A Daimler shareholder has called on the company to pull the Mercedes team out of formula one racing.

Fund manager Ingo Speich, of the Daimler shareholder Union Investment, said at Daimler’s annual general meeting that he is disappointed Mercedes-Benz has lost ground to road car rivals like Audi and BMW.

“Mercedes is no longer the measure of all things in the premium sector,” he is quoted as saying by Die Presse.

Speich referred to “a lost decade” for Daimler, and called on the company to follow BMW’s recent lead and pull out of formula one.

According to reports, his speech received applause from several other shareholders.

Mercedes is the biggest F1 team to not yet follow the likes of Ferrari, McLaren and Red Bull in signing the 2013 Concorde Agreement. Fort those of you left wondering what the Concorde Agreement is, it is a contract between the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA), the Formula One teams (currently represented by the Formula One Teams Association (FOTA)) and the Formula One Administration which dictates the terms by which the teams compete in races and take their share of the television revenues and prize money.

The Malaysian Grand Prix holds the unique distinction of being the only Grand Prix circuit at which the Safety Car has not been officially deployed in the past ten years – in spite of often unpredictable weather conditions. With Mercedes-AMG once again supplying both the Official F1™ Safety Car and Official F1™ Medical Car for 2012 – the 17th season in which it has done so – it’s the perfect opportunity to look at how often this race-changing factor comes into play…

How much was the Safety Car used in 2011?

Last season saw the Safety Car deployed for 4.9% of the season – a total of 12 deployments, over seven races, for 61 laps or 284.3 kilometres. This compares to 21 deployments in 12 races in 2010, for a total of 7.8% of the season over 452.3 kilometres. This reduction was in spite of a significant increase in on-track overtaking through the combination of the Pirelli tyres and DRS rear wing system. However, while there was an overall reduction in Safety Car deployments, the 2011 Canadian Grand Prix featured five Safety Car phases over 32 laps, or 139.6 kilometres: this represented 45.7% of the race distance, a record in Formula One.

Which races feature the highest and lowest probabilities of Safety Car deployment?

The races with the highest historical probability of Safety Car deployment are in Singapore and Korea: every race held at these venues has seen at least one deployment (four races in Singapore, two in Korea). Canada (14 deployments in last nine races) and Monaco (13 deployments in last ten races) also feature prominently. As for the lowest likelihood, aside from the Indian circuit which has only hosted a single race, this is in Malaysia (no official deployments in the past ten years), Bahrain (one deployment in seven races) and Hungary (two deployments in last ten races).

Wasn’t the Safety Car deployed during the 2009 Malaysian Grand Prix?

The Safety Car was indeed deployed on lap 32 of the race, before the event was red flagged on lap 33. However, the official race results only run to lap 31, so the Safety Car deployment is not considered for statistical purposes.

Which cars are used for the Official F1™ Safety Car and Official F1™ Medical Car?

The Official F1™ Safety Car is the SLS AMG, with a 6.3-litre V8 engine developing a peak output of 420 kW (571 hp) at 6800 rpm and maximum torque of 650 Nm at 4750 rpm. The engine, power train, suspension and braking system of the Safety Car are the same as those found in the standard production SLS AMG. The Official F1™ Medical Car is the C 63 AMG Estate, which produces 358 kW (487 hp) – an extra 30 hp compared to the standard model thanks to forged pistons, connecting rods and lightweight crankshaft from the SLS AMG. These components are three kilograms lighter than standard. The first Mercedes-AMG Safety and Medical Cars were the C 36 AMG, which was first used in 1996, although an AMG E-Class Coupe was occasionally used as the Medical Car as early as 1984.

The first race of the 2012 Formula One season kicks off tomorrow and it wouldn’t be a new Formula One season without a few new regulations to get our heads around. For the 2012 season, they are relatively few in number, but have had a dramatic impact on the look of the current generation of Formula One cars – and also have the potential to alter the sporting outcome of races. Here are the most important new sections of the 2012 Sporting and Technical Regulations.

