming for them. This shows we’ve got a real race on our hands this season and it’s a challenge we will relish,” said Hamilton after the race.

“It’s going to be great for the fans. We had a really good start which is fantastic. It was nice to get a good getaway. But I was struggling with grip from the get-go. Sebastian was able to always answer me in terms of lap time and just go quicker. Towards the end of the first stint I caught some traffic and that overheated the tyres.

“I struggled for grip to the point where I needed to come in, plus the gap was closing up and I was sliding around a lot. We made the call to pit, because otherwise I think Sebastian would have come past me anyway. After my stop I got caught in some traffic which was unfortunate but that’s motor racing.”

Quick laps

25/03/2017 By in Formula One Leave a comment

Incidentally, Hamilton’s fast lap of 1:22.188 set a new track qualifying record. It was his fifth consecutive pole dating back to last year’s US Grand Prix.

Quickest in FP3 was Vettel, whose fast lap of 1:23.380 was .479 of a second better than his nearest pursuer, Mercedes’ Valtteri Bottas. Vettel broke the all-time lap record at the Albert Park Circuit in the process, bettering it by .149 of a second. It was Vettel who held the previous record – a 1:23.529 set during qualifying in 2011 when he was with Red Bull.

Of course, the record was short-lived as Hamilton’s pole-winning mark obliterated Vettel’s FP3 time by 1.192 seconds.

Hamilton pips Vettel to pole

25/03/2017 By in Formula One Leave a comment

L-r: Bottas, Hamilton, Vettel

 

Here’s how they qualified for Sunday’s race:

1. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) 1:22.188

2. Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari) 1:22.456

3. Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes) 1:22.481

4. Kimi Raikkonen (Ferrari) 1:23.033

5. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) 1:23.485

6. Romain Grosjean (Haas) 1:24.074

7. Felipe Massa (Williams) 1:24.443

8. Carlos Sainz Jr (Toro Rosso) 1:24.487

9. Daniil Kvyat (Toro Rosso) 1:24.512

10. Daniel Ricciardo (Red Bull) DNF.

 

Driver reactions

Lewis Hamilton (his 62nd career pole): “It’s been a fantastic weekend so far. It’s amazing to be here for the 11th time. It feels like only yesterday that I came here for my first race in 2007. The rule change has been huge – it’s been such a massive challenge. I think it’s close between us and Ferrari. I think Valtteri did a fantastic job in his first qualifying session, which is great for us.”

Valtteri Bottas: “Third position is not ideal. I couldn’t quite get a perfect lap in, so I’m not quite satisfied with the result. Tomorrow is the day that matters and my race starts have been quite strong, so hopefully we can keep that going.”

Romain Grosjean: “It’s always good to start with a strong qualifying session. It tells you that if you keep improving the car, you could be in a good place very soon. If that’s our baseline, and you can fight between sixth and 10th position, where it’s so tight, it would be great to be there most of the time and enjoy some good times.

Kevin Magnussen: “Went off the track in turn 12 on both of my laps – really annoyed with that. The good thing is the car looks competitive. Romain made it to Q3, which shows the potential of the car.”

Sergio Perez: “It’s disappointing to miss out on the top ten by such a small margin – less than a tenth of a second. However, P11 is not a bad starting position and we can certainly race for good points. All the teams in the midfield seem to be very close to each other in terms of performance and there are going to be very close battles in the race. Tyre degradation is very low and finding the right rhythm during the race will be a challenge. Overtaking is difficult here, especially with these very wide cars, but I will fight hard tomorrow.”

Esteban Ocon: “We saw today just how close the midfield fight is going to be this year because even small margins can make a huge difference. On the positive side, we improved the car during qualifying; we improved our procedures and we’ve learned things that will help us going forward.”

Felipe Massa: “It’s the first time I have used the new ultrasoft tyres, after missing some laps on those yesterday. Sixth would have been a great position for us today but I think Romain did a very good lap, which I was not able to beat.”

Lance Stroll: “I think we have to forget about today, especially as our pace was much better than that, and in FP2 we were over half a second quicker than in qualifying. Obviously it is a long race and, played intelligently, we can do something but we will work that out tonight and see about tomorrow. I now want to put the day behind me and move on to the race, which will be interesting starting from the back.”

