The Mercedes team, who were racing just a few miles down the road from their factory in Brackley last weekend, now prepare to head to Germany, where the drivers and the team can race in front of their home supporters.
The team head to the Nürburgring showing signs of improvement race by race, but are yet to take that first win as Mercedes GP. Team principal Ross Brawn is hoping that they can do something special at their home race on Sunday.
“It is always a pleasure to race in front of our home supporters, and as the Mercedes works team, we are looking forward to a special occasion for the team,” he said. “Our car showed positive signs of improvement with the new upgrade package and exhaust system in Silverstone, and we have been working hard since then to further enhance our understanding of its performance capabilities.
“We are hopeful of continuing this progression and putting on a good performance next weekend, giving our drivers the opportunity to show what they can do in front of their own supporters.”
Michael Schumacher thinks that the home crowd will help spur the team on next weekend, and also recognises that recent updates have helped.
“With two home races in a row, we are fortunate to be given an extra boost as we head to the Nürburgring next week for the German Grand Prix, just two weeks after Silverstone,” said the seven-time world champion. “This season has been a difficult one for performance predictions so far; however I can predict one thing for sure: the extra boost we are receiving will be transformed into extra motivation.
“We saw some improvements over the Silverstone weekend with our new exhaust system, along with improvements to how we work with the tyres, so we go to the next race weekend with a good feeling added to our fighting spirit. We definitely want to show our home crowds our best level of performance possible.”
Nico Rosberg is also looking forward to his home race, and the opportunity that he will have to step back into another era of motorsport. “Coming to the Nürburgring for the German Grand Prix always feels very special to me,” he said. “There is so much history around this amazing track, especially for Mercedes-Benz with great drivers from the past having had such successful times on the Nürburgring and the legendary Nordschleife. This year, I will have the opportunity to drive Juan Manuel Fangio's car from 1954 on the amazing old circuit, and that will be very special.
“Of course I am also looking forward to the Grand Prix itself. I hope that we can take another step forward with our new package and close the gap to the top a little. It will be exciting to drive in front of a big German crowd in the Mercedes-Benz grandstand. Hopefully they see a good performance from both me and our car.”
