0 Brazilian F1 Grand Prix 2013: Sunday's Race Report from MERCEDES AMG PETRONAS

MERCEDES AMG PETRONAS secured second place in the Constructors´ Championship today after a thrilling final race of the season.

• The team finished the 2013 season with a total of 360 points - 218 more than in 2012

• The season saw a total of three wins, six further podiums and eight pole positions

• Nico finished P5 this afternoon on a two-stop strategy, running option/prime/prime with stops on laps 22 and 44

• Lewis finished P9 after making two pit stops (laps 21, 47) and serving a drive-through penalty on lap 52

• Lewis also ran a tyre strategy of option/prime/prime and completed his 18th finish in 19 races in the 2013 season

Drivers - Car No. - Chassis No. - Race Result / Fastest Lap
Nico Rosberg - 9 - F1 W04 / 03 - P5, 1:16.442
Lewis Hamilton - 10 - F1 W04 / 04 - P9, 1:16.692

Weather - Dry with slight showers
Temperatures - Air: 18-20°C / Track: 22-26°C

Nico Rosberg
“Today is a great day for the team and to finish in second place in the Constructors´ Championship is a huge step forward for us. My thanks to everyone who made our success possible and congratulations to the team here at the track and back at our factories. It was certainly an interesting race today; I had a perfect start but then I struggled a lot with my rear tyres in the opening stint and lost a few positions. We could have cleared Jenson in the pits but it was better for us to be conservative and focus on our battle with Ferrari. I´m so happy that we have achieved our aim and now everyone can look forward to a break and the new challenge of 2014. It´s a huge project and there´s a lot of work ahead over the winter. I´m very much looking forward to working with the team to put us in the best possible position for next season.”

Lewis Hamilton
“Firstly, congratulations to the team today for achieving second place in the Constructors´ Championship. That result means so much to everyone and I´m so grateful to have been a part of it this year. From my side, it was a tough race today. I don´t know what happened exactly with Valtteri and will have to have a look at the replay. I thought that I had moved to the left, he outbraked me and then we touched but it happened so quickly and it was obviously judged that I did something wrong. I was having a good race until that point in fourth place and a podium might have been possible as I was closing on Fernando. That´s why I´m so disappointed with my own race but of course I´m delighted for the team. They have done an incredible job this year and really deserve this result. It´s the reward for what I know has been many years of hard work and my thoughts are with everyone here at the track and back at our factories at Brackley and Brixworth. We´ve got so much to look forward to next season so I´ll put today behind me quickly and focus on what should be a great year in 2014.”

Ross Brawn
“Well, I´ve certainly got a few more grey hairs after that race! Both cars made fantastic starts but it was soon clear that we hadn´t found the sweet spot with the car balance for Nico and he was struggling for rear-end grip. Lewis was stronger in the opening stint and showed good pace before and after his first stop. Our race obviously turned on the two drive-through penalties for Felipe and Lewis. Our drivers had been reporting that Felipe was consistently crossing the white line at pit entry with all four wheels and when the FIA eventually took action, that obviously helped us. Then we had Lewis´ unfortunate incident with Bottas and we have to take that one on the chin as we should have kept Lewis better informed of just how quickly the Williams was closing, even though he was a lap down. He then drove strongly after the penalty, especially considering his floor was damaged by the flailing tyre. But the key thing today is that the team secured second position in the Constructors´ Championship, even though we made rather hard work of it. That was done on the basis of a very good step forwards and one we made for good reasons. My thanks and congratulations to everyone at our team for all of their hard work, dedication and commitment. Red Bull have been extremely dominant in 2013, and congratulations to them. But our progress is the first fruits of the technical team we began building two years ago and I am optimistic that the trend of progress will continue in 2014.”

Toto Wolff
“Our target today was to secure second position in the Constructors´ Championship; we achieved that target and that´s what counts. Ferrari, and Fernando in particular, made life extremely hard for us in the first half of the race and that kept us on our toes and gave us some nervous moments. Lewis´ incident with Valtteri was unfortunate; we must be glad that it did not ultimately cost us any positions in the standings and learn our lessons from it. Thank you to everyone at the team, both at the track and at our factories, for their efforts and please keep up the hard work! Congratulations also to Red Bull, who once again showed incredible pace and have set the standard this season. From tomorrow, our attention will be fully focused on 2014 and taking another significant step forward in performance.”

~ Official photos and report courtesy of MERCEDES AMG PETRONAS ~

Copyright © 2013, Mercedes-Benz-Blog. All rights reserved.