They’re off

25/03/2017 By in Formula One Tags: , , Leave a comment

Action has kicked off in Melbourne with practice and qualifying. Mercedes has sent through some nice images. The photographer is Steve Etherington:

New F1 season

23/03/2017 By in Formula One Tags: , Leave a comment

It’s the dawn of a new era – in more ways than one. This is the first time that Formula One has changed the rules to make the cars faster.

The target with these new regulations was to make this generation of F1 cars the quickest in the history of the sport. And looking at the results from testing, we’re well on the way to achieving that. It’s something that’s never been done before and that’s a radical change.

“Having spoken to the drivers, these machines are violent – just like Formula One cars should be. I have been out on track watching them and, next to the previous generation of cars, these are properly spectacular cars. From a fan perspective – and a part of me will always be a fan – it really is something special. Any true motorsport lover simply has to see them in the flesh,” said Mercedes-Benz Motorsport’s Head, Toto Wolff.

“We have tackled with determination the challenge of the new regulations. We have been very successful over the last three years through stable rules – but no team has ever maintained its success over such a big regulation change before. In a way, it’s just what the doctor ordered. To have such a challenge is good for the team.”

Melbourne is a temporary street circuit and, as such, there are compromises to be made in the set-up of the car. It’s a circuit that is traditionally hard on brakes, but the biggest challenge will be optimising the tyres.

Adds Sahara Force India’s Team Principal, Dr Vijay Mallya: “I always say that Melbourne is a great place to start the season and this year there is so much to be excited about with the new generation of cars making their race debut. It’s interesting for the teams, the media and most importantly, the fans. Let’s hope we put on a great show to kick off the season in style.”

The art of aero

19/03/2017 By in Formula One Tags: Leave a comment

 

Williams has collaborated with Blueshift GP to create a stunning new collection of artworks. You can see them at the Ransom Gallery in London (105 Pimlico Road, SW1W 8LS until 31 March).

Using previously confidential imagery from Williams’ FW35 (and earlier) computational fluid dynamic (CFD) designs as inspiration, the artworks combine engineering expertise and art, and detail how the airflow around a car can be simulated.

Founded in July 2016, Blueshift GP was established with the sole purpose of working collaboratively with motorsport partners on designing, creating, developing and releasing unique and innovative design projects to the general public.

 

As expected…

17/02/2017 By in Formula One Tags: , Leave a comment

Official confirmation that former Ferrari man James Allison is joining Mercedes as Technical Director on 1 March. No surprise there then. Technical Director is a newly created role.

Toto Wolff: “A sharp engineer and the right fit with our senior technical group.”

Allison has won world championships with both Ferrari and Renault, in addition to holding senior leadership roles in both teams. He will report directly to Toto Wolff who will have overall responsibility for running the team.

What you may have missed…

Williams says Dirk de Beer is to be its new head of aerodynamics, also joining the company on 1 March, and Ekrem Sami, the Chief Executive Officer of McLaren Marketing is leaving the company after 35 years. Sami was one of Ron Dennis’s closest allies throughout his tenure at McLaren, having started out with Dennis in the Project 4 days.

End of the road for Manor?

28/01/2017 By in Formula One Tags: Leave a comment

Just Racing ceased trading on Friday, effectively ending the Manor team. The staff were sent home and told they will be made redundant by the close of business on Tuesday after the payment of January salaries.

According to the BBC’s Andrew Benson: “It is not necessarily the end of Manor – a buyer could potentially still purchase the remnants of the team. But even if that were to happen, the move makes it much harder for Manor to make it to the start of the season in Australia on 26 March.”

My colleague Joe Saward who runs the excellent joeblogsf1 has been following the saga from its inception: “There have been many different stories circulating about what has been going on at Manor in recent months and there have been many different interpretations of the problems.

“It has been assumed (by me and others) that the key was money, but the truth seems to be that the stumbling blocks were more complicated than that. Firstly, the owners wanted to hold on to part of the team, secondly there were questions over indemnities relating to potential liabilities, notably the possibility of legal action from the Bianchi Family and thirdly, there was a massive hole in the 2017 budget, even before Manor was knocked back to 11th in the Constructors’ Championship by Sauber in Brazil.