Sporting Regulations

• Maximum race time: Art. 5.3, no race may now last longer than a maximum of four hours. Last year’s Canadian Grand Prix lasted a total of 4hrs 4min 39.537s, although only 57min 10s were actually spent at racing speed!

• Driving etiquette: Arts. 20.2 & 20.3, drivers may no longer leave the track without “justifiable reason”, while the acceptable limits of defensive driving have now been formally written into the rules. Drivers may not make “more than one change of direction to defend a position” and, when moving back onto the racing line, must leave racing room – “at least one car width” – between their car and the edge of the track.

• Crash testing: Art. 22.2, all mandatory crash tests must be completed prior to a team conducting any track testing. This was previously only mandatory for race events.

• In-season testing: Art. 22.4 (i), provision has now been made for one three-day in-season test, to be held in Mugello from 1 to 3 May. MERCEDES AMG PETRONAS topped the tables for average daily mileage in pre-season testing, completing an average of 472 km per official test day with the F1 W03. The car completed a total of 4,250 km over nine official test days, plus a further 200 km during filming days, with just two on-track stoppages.

• Team curfew exemptions: Art. 30.19, team catering, marketing and media personnel are now formally exempted from the curfew observed by other team members.

• New Safety Car rules: Art. 40.12, if it is considered safe to do so, cars that have been lapped by the leader will be allowed to unlap themselves under the Safety Car. This will have the effect of putting the field in position order at every restart and leaving all cars free to race, rather than the leaders having to pass backmarkers, thus improving the racing – in 2011 in Singapore, after the Safety Car period, the presence of backmarkers allowed Sebastian Vettel to build a nine-second lead over second-placed Jenson Button in a single lap! The Safety Car was deployed a total of 12 times over seven races in 2011, compared to 21 times over 12 races in 2010.

Technical Regulations

• Lower nose height: Art. 3.7.9, “No bodywork situated more than 1950mm forward of the rear face of the cockpit entry template may be more than 550mm above the reference plane.” This apparently anodyne sentence is at the root of the distinctive stepped-nose appearance of the majority of 2012 Formula One cars, as the maximum permitted chassis height remains at 625mm above the reference plane.

• Reduced tolerances: Art 3.12.6, permitted manufacturing tolerances for aerodynamic components have been reduced by some 40% to 3mm (from 5mm previously).

• Throttle and exhaust controls: Arts. 5.5, 5.6, 5.7, 5.8, the regulations covering these areas now amount to a total of 954 words (!) and regulate the use of engine throttles, engine torque demands and the positioning of exhaust outlets. This section of the rules is over ten times longer than it was 12 months ago: in 2011, the same regulations were totalled just 89 words, a reflection of the complexity of the ‘blown diffuser’ systems the new regulations aim to outlaw.

• Additional load test: Art. 18.9.2, an additional vertical load test on the lateral impact structures on the chassis brings to 18 the total number of load and impact tests a chassis must pass in order to receive FIA homologation.

The 2012 FIA Formula One World Championship gets underway in Melbourne next week with the season-opening Australian Grand Prix. Hosted at the beautiful Albert Park for the 17th consecutive year, the 5.303 km street circuit is located south of Melbourne city center, and uses public roads surrounding the man-made Albert Park lake.

• From 2002 – 2011, the winner of the Australian Grand Prix has gone on to become World Champion seven times
• DRS can be used over 56% of the lap distance in qualifying, a total of 2970 metres
• The Safety Car has been deployed in six of the last ten Australian Grands Prix on a total of 15 occasions
• Mercedes-Benz power has won three of the last four Australian Grands Prix (2008, 2009, 2010)

Michael Schumacher

“Finally, we can stop trying to read the tea-leaves from testing and actually go racing. Melbourne is a perfect location, and the ideal place to start the season. The city loves Formula One, the fans create a great atmosphere and obviously, as drivers, we feel that too. And because we’ve already got a buzz about what’s to come, it just makes you want to get out there and start driving. During winter testing, we completed lots of miles and built up a really complete set of data, which should put us in a good position for the first race and to develop the car even further in the right direction. We’re ready for the 2012 season to begin…”

Nico Rosberg

“I’m really looking forward to the start of the new season in Australia next weekend. I had a perfect winter break with plenty of rest, a good training camp and a successful pre-season test programme where we were able to put a lot of mileage on our F1 W03 car. So we are really ready for the first race. I always love the atmosphere in Melbourne; it’s a great city and the fans are fantastic. After all of the hard work, and all of the speculation, it will be really interesting to see where we are on Saturday afternoon after qualifying. Before heading to Australia, I will be in New Zealand for a bike training camp to help me adjust to the time difference and the climate ‘Down Under’.”

