Well, it would be interesting to see Nico teamed up with Lewis, I know Lewis is reputed to respect Nico.
Because it served them so well last year. Completely pointless in my opinion. Any parts they bring to the car this season will still be relevant next season because there's no major regulation changes. Red Bull have been the dominant force under the current set of regulations by evolving the package they have. SilverArrow: Weren't BMW in it for the long run? They had a masterplan and everything. I'm not saying they'll pull out, but if their cars keep getting thumped, not just by car manufacturers, but also by fizzy drinks companies, it'll reflect badly on the brand. I don't think they'll secure a win this year, and if they struggle again next year I think serious questions will be asked.
The 2010 car achieved 3 podiums in the hands of Nico, so I'm not so sure that the car was a piece of ****. That's the same number of podiums as Renault and was only bettered by Red Bull, McLaren & Ferrari. So no, not unfair as such. He knew he was going into a team that had been severely minimised in order to stay afloat so he can't have expected everything to be hunky dory.
That argument does work the other way around, too, though. If the car's a complete dog this year it'll still be a complete dog next year. If they know it's fundamentally bad then no amount of development is going to fix it or be applicable to the completely different car they're going to have to design for 2012. If Mercedes were happy to continue scrapping at the top of the midfield and fighting for the odd podium then this car's good enough-ish (we think - perhaps they've already exhausted its potential and it'll slip back down the field as surely as a BGP-001) and they should just work with it until they're forced to undertake a substantial redesign ready for 2013. Obviously that's not the case.
Surely developing this years car will give them more to build on next years car. I feel for Rosberg a bit he deserves to be challenging for the podium
Hello Hamtastic. Bit of a provocative name, that, but welcome to the forum! Yes, with no regulation changes in 2012 you should be right, but if they've decided to stop work on the 2011 car that can only mean they think it's wrong. Next year's car will therefore have to be substantially different to give them what they want and parts developed for this car may well not be applicable to one so different.
Hi Hamtastic, I agree about Rosberg, he's fast and consistent and deserves a better car. I don't think he's good enough to challenge the big boys, but he's deserves a bettter car. Actually, I heard something a few days ago saying that Rosberg will at Ferrari in 2012. Don't take my word for it though, I don't think it's true
As the regulations don't change, maybe it'd be worth concentrating on radical developments for this years car, in the hope of finding a lot of time, and forget the little things, whilst putting the majority of their efforts in to next years car? Maybe give 20% of the design team the task of thinking well and truly outside of the box, and see what they can find? Although I guess the problem with this is that if they do find something that'll give them more time, then it's more likely to be copied.
I dont think he's as good as Hamilton, Vettel or Alonso but i honestly reckon that he's be more than a match for massa and webber, His drive in China was impressive and has consistently beaten Shumacher with consummate ease since the start of 2010
Yeah, you'd think so. Bring the B-spec W02 online as soon as they can and develop it into next season.
About a month ago, Prodomou was linked to Mercedes and a couple of days ago Autosprint said that Mercedes want Aldo Costa once his gardening leave is over. Mercedes are recruiting.
The merc is, without doubt, the best looking car on the grid. Performance wise however, i think force india have overtaken them.
So you don't feel for the guy who provides the team with massive knowledge and has set the benchmark for the highest result this season for Mercedes in challenging conditions, which Rosberg has yet to match??
Well in all respect to Michael schumacher manny, he has won 7 world title and 91 victories compared to Rosberg's 5 podiums. I think Rosberg deserves to be given a good car, as he has been knocking around on the edge of a good deal for a long time.
This will of course always be conjecture but I believe that the Ferrari has been ahead of the McLaren for most, if not all of the season and that Mercedes are indeed snapping at their heals in terms of the car they have produced. I know this is controversial, but I'll make my opinion crystal clear: the drivers ARE making a difference!
They are betting on a winner for next year, it's as if the winning car is based on chance these days, they should spend time on the car they have and build on it from there.
Yep, my thoughts are also that he'd make a good number 2 in a top team, he's fast but not as fast as Vettel and he doesn't have the racing ability of Alonso or Hamilton or the genral nous of Button.
To fair to Rosberg look at Button before 2009 he had promise but people did not really rate him, thought he was a flop, underachieved, etc. Then when he got a car that could win races he has turned into a sensation and arguably the most sought after driver if you believe the rumours. This could be the same with Rosberg, give him a car that can win races and he could be a revolution.
http://www.supersport.com/motorsport/formula1/news/110814/Schumacher_insists_hell_race_in_2012 Well wierd hair, like he is in 1998 or something lol.