“This is what I have been able to ascertain, although no-one wants to go on record about the different stories, so we must take them on that basis.”

Bernie out, Ross back… I don’t know

24/01/2017 By in Formula One Tags: , Leave a comment

 

unknownWhat a day that was.

Liberty Media completed its £6.4 billion takeover of Formula One, the deal maker supreme Mr Bernie Ecclestone has been sidelined – to act as an adviser to the board supposedly, but that’s rubbish – Liberty’s Chase Carey has had Bernie’s former role of chief executive officer added to his existing position of chairman, and brought the former Ferrari-Mercedes man Ross Brawn – who had been acting as a consultant to Liberty – back into the sport to lead the sporting and technical side of F1.

Just catching my breath…

Well, if you think the 86-year-old Mr Ecclestone, who’s been in charge for nearly 40 years, is going to drive off into the sunset to partake in a game of bingo at the local retiree’s club, then think again.

Bernie remains an enigma to many. Like many of those of his generation and before, he has seen plenty of death in the sport to last a lifetime. It’s what many forget when they meet him. This kind of experience breeds toughness. To his enemies, he’s a formidable opponent; to loyal friends, he’s a brick. He also has a realistic view of what the sport has become…

Some may say this view of what he thinks the sport should be has now gone awry and we need a Liberty to sharpen things up a bit. We certainly do and some may say he’s met his match in Chase Carey. Then again how many times have we said that over the years.

The fat lady hasn’t arrived just yet.

In his book, The Piranha Club, Tim Collings describes an episode in Ecclestone’s life, recalled by Sir Frank Williams, which encapsulates Bernie, the man:

‘Those who have known him for a long time are full of admiration and respect. Frank Williams recalled him buying Brabham and running the early meetings of the 1970s. He remembered one incident, in particular, at the Watkins Glen Motor Inn.

“He was there negotiating with the organiser from Mexico and the man, literally, excused himself to go to the lavatory…and never came back. He went out of the back window!”

That, as Williams conceded with a smile, stuck in his mind. Of Ecclestone, the achiever, he said:

“In the big picture, we all know, and respect, that Bernie saw Formula One for what it could be. Over 30 years, he has moulded it into the activity that he thought would give it an important place in the world and a strong commercial base for the teams as well as creating a side of the business for himself.

“He has achieved his objectives very successfully. I think he has the admiration of all the teams for that. He really is a formidable individual in every sense of the word and he has created a worldwide sport pretty much single-handedly.”

And, of Ecclestone, the man, he said he had “a gifted business brain…He is intellectually very clever and level-headed. Clearly, he is very determined. He can also be very persuasive, when putting his deals together in the order in which he wanted them to stack up.”

Could anyone else have done what Bernie did?

“Probably, but he wasn’t in this part of the universe at the right time…I’ve always known it is impossible to second-guess Bernard. Like many clever businessmen, you don’t know what he is thinking.”

 

And guess what? One pops over to Mercedes and there’s Mr Bottas

16/01/2017 By in Formula One Tags: , Leave a comment

M55603

 

It’s been 45 days since Nico Rosberg dropped the bombshell of his immediate retirement from Formula One. And it left the team with a conundrum: how to best fill the vacant seat alongside three-time champion Lewis Hamilton in order to defend the Constructors’ Championship?

Following six weeks of detailed evaluation, deliberation and negotiation, the answer can now be confirmed officially: they signed Valtteri Bottas this morning. The 27-year-old native of Nastola, Finland has completed four seasons in Formula One with Williams, making 77 starts and scoring 9 career podiums so far.

“Sometimes in life, unexpected circumstances provide interesting opportunities. Nico’s decision in December was a big surprise – certainly a challenging situation for the team to handle. But weathering the storm makes you more resilient and we see this as another opportunity for the team to grow,” explained Toto Wolff as he introduced the fourth driver to race for the Silver Arrows in the modern era.

