Mercedes finally revealed their 2013 car, the W04 today, ahead of the first pre-season test that kicks off at Jerez this week.
It was the first chance to get a look at Lewis Hamilton’s new car, with the Brit making the switch from McLaren over to the Silver Arrow team for this season. The team also announced a high profile sponsorship deal with Blackberry, which sees the brand name appearing on the car and race suits.
The German team is hoping the signing of 2008 champion Hamilton will start to turn the team’s fortunes around. Last year was the team’s worst season to date since re-entering the sport in 2010, despite Nico Rosberg’s maiden victory at the Chinese Grand Prix. Both drivers were on hand to unveil the car today, before getting an early chance to sample the machinery they will be racing this year.
“The car seems to be performing well in the virtual world but we have a very busy and intense programme ahead of us during testing to make sure we can deliver that performance on track. The atmosphere in the team is very positive and the people are highly motivated to succeed. And, of course, I have a new team-mate with Lewis. It’s his first time in the Silver Arrow and I look forward to working together and pushing each other hard, to make this the best team in Formula One,” Rosberg said.
“It’s a very special day for me to officially present our Mercedes-Benz Silver Arrow to the world. There is no company with a longer history in Grand Prix racing than Mercedes-Benz and it is an honour for me to tread in the footsteps of legends like Juan Manuel Fangio, Sir Stirling Moss and Michael Schumacher. It’s the start of a new chapter for me, a new adventure, and when I walked through the doors in Brackley, I was so excited to get down to work. I’ve been at the factory for a few days now, getting to know the guys, meeting my mechanics and engineers, learning myself into the team and I have never seen a group of people that is hungrier for success than this one,” Hamilton added.
“They have been flat out this winter trying to pack more performance into the new car and I can’t wait to drive it and see where I can make a difference to help push the team forward with Nico. This is a new start for me with the team in Brackley but I have worked with Mercedes-Benz for a very long time now, and I learned one thing most of all: Mercedes-Benz doesn’t know how to lose. We are playing a long game here but I know we will have success together and I’m excited to be a big part of making it happen.”
“2013 marks the start of a second era for our Silver Arrows works team,” team boss Ross Brawn said.
“The restructuring we undertook at the team over the past 18 months are now growing in maturity and this is reflected in the F1 W04, which is a clear step forward in design and detail sophistication over its predecessor. Many thousands of hours of work have been invested by our technical teams in Brackley and Brixworth to ensure that the new car delivers a step change in performance compared to last season.”
“We are also hugely proud to welcome Lewis to the team as a works Mercedes-Benz driver. With Lewis and Nico, we have what I believe to be the strongest driver line-up in Formula One and I know that a healthy level of competition between them both will help drive the team forward,” he concluded.