Ross Brawn, Team Principal

“The build-up to the start of a new season is always an exciting time, no matter how many times you have experienced it, and everyone at the team is looking forward to the action getting underway in Melbourne next week. We are well prepared, both at the factory and on track, as a result of our structured development and testing plan, and I am confident that we are in a good position. How this translates to our performance relative to the competition is, of course, the key question and it will be interesting to see how it all shapes out next weekend. My thanks to all of the team at Brackley and Brixworth for their hard work and dedication over the winter months and I hope we will be able to reward them with a strong season. Melbourne has always been one of the atmospheric races on the calendar, and certainly one of my favourite cities to visit, so I look forward to a good week ahead.”

Norbert Haug, Vice-President, Mercedes-Benz Motorsport

“It’s only a little over 100 days since Formula One was in Brazil for the final race of the 2011 season, but now we are ready for the 2012 season to begin and to get back to what we love best: going motor racing. Starting the third season with our Silver Arrows works team, we think we are better prepared than the two years before, which indicates that our learning process is heading in the right direction. The Mercedes F1 W03 has run reliably since its first run on 16 February, completed 4,450 km during pre-season testing, and achieved an average daily testing mileage of 472 km: this equates to an average of more than one and a half Grand Prix distances during each of the nine test days. Nico and Michael are both excited about the new season and highly motivated, while our team members back at base in Brackley and Brixworth and on track are working extremely hard to deliver both performance and reliability at the opening race. The whole team has done a good job in both areas this winter. After testing, we know we have a solid basis to work from and a good platform for development. Understandably, there is much speculation about the pecking order of the new season, and finally we will get a first answer on Saturday afternoon during qualifying in Melbourne, when everybody has to put their cards on the table. Before the first race of this long season, I would like to thank all our team members who have worked so hard and with dedication during the past months, with our clear target which is making the next step in improving our performance compared to our competitors. We aim to show that we have taken this step forward as the first part of a continuous process of improvement.”

The MERCEDES AMG PETRONAS F1 W03 made its official debut today at the Circuit de Catalunya in Barcelona. After an early morning unveiling in the pit lane by Michael Schumacher and Nico Rosberg, Michael then took the wheel for the day’s running.

• A smooth morning session enabled the team to begin set-up comparisons with the new chassis

• A hydraulic problem identified during the afternoon session brought an early end to the planned program

• Michael completed 51 laps today, taking the F1 W03’s total mileage to 782 km to date

Nico will take over the program tomorrow, with Michael back in the car on Thursday, and Nico concluding the test on Friday.

Michael Schumacher “My initial feelings with our new car are certainly good. I’m happy with the different evaluations that we have done over the last week, but obviously with the rule changes, we won’t know more until later. It’s certainly an improvement and we have worked hard on the areas we had defined last year. The aerodynamics figures look good so I’m not worried about the shape of the nose! Even though we had the hydraulic problem today, I’m pleased with all the mileage we have achieved so far with the new car.”

Date: Tuesday 21 February 2012 Track: Circuit de Catalunya Driver: Michael Schumacher

The 2012 Formula 1 season will see the Mercedes-Benz works Silver Arrows team competing under the name ‘MERCEDES AMG PETRONAS Formula One Team’.

AMG is the performance brand of Mercedes-Benz, and has been synonymous with performance, sportiness, exciting driving and motorsport success for more than 40 years. The Mercedes AMG brand is the most successful in the history of the DTM, winning 165 races from 342 since 1988 and securing a total of 32 driver, manufacturer and team titles. AMG has also been continuously active in the world of Formula One since 1996, supplying both the Formula 1 Safety Car and the Formula 1 Medical Car. It is therefore a logical step to strengthen the links between AMG and the Formula One activities of Mercedes-Benz.