“Valtteri is a no-nonsense guy: down to earth, straightforward and very focused. Pretty Finnish, to be honest, and a great fit for us. He has an impressive track record in the junior categories and nine podiums in F1. But now it’s time for the next level, to see how he can step up to challenge for race wins and for Championships. We know that we are already behind the curve in terms of preparations for the new season, so we’ve got a busy programme to get him integrated into the team. One thing is for sure: as I know Valtteri, he will give it everything.”

Valtteri was cautiously optimistic when he met his new team mates in the factory today. “It’s very exciting times for me,” he grinned. “I think it’s going to take a while to understand that this is really happening. It’s definitely another dream come true, to race in another team with such great history – especially in the recent years, which have been so impressive. I’m really proud to become a part of that and grateful to everyone at Mercedes for trusting my skills and giving me this opportunity.

“I’ve had a really warm welcome so far. Of course, I have a lot more people to meet and new faces to remember. But initially everything has felt very good. I’m really impressed with the facilities and I’m looking forward to getting to know everyone better. My first experience with Mercedes power was in F3 back in 2009 and, of course, I know the Power Unit well from the last three years with Williams. But there are a lot of new things to learn with the car and also with how the team operates at the factory, in testing and at the races.”

The scale of the challenge ahead cannot be underestimated.

New aerodynamic regulations mean a reset for the entire field and there is genuine uncertainty about which team will emerge on top; Valtteri is paired with probably the most ferociously fast team mate in the sport, Lewis Hamilton; and there are just 70 days until the red lights go out at the start of the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne.

“We have confidence in Valtteri’s ability and it’s one of the reasons that he is the driver we set our sights on this winter,” continued Wolff. “The next weeks will be busy as we work to build relationships so Valtteri understands the team and the car. But that’s an exciting challenge that will bring us fresh energy and a new dynamic between the drivers. And, of course, we’re working hard to give Lewis and Valtteri the car they need to do the job.”

Bottas is under no illusions about the task ahead: “I’m ready to work hard, to prove myself to the team and to prove my skills. It’s going to be a challenging season and joining a new team makes it more work than normal. But I’m 100 per cent ready for that. I’m training hard to be at my physical best because it will be much tougher with these new cars. I always set the bar really high, so my target is to perform from the first race. I’m full of energy and ready to get to work for this year and hopefully many more to come with Mercedes.”

 

M55604

Valtteri Bottas ; Valtteri Bottas;

The agreement for Bottas to join Mercedes has not happened in isolation.

With today’s announcements that Pascal Wehrlein will join Sauber for 2017, and that Felipe Massa will return to Williams, the final pieces of the puzzle have fallen into place for this year. And this has only been possible thanks to positive working relationships between all the teams involved in a complex chain of negotiations.

“On behalf of Mercedes, I must thank Williams for their cooperation in allowing Valtteri to make this move – and also Monisha and Sauber for their patience during the past weeks,” concluded Toto. “It’s been a busy day in the driver market and I am pleased to know that Pascal will be racing at Sauber to continue his development in F1. He had a good first season with Manor and we feel this is the right path for him in the sport. It’s satisfying to have both of our Young Drivers taking on new challenges in F1 this year, with Esteban also racing at Force India. We’ll be following their progress closely; I’m sure we’ve got an exciting season ahead of us.”

From Bottas, too, there were warm words for his friends and colleagues at Williams: “I had a great seven years there, starting as a test driver in 2010. I’m very proud of what we achieved together and I leave with some very good memories. My debut in F1, my first points and nine podiums all came with the guys and girls at Grove, so I must say a big thanks to everyone and I wish them all the very best for the future.”

As Bottas now begins a busy week of technical and physical preparations for the new season, Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport is pleased to confirm that Nico Rosberg has accepted an ambassadorial role with the team for 2017.

His first commitment will be tomorrow, in Geneva, alongside former team mate Lewis Hamilton at the Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie (SIHH) on behalf of team partner, IWC Schaffhausen.

For myself, I’ll be in Croydon.

Felipe Massa to replace Valtteri Bottas at Williams for 2017 season

16/01/2017 By in Formula One Tags: , Leave a comment

felipe_massa

 

As expected Felipe Massa has agreed to rejoin Williams on a one-year deal, coming out of retirement to replace Valtteri Bottas who the team has released to join Mercedes for the 2017 season.