Detail: Brazilian F1 Grand Prix 2013: Sunday's Race Report from MERCEDES AMG PETRONAS

0 Brazilian F1 Grand Prix 2013: Sunday's Race Report from Vodafone McLaren Mercedes

JENSON BUTTON
- MP4-28A-02
- Started: 14th
- Finished: 4th
- Fastest lap: 1m16.450s (+1.014s, 7th)
- Pitstops: Two: laps 20 (2.95s) and 43 (3.94s) [Pri-Opt-Opt]
- Points: 73 (9th)

“For Checo, myself and the whole Vodafone McLaren Mercedes team, today was an incredible day.

“I’m pleased to have finished fourth: it’s almost the podium position that I came here aiming for. We really needed today’s result.

“The 2013 season hasn’t been an easy one – it’s been tough for all of us at the circuits, but it’s probably been even tougher for the guys back at the factory, working flat-out to make parts. They’re a really amazing bunch of totally passionate and utterly dedicated people, and they richly deserve the ‘lift’ that today’s result will have given them.

“I’m also pleased for Checo. He won’t be with us next year, but he drove a great race today. Well done, mate.

“I also want to say a big ‘thank you’ to Vodafone. Vodafone has been an absolutely incredible title partner, and we’ve also had a lot of fun together – both on and off the track. Some of the videos they made with us have been truly brilliant. I’m sad to see them leave, but I guess nothing ;lasts for ever.

“This is a great way to end the year, and now our focus turns squarely to 2014. McLaren is an incredibly strong and powerful organisation – and, believe me, we will fight back.”

SERGIO PEREZ
- MP4-28A-03
- Started: 19th (following yesterday’s five-place grid penalty for an unscheduled gearbox change)
- Finished: 6th
- Fastest lap: 1m16.246s (+0.810s, 5th)
- Pitstops: Two: laps 19 (2.58s) and 44 (2.65s) [Opt-Opt-Pri]
- Points: 49 (11th)

“What a contrast today was to yesterday, when we were unlucky to lose five grid positions owing to a gearbox-change penalty, but I think we made a very strong recovery this afternoon.

“I was praying for heavier rain at the end of the race, so that I could have a go at making up some more positions. But unfortunately I had to save fuel in the final laps, which meant I couldn’t really attack Nico [Rosberg] as hard as I’d otherwise have been able to.

“I’ve learnt so much from everyone at Vodafone McLaren Mercedes, the best team I’ve ever raced with, and I wish every single one of them all the best for the future. I wish Jenson and Kevin all the best for the future, too.

“I think I’ve grown up a lot this year – both as a racing driver and as a man – and I think I’ll be an even stronger competitor in future as a result.”

MARTIN WHITMARSH
Team principal, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes

“Undoubtedly, that was our best grand prix of the year.

“It’s frustrating to have to say that after a race in which our drivers finished only fourth and sixth, but it’s also true.

“Moreover, the manner in which those results were achieved was heartening indeed: both Jenson and Checo had difficulties in qualifying, through no fault of their own, but the way they charged through the field from their lowly grid slots this afternoon was seriously impressive.

“It also illustrated very creditable race pace, which was good to see.

“Having said all that, 2013 been a long, hard and disappointing year. Nonetheless, I want to take this opportunity to pay particular tribute to our trackside mechanics and engineers, who are without doubt the best in the pit-lane. That’s not only my opinion, by the way; the stats bear it out, too.

“As of today, McLaren became the first team in Formula 1 history to have both its cars classified in every grand prix during the season.

“And, also as of today, McLaren completed 99.17% of the season’s total possible race distance – 7139 miles [11,488km] out of a possible 7198 miles [11,584km] – which is not only better than every other team managed this season but is also a new world record, beating the previous record of 98.30% set by BMW-Sauber in 2008.

“Those two stats constitute compelling proof of the fact that our trackside mechanics and engineers possess the three D’s in impressive abundance: dedication, determination and discipline. Well done, boys, I’m proud of you.

“Today, Jenson broke a record, too, becoming the first British F1 driver to start 247 grands prix, eclipsing the previous British milestone of 246 set by our old friend David [Coulthard]. And the way Jenson drove today proves that he’s as hungry and as competitive as ever he was.

“Checo also drove a superb race today, surging from 19th on the grid to sixth at the flag, and I’m personally delighted that he was able to end his year at McLaren with such a fantastic performance. As I’ve said many times, he’s a fine driver. He’s also a lovely guy, and the way he’s conducted himself over the past 10 days, in particular, in extremely challenging circumstances, has been hugely impressive. He’s a class act.