Norbert Haug, Vice President, Mercedes-Benz Motorsport, said: “Our new team name fuses the proud traditions of AMG and the Mercedes-Benz Silver Arrows at the pinnacle of motorsport. These three letters are synonymous with high technology, sporting performance and excitement and this step is a further strong sign of the strategic commitment Mercedes-Benz has made to Formula One. 16 of the 24 drivers on the grid at the season’s final Grand Prix in Brazil have, or have had, a connection to Mercedes-Benz. In addition to the role of a works team, our commitment to Formula One comprises the customer engine programme and supply of the official Safety and Medical Cars.”

The Mercedes-Benz Formula One powertrain facility at Brixworth, UK has worked closely with AMG for a number of years. This wholly owned Daimler subsidiary will now be renamed ‘Mercedes AMG High Performance Powertrains’.

Ola Källenius, Chairman of Mercedes-AMG GmbH, commented: “The Mercedes AMG brand promises ‘Driving Performance’ – and what better embodies this philosophy than the intense competitive arena of Formula One? It is an historic first for the AMG name to be associated to the works Silver Arrows team, and offers fantastic opportunities: first, to further build the sporting identity of the Mercedes AMG brand through one of the world’s most-watched and most successful sports; second, to explore and deliver technology transfer between road and track. This is already being practised with the SLS AMG E-Cell project, whose electric powertrain will be developed as a joint venture between Mercedes AMG and our F1 engine specialists in Brixworth.”

The car with which the MERCEDES AMG PETRONAS Formula One Team will compete in the 2012 season is currently under development at the team’s headquarters in Brackley, UK. Codenamed F1 W03, it is planned for the car to make its official track debut at the second winter test of 2012, on 21 February at Barcelona.

Team Principal Ross Brawn concluded: “We are very proud to reveal our new team name today. It adds another strong performance element to our team’s identity and, by virtue of being shared between Brackley and Brixworth, will forge even stronger links within our team. At the factory, we have been focused for some time on the challenge of 2012, and our very clear ambition to move forward up the grid next year. As always, the winter development and manufacturing processes are a trade-off between time for finding performance in the factory, and time for delivering that performance during pre-season testing. We believe that the decision to run the car at the second winter test is the optimum compromise for our design and development programme with F1 W03.”

MERCEDES GP PETRONAS driver Nico Rosberg finished the Singapore Grand Prix in seventh place, running a three-stop option/option/option/prime strategy. Team-mate Michael Schumacher retired from the race following a collision with Sauber’s Sergio Perez at turn eight on lap 28.

Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel took home an easy victory at the Singapore Grand Prix and would have clinched the World Championship title, had it not been for Jenson Button coming in second and thus keeping his championship hopes alive.

Nico Rosberg

“The optimum today would have been sixth place but it didn’t quite work out for us this weekend. I was struggling with the rear end in the race, and our car just really didn’t suit this demanding track. I had more problems with tire degradation than the cars around me, which combined with having to switch our strategy when the safety car came out, meant it was impossible to make any progress. Whilst we might not be happy with the outcome of our weekend here in Singapore, we will now work hard to improve the car for the next races here in Asia.”

Michael Schumacher

“It was a very unfortunate ending to my race in Singapore tonight and obviously I am a bit disappointed. What happened was what I would call a misunderstanding between Sergio Perez and myself. He was about to go inside and lifted, and I was not expecting him to do that so early, and therefore hit him. It’s probably one of those race incidents which look more impressive from outside than from inside, as I am totally ok and my impact in the end was not too heavy. It was a pity because my car and the tires worked well, and therefore the pace was very good. I will look ahead to the next races and hope to have better endings there.”

Ross Brawn

“It turned out to be a fairly tough race for us this evening. As expected, we didn’t have the pace to match the leaders but we were quite comfortable in the gap behind the top six cars. Unfortunately Michael’s accident hurt us both from his own point of view and that it brought out the safety car at the wrong time for our strategy. Nico then did a very good job to make the set of tires that he had last for over half of the race. Seventh place was about as much as we could have expected today, and whilst it feels disappointing, we will keep working hard and pushing forward.”