Felipe will race for a fourth consecutive season with Williams, alongside Lance Stroll who will make his Formula One debut in the 2017 FIA Formula One World Championship.

Having joined Williams in 2014, Massa has been instrumental in the team’s improved performance supporting a resurgence to third place in the Constructors’ Championship in his first and second years.

Speaking about the announcement Massa said: “Firstly, I am very happy to have an opportunity to return to Williams. I always intended to race somewhere in 2017, but Williams is a team close to my heart and I have respect for everything it is trying to achieve. Valtteri has a great opportunity, given the turn of events over the winter, and I wish him all the best at Mercedes.

“In turn, when I was offered the chance to help Williams with their 2017 Formula One campaign, it felt like the right thing to do. I certainly have not lost any of my enthusiasm for racing and I’m extremely motivated to be coming back to drive the FW40. The support from my fans over the last few weeks has been a huge boost and I’m grateful for that. I also look forward to working with Lance; I’ve known him for many years and seen his talent develop during that time, so I look forward to seeing what we can achieve together.”

So, there you have it…

Paddy Lowe has left Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport

16/01/2017 By in Formula One Tags: Leave a comment

Just tidying up a few loose ends. As you’ll probably have heard by now, after three and a half very successful years, Paddy Lowe is now on what the F1 industry calls garden leave.

For the record, the senior directors remaining are Aldo Costa (Engineering), Mark Ellis (Performance), Rob Thomas (Chief Operating Officer) and Geoff Willis (Technology).

Further information “will be communicated in due course” but the smart money is on Paddy joining Williams and former Ferrari technical director James Allison filling Mr Lowe’s booties.

The 54-year-old Lowe led Mercedes to three drivers’ and constructors’ championship doubles in a row from 2014 to 2016. The man needs a new challenge, as they say.

Manor Racing in administration

08/01/2017 By in Formula One Tags: Leave a comment

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Very sad news.

The directors of Manor Racing have placed the team’s operating company, Just Racing Services Ltd, into administration. Geoff Rowley and Phil Armstrong, partners of FRP Advisory LLP have been appointed joint administrators.

The decision comes after several months of discussions with investors in an effort to secure the best future for the team: discussions that had recently progressed with a particular investor to the signing of heads of terms. Unfortunately, the investor was unable to advance a final agreement in a timescale that would have avoided impacting upon the team’s 2017 racing programme and the directors had no alternative but to place the team in administration.

Stephen Fitzpatrick, owner of Manor Racing since January 2015, said: “The decision to put the team into administration represents a disappointing end to a two-year journey for Manor.

“Over much of the last year we have been in discussions with several investor groups, and had finally agreed terms of a sale to an Asian investment consortium in December. This would have provided the team with a strong platform for continued growth and development. Unfortunately time ran out before they could complete the transaction.

“Not wishing to repeat events of the past, we resolved in 2015 not to start any season that we did not know for certain we could complete, so we have taken the difficult decision to put the team’s operating company into administration.

“When I took over the team in 2015, the challenge was clear; it was imperative that the team finish in 10th place or better in 2016. For much of the season we were on track. But the dramatic race in Brazil ended our hopes of this result and ultimately brought into doubt the team’s ability to race in 2017.

“I look back on 2016 with pride in what Manor accomplished in what was the most successful year in the team’s history. I would like to thank the team for their constant hard work, determination and passion. We made a huge amount of progress on and off track but ultimately it was not enough.”

2016 Season progress
(Bahrain Grand Prix) 2014 2015 2016
Delta to pole 4.125s 6.142s 3.313s
Delta to fastest lap 4.805s 5.448s 0.966s
Highest position during race 17th 16th 7th
Cars behind at finish None None Sauber, Force India, Renault
As a similar barometer, in Austria Manor Racing qualified 19th (’14), 19th (’15), 12th (’16) and of course raced to P10 in ‘16.