“Today we also have to bid farewell to our title and total communications partner Vodafone, after seven seasons in which together we won one world championship, here at Interlagos, in 2008, perhaps the most dramatic denouement in Formula 1 history, and also scored 34 grand prix wins. Vodafone has been a fabulous partner for McLaren, and has contributed not only funding but also technology. Moreover, our partnership delivered all the marketing objectives that Vodafone had set for it, and gave its clients and customers a lot of fun, too.

“Finally, I want to say something about the future. Formula 1 is a relentlessly demanding sport, and next season’s new regulations are already presenting all the teams with a daunting array of technical challenges – not only powertrains but aerodynamics, too. For quite some time we’ve been working extremely hard on those technical challenges, and our focus will be unstinting and unwavering from now onwards, throughout the winter.

“In other words, the 2014 season starts this evening.”

~ Official photos and report courtesy of Vodafone McLaren Mercedes ~

Copyright © 2013, Mercedes-Benz-Blog. All rights reserved.

Detail: Brazilian F1 Grand Prix 2013: Sunday's Race Report from Vodafone McLaren Mercedes

0 Brazilian F1 Grand Prix 2013: Preview, Free Practice and Qualifying Reports from Vodafone McLaren Mercedes

I. Brazilian F1 Grand Prix 2013 Preview

The 2013 FIA Formula 1 World Championship draws to a close in Brazil this weekend. The season finale takes place at the Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace, one of the oldest and most atmospheric venues on the calendar, and a track at which McLaren has enjoyed much success over the years.

The circuit is named after Jose Carlos Pace, who raced under the shorter name of Carlos Pace for Surtees and Brabham in the 1970s, winning his home grand prix in a Brabham in 1975. He was killed in a private aircraft accident in 1977, and had been a great friend of fellow Brazilian racer Emerson Fittipaldi, to whom Interlagos also means a huge amount: he won his home grand prix in 1973 (in a Lotus) and 1974 (in a McLaren). Emerson won McLaren’s first ever F1 world championship in 1974.

There have been several iterations of the circuit since it was built in the Sao Paolo precinct of Interlagos in 1940. The current anti-clockwise layout dates back to 1990 and, despite being resurfaced regularly, the marshy topography results in its being decidedly bumpy and therefore physically demanding for the drivers.

From a technical point of view, the circuit’s 800-metre altitude has a detrimental effect on car performance. Engines lose seven percent of their power compared with sea level, and aerodynamic addenda are less effective, which shortfall places even greater emphasis on mechanical grip.

As was the case at last weekend’s United States Grand Prix, where Jenson Button and Sergio Perez both finished in the points, Pirelli will take their Medium and Hard compounds to the race.

Jenson has good memories of racing in Brazil. He scored his first world championship point at the Autodromo Jose Carlos Pace in 2000; he clinched the world title at the track in ’09, and he scored his most recent victory there last year. Both he and Checo will be looking to end this season on a high.

Race distance - 71 laps (190.092 miles/305.909km)
Start time - 14:00 (local)/16:00 (GMT)
Circuit length - 2.677 miles/4.309km
2012 winner -  Jenson Button (McLaren MP4-27), 71 laps in 1hr45:22.656s (174.179km/h)
2012 pole - Lewis Hamilton (McLaren MP4-27), 1m12.458s (214.088km/h)
Lap record - Juan Pablo Montoya (Williams FW26), 1m11.473s (217.038km/h)

McLaren at the Brazilian Grand Prix

- Wins: 12 (1974, 1984, 1985, 1987, 1988, 1991, 1993,1998, 1999, 2001, 2005, 2012)
- Poles: 11 (1974, 1976, 1977, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2012)
- Fastest laps: 9 (1973, 1977, 1984, 1985, 1990, 1998, 2005, 2010, 2012)

Car 5: Jenson Button
- Age: 33 (January 19 1980)
- GPs: 246
- Wins: 15
- Poles: 8
- FLs: 8

“Obviously, I have some extremely happy memories of racing in Brazil – it’s where I won my world championship, back in 2009, and it’s where I took my most recent grand prix win, last year for Vodafone McLaren Mercedes.

“This year has been a tricky one, though, and it’ll be tough heading back to Sao Paulo knowing that the team hasn’t taken a victory since race day last year, but to be honest that only makes me more determined to end the season on a positive note

“Finally, Brazil will be my final race in Vodafone overalls. I’ve won eight grands prix in our title partner’s famous rocket-red colours, I’ve driven some of the best cars of my F1 career during my association with them, and I’ve done some incredible things with them too – like driving an F1 car around Mount Panorama, one of my lifelong ambitions. Vodafone has played such a major part in the success of our team over the last seven seasons, and, while I’ll be sad to see them leave, I’ll always be proud of the successes we enjoyed together.”

