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.

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.

Hungarian F1 Grand Prix 2013: Sunday's Race Report - Lewis Hamilton achieves his first victory with the Silver Arrows works team

Lewis Hamilton achieved his 22nd career victory and his first as a Silver Arrows driver at the Hungaroring this afternoon.

� Lewis� win was the 13th Formula One win for a Silver Arrow and the third victory in five races for the team

� Lewis� fourth win at the Hungaroring also took the tally of wins for Mercedes-Benz F1 engines to 99

� Lewis completed three pit stops on laps 9, 31 and 50, running option/prime/prime/prime

� Nico tangled with Felipe Massa in turn 5 on lap one and dropped to P12

� He also made three stops but retired with an engine failure on lap 65

� Lewis� victory strengthened the team�s second position in the Constructors� Championship at the season�s halfway point

Drivers ++ Car No. ++ Chassis No. ++ Race Result / Fastest Lap
Lewis Hamilton ++ 10 ++ F1 W04 / 04 ++ P1, 1:24.647
Nico Rosberg ++ 9 ++ F1 W04 / 03 ++ DNF

Weather - Hot and sunny
Temperatures - Air: 34-35�C / Track: 48-51�C

Lewis Hamilton
�What a great weekend! We really didn�t expect this when we came here this weekend and I said last night that I would need a miracle to win today. Well, just maybe they do happen. The team called the strategy and the pit stops just right and then it was just about managing the gap. I had some racing to do out there, though, with Jenson and Mark and I think we had the pace on everyone today. The team has just done an exceptional job: we have worked so hard to understand these tyres and we got the balance spot on today. I am very hopeful this could be a real turning point for us as we coped with these high track temperatures. I would like to say a massive thank you to everyone at the team here and at our factories in Brackley and Brixworth. Team work achieved this result today and I really couldn�t be happier.�

Nico Rosberg
�Today was a great day for the team, for Lewis and a brilliant job by everyone here at the track and back at our factories. Unfortunately my weekend didn�t go quite so well and it�s a shame that we couldn�t have had a two-car finish today. I got a good start but then Felipe and I came together on the first lap which was unfortunate as I was in front and had left some space for him but his front wing hit my rear tyre. That cost me a lot of positions and it�s really difficult to make the places back up on this track. Then my day came to an early conclusion with the engine failure. However there are lots of positives for us to take as a team from this weekend and now I really look forward to the upcoming races as we know that we have a quick car and we made the new tyres work for us this weekend.�

Ross Brawn
�We went into this race not really knowing where we stood in terms of tyre performance and behaviour but as the race unfolded, it became clear that we were able to stay competitive with both cars and drivers. Lewis drove an absolutely perfect race and didn�t put a foot wrong all afternoon. He was able to race aggressively and keep the tyres alive to make our strategy work. Nico was unfortunate to get tangled up with Massa on the first lap and then suffered an engine failure, which was a little worrying in the closing laps as we hadn�t seen any signs of overheating. Overall, this has been a very encouraging weekend. In extremely hot conditions, we maintained our Saturday afternoon competitiveness on Sunday afternoon and it certainly feels like we have made a good step forward today. Now we need to get our heads down before the well-deserved two-week shutdown so that we arrive in Spa as well prepared as we possibly can.�

Toto Wolff
�What an outstanding drive from Lewis this afternoon - he got a clean getaway and then executed the race strategy perfectly, including some really strong and aggressive overtaking moves when he needed to. He did a great job, just like the team with six clean pit stops for our drivers and the right race strategy. Nico lost positions on the first lap tangling with Felipe and then was making up places when his engine failed near the end of the race. That gave us a nervous few closing laps but we were able to bring Lewis� car home safely. We came into this weekend with a lot of discussion over how the new tyres would affect us. We did our homework in practice, found the right set-up and managed to take a good step forward this afternoon with how we managed the tyres in race conditions. It is only halfway through the season and our rivals have been consistently competitive while we have experienced some ups and downs in the first ten races. Our target for the second half of the year must be to consolidate our performance and deliver this kind of speed consistently. We are still the underdogs right now but we are on an upward trend and we will keep working hard. Thank you to everyone at our factories back in Brackley and Brixworth for their hard work and enjoy a well-deserved summer break. Congratulations as well to our customer sport team-mates who took victory for Mercedes-Benz in the Spa 24 Hours. It�s been a good day for the three-pointed star!�

~ Official photos and report courtesy of MERCEDES AMG PETRONAS ~

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