Qualifying
Five times into Q2 (Austria, Spa, Italy, Mexico, Abu Dhabi)
Number of times Manor Racing out-qualified one Sauber car in 2016: 13
Number of times Manor Racing out-qualified both Sauber cars in 2016: 9

Race starts
– WEH was 2nd best driver at gaining position on the first lap of every race having gained +35 positions in the first lap so far this season (an average of 1.94 per race). Only beaten by Alonso with +43 positions. Esteban was 5th on the list with +27 places gained (average of 3.38 per race)

Speed
Top of the speed traps 9 times in 2016 in Qualifying (using GPS data).

Reliability

Only three retirements from 42 starts in 2016 due to technical problems

Classified at the end of more races (32) than its main competitors Sauber (31), McLaren (31) and Haas (30).

Sindelfingen day

03/12/2016 By in Formula One Tags: , , Leave a comment

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Mercedes-AMG Motorsport, Motorsport meets Sindelfingen, Mercedes AMG Petronas, F1, Formel 1, Lewis Hamilton ; Mercedes-AMG Motorsport, Motorsport meets Sindelfingen, Mercedes AMG Petronas, F1, Formula 1, Lewis Hamilton;

 

Sindelfingen: “THANK YOU!” – this was the message delivered by Formula One World Champion Nico Rosberg and team-mate Lewis Hamilton together with their Mercedes crew today. It was high time to express gratitude for the immense support given by colleagues at Mercedes-Benz in the past three seasons. Rosberg also took the opportunity to say goodbye to everyone at Mercedes-Benz after announcing his retirement yesterday.

16,500 employees accepted the invitation to return to the Mercedes-Benz plant in Sindelfingen for a celebration of the Formula One hat-trick with the freshly crowned World Champion, and let’ not forget three-time World Champion Hamilton. The banner headline for the event was ‘Motorsport meets Sindelfingen’, so the employees and their families were treated to all the fun and glamour of the racetrack during the course of the afternoon.

There was a pit stop contest in which employees could try their hand at changing wheels and discover for themselves the standard required of the professional crews who fit a car with four new tyres in under two seconds on a race weekend. There was also an opportunity to demonstrate driving skills under track conditions on the DTM simulator. The drivers and team officials also gave fascinating insights into paddock life in a number of interview sessions.

But the demo laps on the Sindelfingen testing track were surely the highlight of the day. Among the vehicles given an outing were the Formula One World Championship-winning cars of 2014 and 2016 as well as various DTM and customer sports vehicles such as the Mercedes-AMG GT3.

Not only the Formula One stars Nico Rosberg, Lewis Hamilton, Pascal Wehrlein and Esteban Ocon took their turn at the wheel but also the entire Mercedes-AMG DTM Team as well as junior talents such as Maximilian Günther and Mick Schumacher. To round off the spectacular, there were appearances by motorsport legends David Coulthard, Bernd Mayländer and DTM record champion Bernd Schneider.

Nico Rosberg: “It’s hard to believe that almost a week has gone by since I won the title. And what a crazy week it has been! First came that amazingly tough race in Abu Dhabi, then the enormous sense of relief after crossing the finish line, and after that the emotional moments spent with the team and my family.

“Then on Tuesday, we had the World Championship celebrations with our team partner Petronas in Kuala Lumpur, and yesterday it was the FIA Prizegiving Gala in Vienna at which I announced my retirement from Formula One. At last, I got my hands on the championship trophy. For me, a childhood dream had come true. And now here I am today, standing in front of so many Mercedes-Benz employees and thanking them for the huge support they have given me and my motorsport family over the past years.

“I will never forget you. This is a very special feeling. It’s been long and difficult road, but 2016 was my best ever Formula One season and I’ve also driven my best races this year. The whole thing was just mega.”

 

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Mercedes-AMG, Motorsport, Sindelfingen, F1, Nico Rosberg ; Mercedes-AMG, Motorsport, Sindelfingen, F1, Nico Rosberg;

Mercedes-AMG Motorsport, Motorsport meets Sindelfingen, Mercedes AMG Petronas, F1, Formel 1, Nico Rosberg ; Mercedes-AMG Motorsport, Motorsport meets Sindelfingen, Mercedes AMG Petronas, F1, Formula 1, Nico Rosberg;

A dream fulfilled: Nico Rosberg ends his racing career

03/12/2016 By in Formula One Tags: , Leave a comment
Signing for the Silver Arrows - November 2009

Signing for the Silver Arrows – November 2009

First Silver Arrows Test - Valencia 2010

First Silver Arrows test – Valencia 2010

 

After Friday’s bombshell, which I think did take Mr Hamilton by surprise, Nico Rosberg is the first reigning World Champion to end his career since Alain Prost in 1993.