Car 6: Sergio Perez
- Age: 23 (January 26 1990)
- GPs: 55
- Wins: 0
- Poles: 0
- FLs: 2

“My final race for Vodafone McLaren Mercedes will be the second successive race in the Americas, so it’ll be another weekend in front of my fans from Mexico and Latin America, and also another opportunity for me to show my abilities before the winter break.

“I love Interlagos because it’s such a racer’s circuit – you attack the whole lap. The first corner is a fantastic place for overtaking, and you can pretty much race side-by-side with someone all the way down into Turn Six, which is incredible. The infield section is tricky, because it has a range of elevations and cambers, but it’s a fantastic feeling when you get it right. Finally, Juncao is a tough little corner, because you’re often outbraking yourself on entry, simply because you want to maximise your speed through the corner in order to maintain speed along the long, top straight.

“Every lap is a challenge and, when you’re racing, an absolute thrill. I love it around here and I’ll be giving it everything to make sure I finish the season in style.”

Martin Whitmarsh
Team principal, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes

“There are few more satisfyingly challenging venues at which to conclude a long Formula 1 season than Interlagos, the home of Brazilian motorsport and one of the most spectacular and awe-inspiring racetracks in the world.

“The race will bring the curtain down on the sport’s current set of technical regulations, and will immediately send us busily into the winter as we start to prepare for a new era of turbocharging and energy recovery. It’s an exciting time for the sport – but also a nerve-wracking period for every team as we come to terms with a daunting array of new variables and permutations.

“For everyone in the Vodafone McLaren Mercedes team, the Brazilian Grand Prix marks the end of another era – it will be the last grand prix of Vodafone’s title partnership with us. Vodafone will step away from that title partnership after having spent seven fantastic seasons with us – during which time we won one world championship and 34 grands prix together, and also took 30 pole positions and 24 fastest laps.

“We also take home a lot of wonderful shared memories, some of which we’ll cherish for the rest of our lives. Speaking for myself, I’ll certainly never forget the emotional rollercoaster that I found myself on, sitting on the pitwall here at Interlagos, five years ago, as we won the world championship on the very last corner of the very last lap of the very last race.

“Thank you, Vodafone. Power to you!”

A #mclaren50 memory
Brazilian Grand Prix, March 24 1991

After winning the season-opener at Phoenix, Ayrton Senna arrives In Brazil hungry for more success. He’s never won on home turf, despite starting from pole position four times in the last seven years.

Once again he sets the pace in qualifying. In the dying moments of the session he completes a blistering lap in front of his adoring fans that’s 0.3s faster than Riccardo Patrese and more than 1s ahead of his McLaren team-mate Gerhard Berger.

But the race turns out to be anything but easy for Ayrton. He leads into Turn One, but Nigel Mansell takes up the chase ahead of Patrese. After 20 laps the gap between Ayrton and Mansell is just 0.7s, and just as the Williams driver looks set to challenge for the lead, he dives into the pits. A slow pitstop by the Williams team, which takes more than 14s, gives Ayrton some breathing space – and when Mansell is forced to make an unscheduled second stop due to a puncture, Ayrton switches his attentions to second-placed Patrese.

By this stage of the race, Ayrton has issues of his own because his gearbox is playing up. First he loses fourth gear, then third and fifth gears, and he’s forced to drive the latter stages of the race in sixth gear. To make matters worse, rain starts to fall with a couple of laps to go.

But Ayrton is faultless and he takes an emotional home win at the eighth time of asking. He crosses the line 2.9s ahead of Patrese, with Gerhard coming home third in the second McLaren.

II. Friday's Free Practice Report

JENSON BUTTON
- MP4-28A-02
- FP1: 1m25.391s (+0.606s), 17 laps, 4th
- FP2: 1m31.770s (+4.464s), 6 laps, 22nd

“It was very slippery out there today – we even had high-speed aquaplaning along the straights, which was unusual.

“Fortunately, we got a lot of miles under our belts in this morning’s session – we felt the conditions were consistent enough for us to conduct some running on the Intermediate tyre. We did a longer run on high fuel, and also did a single-lap run on lower fuel – on each occasion, the car seemed okay.

“The afternoon session was more about waiting for the weather to settle down enough for us to continue running on Inters. That would enable us to back-to-back our morning run in order to measure the changes we’d made between sessions. We got some useful information.

“In these conditions, it would’ve been nice to have more tyres to play with – the wet weather presents more of an opportunity for us, but it’s also more of a risk, so we’ll see how the rest of the weekend pans out. Typically, the forecast suggests that it will be unpredictable for the remainder of the weekend.”