Norbert Haug

“The race developed quite well for us until Michael’s incident with Sergio Perez which brought out the safety car. We had no choice but to pit Nico and put him on the prime tires, on which he then did 31 laps, more than half the race distance. Nico did a very good job to keep the tires together for such a long stint. Michael’s speed before the accident looked good, considering our current technical package, so it is a shame for him as he could perhaps have finished in front of Nico. Without the safety car, and with an ideal strategy for Nico, he could have been in a position to finish one place higher. Thank you to the organisers here in Singapore for hosting this race, which is one of the most spectacular events in the calendar, and produces the best television images over the course of the season.”

MERCEDES GP PETRONAS driver’s Michael Schumacher and Nico Rosberg qualified in eighth and ninth places today at the Autodromo di Monza for the Italian Grand Prix that will take place Sunday, September 11.  The Autodromo di Monza is a 3.6 mile, 53 lap circuit, bringing the total race distance to 190.58 miles.  The lap record at the Autodromo di Monza is 1:21.046 and was achieved by  Rubens Gonçalves “Rubinho” Barrichello in 2004.

• The team ran a tactical qualifying session this afternoon in Monza with a focus on saving new tyre sets

• Michael qualified P8 after completing a single quick lap on soft tyres in Q3, and has one new set of options for the race

• Nico qualified P9 on hard tyres in Q3, and will have two new sets of option tyres tomorrow

The Italian Grand Prix marks the final European race of the 2011 F1 season. Round 13 will take place on Sunday,  September 11 at the Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, located just outside of Milan. One of the most atmospheric circuits on the calendar, the 5.793 km (3.6 mile) circuit in the royal park at the heart of Monza features four long straights where top speeds can reach 340 kph (211 mph).

• Monza is the fastest circuit of the year with an average lap speed of 255 kph (158 mph); the season average is 211 kph (131 mph).

• The Formula One Italian GP has been won from pole 18 times in 61 races, including seven times in the past ten years.

• DRS can be used for 74% of the lap (or 4.29 km) in practice and qualifying – the highest percentage of the season.

Michael Schumacher

“The final European race takes place at Monza, a truly historic Formula One circuit, and one where I have always been so warmly welcomed and supported over the years. We achieved a good team result in Spa last weekend, and I especially enjoyed the overtaking battles and the challenge of making up so many places during the race. This gives us a boost going into the final part of the season, and we will continue pushing hard to get the best possible results.”

Nico Rosberg

“I’m really looking forward to the weekend in Monza. We learned at the last race in Spa that our car can be competitive at high-speed tracks, and we definitely took a step forward there. I am confident that we can do that again in Italy next weekend. I visited the factory this week and I’m quite happy with how things are working out there. I’ll be arriving in Italy on Wednesday and attending the FOTA Fans Forum at Pirelli’s headquarters in Milan. It should be a really interesting event and I’m looking forward to the chance to speak with some of our fans there.”

Ross Brawn, Team Principal

“Monza is always a fitting venue for the final European race, and spending a race weekend there is a special experience. The unique high-speed circuit is a classic racing venue, and one of the best places to watch Formula One cars at their very top speeds. Coming off the back of our best result of the season in Spa, we are looking forward to the weekend and to finishing the European season on a high. With the emphasis jointly on engine power and aerodynamic efficiency, we have the benefit of our Mercedes-Benz engine and, as always for Monza, we will run a special low-downforce aerodynamic package to minimise drag on the long straights.”

Norbert Haug, Vice-President, Mercedes-Benz Motorsport

“Monza features the highest straightline speeds of the year at around 350 kph, the highest average lap speed and, at 83%, the highest percentage of the lap spent at full throttle – not for nothing is it known as a ‘temple of speed’. The engine and KERS system will play an important role at this circuit, but it is equally important to develop an effective low-drag aerodynamic package and to make sure the car feels stable on the brakes. Michael and Nico both enjoyed strong, trouble-free races in Spa to score a solid result for the team with fifth and sixth places. We will be hoping for more of the same in Monza. Saturday 10 September will also mark the 50th anniversary of the death of Wolfgang von Trips in tragic circumstances in the 1961 race. Von Trips was well-placed to become the first German Formula One World Champion with Ferrari, and also drove sports cars for Mercedes-Benz in the early years of his career.”