In an emotional address prior to the 2016 FIA Prize Giving in Vienna, Austria, Nico revealed the reasons behind his decision, which was reached following his crowning achievement in Abu Dhabi last Sunday.

Nico has competed in a total of 206 Grands Prix and won 23 of them, placing him joint 12th on the all-time list alongside Nelson Piquet. He has scored 30 pole positions (8th all time) and 20 fastest laps. Last Sunday in Abu Dhabi, he became the first German driver to win a Formula One World Championship at the wheel of a Mercedes-Benz Silver Arrow.

Nico Rosberg: “Since 25 years in racing, it has been my dream, my ‘one thing’ to become Formula One World Champion. Through the hard work, the pain, the sacrifices, this has been my target. And now I’ve made it. I have climbed my mountain, I am on the peak, so this feels right. My strongest emotion right now is deep gratitude to everybody who supported me to make that dream happen.

“This season, I tell you, it was so damn tough. I pushed like crazy in every area after the disappointments of the last two years; they fuelled my motivation to levels I had never experienced before. And of course that had an impact on the ones I love, too – it was a whole family effort of sacrifice, putting everything behind our target.

“I cannot find enough words to thank my wife Vivian; she has been incredible. She understood that this year was the big one, our opportunity to do it, and created the space for me to get full recovery between every race, looking after our daughter each night, taking over when things got tough and putting our championship first.

“When I won the race in Suzuka, from the moment when the destiny of the title was in my own hands, the big pressure started and I began to think about ending my racing career if I became World Champion. On Sunday morning in Abu Dhabi, I knew that it could be my last race and that feeling cleared my head before the start.

“I wanted to enjoy every part of the experience, knowing it might be the last time… and then the lights went out and I had the most intense 55 laps of my life. I took my decision on Monday evening. After reflecting for a day, the first people I told were Vivian and Georg (Nolte, from Nico’s management team), followed by Toto.

“The only thing that makes this decision in any way difficult for me is because I am putting my racing family into a tough situation. But Toto understood. He knew straight away that I was completely convinced and that reassured me. My proudest achievement in racing will always be to have won the world championship with this incredible team of people, the Silver Arrows.

“Now, I’m just here to enjoy the moment. There is time to savour the next weeks, to reflect on the season and to enjoy every experience that comes my way. After that, I will turn the next corner in my life and see what it has in store for me…”

Head of Mercedes-Benz Motorsport, Toto Wolff: “This is a brave decision by Nico and testament to the strength of his character. He has chosen to leave at the pinnacle of his career, as World Champion, having achieved his childhood dream. The clarity of his judgement meant I accepted his decision straight away when he told me.

“It’s impossible to capture the essence of a person in a few short words. But Nico has a special combination of natural talent and fighting spirit that have brought him to where he is today. Throughout his career, people have thought he was on a golden path to success just because his father was a World Champion; in fact, I think in some ways that made the challenge greater – and meant he had to fight even harder with the weight of expectation on his shoulders.

“With Mercedes, Nico has been a relentless competitor, bouncing back from tough times in an inspirational way, and he earned the respect of the sport with his tenacity, his fighting spirit and his grace under pressure. Since 2010, he has poured competitive energy into our team and we have grown stronger because of it. We simply say ‘thank you’ for the incredible contribution he has made to our success, alongside two of the all-time great drivers, Michael and Lewis.

“For the team, this is an unexpected situation but also an exciting one. We are going into a new era of technical regulations and there is a free Mercedes cockpit for the seasons ahead. We will take the necessary time to evaluate our options and then find the right path for our future.”

 

First Silver Arrows Win - China 2012

First Silver Arrows win – China 2012

World Championship Win - Abu Dhabi 2016

World Championship win – Abu Dhabi 2016