Nico Rosberg finished sixth in Brazil last season, one place higher than team-mate Schumacher - Photo Credit: Mercedes GP
Both Michael Schumacher and Nico Rosberg are hoping to end the season on a high for Mercedes in Brazil next weekend.
Although neither driver mentions their position in the drivers’ championship, both would like to finish the season as the top driver within their team. Currently, Rosberg is seven points ahead of his team-mate.
“I’m really looking forward to going to Brazil next week,” says Rosberg. “The Interlagos track is amazing to drive, and in the last weeks we have made some steps forward without having any big updates on the car, so it should be a good weekend. I would love to give the season a nice ending; our engineers, the boys in the garage and everybody at our factories in Brackley and Brixworth deserve a good result at our last race.
“The stronger qualifying and race pace in Abu Dhabi makes me confident that we can push and try to catch one of the cars from the top three teams at Interlagos. Our Mercedes engine power and the top speed in the car will be good for getting up the hill on the long start-finish straight.”
Schumacher would also like to get a good result to award the team for their hard work throughout the year.
“The final race of the season is approaching fast and I am looking forward to the weekend in Brazil,” said the seven-time world champion. “There is always a really good atmosphere at the Interlagos track and it’s one of the traditional venues for Formula One to end the season.
“We have enjoyed some good results finishing in the top six over the last few races, and I would love to continue this trend in Brazil and bring the season to a positive end. The team have worked very hard to improve our performance with the car that we have available to us and it would be a fitting reward for them.”
Ross Brawn explains that the circuit at Interlagos provides its own selection of uniques challenges, and is also determined to get a good result next weekend.
“The Brazilian Grand Prix weekend is always a lively and vibrant event, and Interlagos is a fitting venue for the final race of this year’s Formula One season,” said the Mercedes team principal. “Although our focus at the factory has been on 2012 for some time now, at the race track we are continuing to work hard with this year’s car and make improvements.
“We are determined to end the season on a high and continue the run of top six results that we have enjoyed recently, which is the upper limit of the potential of the current car. Interlagos is a very unique track which presents some unusual challenges; the high altitude location, the bumpy surface and the challenging layout all test both the drivers and engineers.”