SERGIO PEREZ
- MP4-28A-03
- FP1: 1m25.946s (+1.165s), 15 laps, 7th
- FP2: 1m30.748s (+3.442s), 8 laps, 17th

“It’s very difficult to know accurately how our car is performing – I didn’t do too many laps in either session, and those that I did were done in different conditions from our rivals.

“I’m not perfectly happy with the set-up – but, at least by doing some running, we have an understanding of what we can change for tomorrow. If the conditions stay the same for tomorrow, I think we’ll take a step forward.

“If the weather stays dry, we know where we’ll probably end up; but if it’s wet, we could have a stronger race. Our current forecast says it’ll be wet for qualifying, and that it’s 50:50 for the race.

“But you just never know in Sao Paulo…”

MARTIN WHITMARSH
Team principal, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes

“You can take nothing for granted at Interlagos and this place once again showed its capricious side by hurling the elements at us during both of today’s free practice sessions. It’s something we’ve come to expect – and even enjoy – from such a mighty racetrack.

“As such, while we were able to complete a useful number of laps – particularly during the lighter rain that fell this morning – we still don’t have a conclusive read on pace and performance ahead of Sunday’s race.

“Still, I’m sure our engineers were kept busy collecting data during both sessions, and we’ll put that information to good use tonight as we leave no stone unturned in our efforts to refine our cars’ set-up for qualifying tomorrow.”

III. Saturday's Qualifying Report

SERGIO PEREZ
- MP4-28A-03
- FP3: 18th, 1m32.731s (+4.840s), 4 laps
- Qualifying:
- Q1: 11th 1m26.741s (on Intermediates)
- Q2: 14th overall 1m28.269s (on Intermediates)
- Q3: -

“It’s hard to know for sure, but I think we made the correct decision to run in qualifying when we did, but the car wasn’t responding properly. I think perhaps we got the tyre pressures incorrect because I couldn’t find enough grip out there.

“My accident in Q2 looked bigger than it actually was – as soon as I lost the car, I went over the grass and hit the wall – but it was only a slight hit, and the car wasn’t too badly damaged.

“It’s a pity, but I was giving it my all. I knew it was my last opportunity to set a time; it was getting wetter, and I was pushing right to the limit, because I knew the car wasn’t responding well. I was trying my hardest, in other words.

“In similar conditions, I still think we can make up some positions tomorrow. I’m looking forward to the race – I hope we can end the season on a high.”

JENSON BUTTON
- MP4-28A-02
- FP3: 21st, No time, 1 lap
- Qualifying:
- Q1: 7th, 1m26.398s (on Intermediates)
- Q2: 15th, overall 1m28.308s (on Intermediates)
- Q3: -

“We sat out most of FP3 in order to save tyres, which felt like the right thing to do at the time, but in retrospect maybe it wasn’t the right call. After all, we hadn’t run in wet conditions on the Intermediate tyres before qualifying, so we weren’t prepared for the problems we then encountered. But hindsight is a wonderful thing.

“We were running a low-downforce configuration, which probably didn’t help either. We felt that set-up was working for us yesterday, when it wasn’t as wet, but it probably hurt us in getting pressure into the tyre.

“Still, we were good in Q1 – I ended up in P7 – but, when it rained harder in Q2, I couldn’t get enough temperature into the tyres.

“Hopefully, we can mix it up a bit tomorrow – although the weather on Sunday is supposed to be a bit drier. Hopefully, though, we’ll have some good racing, and we won’t spend too long behind the Safety Car!”

MARTIN WHITMARSH
Team principal, Vodafone McLaren Mercedes

“Obviously, to qualify 14th and 15th for the last grand prix of the year is very disappointing, even if what caught us out were the very unpredictable weather conditions

“In Q1, however, we were 7th and 11th – which, albeit not stellar, represented a more accurate reflection of our ambient pace relative to our opposition.

“In Q2, though, the timing of our runs wasn’t quite perfect, and as a result we struggled to switch the tyres on when we needed to. In wet-dry conditions such as those we faced today, the art is always in finding that sweet-spot moment in which to be on the track the optimal time, and you can’t always get it right.

“Having said all that, although the weather is forecast to be less rainy tomorrow than it’s been yesterday and today, it’s unlikely to be dry and sunny all afternoon. That being the case, there’s no doubt that both Jenson and Checo can make good progress from their poor grid positions when the five red lights go out on the startline gantry and the race begins.”

~ Official photos and reports courtesy of Vodafone McLaren Mercedes ~

Copyright © 2013, Mercedes-Benz-Blog. All rights reserved.

Detail: Brazilian F1 Grand Prix 2013: Preview, Free Practice and Qualifying Reports from Vodafone McLaren Mercedes