The silver arrows finished their regulars in the training to the GP of Europe. Nico Rosberg and Michael Schumacher start seven and eight of the seats. But with 1.3 seconds behind the top. Team boss Ross Brawn has arranged an intensive search by the lap.
Business as usual at Mercedes. Nico Rosberg and Michael Schumacher were comfortably in the top ten final and landed seven and eight to the positions. These are their regulars in qualifying. Only the small separated the two Mercedes drivers from nine milliseconds. An indication that Schumacher close on his normal form.
The 1.3 seconds are the only concern, separate from the top the Rosberg and Schumacher. Were ever less. "As long as there are no major changes to the car, is also not to be expected that the distance will be less," noted Schumacher. There are reasons for the gap. "Certainly not the fact that here in Valencia all their engines to race mode need to switch." "It looks like, as had neutralized all", smiles Ross Brawn. "No more than force India seems easy to have made good ground."
The explanation for the delay lies in the concern for the rear wheels. Over 30 degrees are expected for the race day. Valencia is a course on the Mercedes could once again obtain the long suffering but also due to the track layout. There are six places, speed of the slow turns. And there is a passage which more or less go flat out, followed by a hairpin.
"It is particularly critical." In the fast bends, the tyres will be charged strongly. With us over at the top cars because we lack the downforce. If the driver in the target curve arrive, the rear wheels have strongly heated. "As a hard acceleration maneuvers following may cause then that is the tires over", said brawn.
The problem of the rear tyres dictated Mercedes the vote of the car. Not necessarily a Setup with which you ride on a round the best time, but one that keeps alive the rear wheels. Also the driver had to deal with their tires with care in their qualification rounds. Brawn: "we have out sent them only once, to to harm the tyres as little as possible before." "Our experience show, that they keep then better in the race."
This emergency solutions want to turn off soon brawn and its technology Director Bob Bell. The development for the 2012er car is already in full swing, "but we need solutions now, so catch the error next year does not back up with us." So, there will be a comparative test between two Subfloors at Silverstone. A driver shall enter in the Friday practice the current variant, in which the exhaust leak out in the middle of the page boxes. The other will test a floor, where the tailpipes to Red Bull model just to call off the rear wheels.
"We will look at the results in many details us", says brawn. Of course in the reference to which solution brings more downforce. "The logic says that the Red Bull version is better." Otherwise they would not front drive. "On the other hand one does not already know how the prohibition of Anblasens in the drag of the engine affects the individual exhaust try so far."
Brawn calls yet an other important benchmark: "We will review what exhaust outlet is more heats up the rear." We have our current solution as a possible cause of our problems with the rear tires suspected. "In the field, which is red with Bull exhaust bring security progress."
Ross Brawn not allows for excuses or excuses. "We are not good enough." Point. We have to change this. We need answers to many questions. If you zuruckliegst, you have to figure out where you lose time. "In this process we are straight."
On the line it is not. Nico Rosberg led in the top-speed list with 317,5 km/h. "So we leave time in the curves", laughs Rosberg distressed and insured for Schumacher with a quick look. He nods approvingly. Norbert Haug has on a discipline still identified, where Mercedes Red Bull loses dramatic time: "You are the traction clearly superior." "That adds up, at so many points of acceleration, as there are here in Valencia."