The MERCEDES GP PETRONAS team completed two busy practice sessions today in preparation for Sunday’s Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps. Conditions were typical of the Ardennes, with numerous showers through the day.

• The MERCEDES GP PETRONAS drivers completed a total of 74 laps in practice, equivalent to over 515 km running
• Both drivers ran a selection of development parts during the day, including a modified front wing this afternoon
• The technical program included evaluations of different downforce levels in the mixed wet-dry conditions

NICO ROSBERG

“It was quite difficult out there today in typical Spa conditions, but we still managed to have two good practice sessions. We learned a few things in both the dry and the wet, and managed to do some tests for both the race and qualifying, so I’m quite positive ahead of tomorrow.”

MICHAEL SCHUMACHER

“It was a special feeling to be out on track today for the first practice sessions of this anniversary weekend in Spa. A lot of things have changed here in the past twenty years, but the weather certainly hasn’t! Today was another typical Spa day, with mixed conditions and very little dry running. The conditions meant that we couldn’t do much work on the set-up, although we made the most of the limited time when the circuit was dry. Even so, it will be tricky to find the right set-up compromise for Sunday, because the weather here is always so unpredictable.”

ROSS BRAWN

“We had a very mixed day in terms of weather conditions; however, the team did a good and comprehensive job. We managed to run well in the limited dry windows and learned a lot about the balance of the car in dry conditions. The challenge for Sunday will be whether to favour a wet or dry set-up, so we will need to see how the weather develops tomorrow. We will then focus on what we expect to experience in the race, rather than the qualifying conditions. This is a track which responds very strongly to high downforce in the wet but it can be quite a disadvantage in the dry. Overall, today has seen a good day’s work with the cars functioning well.”

NORBERT HAUG

“It was a typical start to a Spa weekend, just like we’ve known it for many years – partly dry but mostly wet. Both Nico and Michael did quite a lot of laps and our basis for the weekend on this unique and challenging circuit seems not too bad. The forecast predicts rain for tomorrow, so we need to be prepared for a very challenging qualifying session and we want to make sure we get the best possible results out of it.”

The Formula 1 summer break ends this weekend with the Belgian Grand Prix at the historic Spa-Francorchamps circuit, marking the 12th round of the 2011 Formula One World Championship. For Michael Schumacher, the race will mark his 20th anniversary in Formula One, having made his debut at the 1991 Belgian Grand Prix with the Jordan-Ford Team and retiring after the first lap due to clutch problems.

• During qualifying, DRS can be used on 63% (4.4 km) of the circuit, only Monza has a higher percentage of DRS usage.

• A total of 80% of the lap distance is spent at full throttle, including for 23.5 seconds from La Source to Les Combes.

• The Belgian Grand Prix has been won from pole position just twice in the last ten years, in 2002 and 2007.

Spa-Francorchamps Circuit Information

• Race Date: August 28, 2011

• Circuit Name: Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps

• Number of Laps: 44

• Circuit Length: 7.004 km (4.35 miles)

• Race Distance: 308.052 km (191.4 miles)

• Lap Record: 1:45.108 – K Raikkonen (2004)

Michael Schumacher

“The race in Spa will certainly have a special touch to it this time, as this is where I drove my first ever Formula 1 race 20 years ago. It is hard to believe that this is back such a long time. A lot has changed in those 20 years, but one thing has not: the track still is sensational. I just love this great nature and the resulting layout with all the ups and downs. To me, Spa remains my ‘living room’, because it has been the stage for so many things which have been remarkable for my sporting career. This is why this time I would like to specifically send a big thank you to all my fans for their loyalty and support, that I was happy to receive given in those 20 years and also since my comeback. Talking about the sporting side prior to Spa, we are all returning from the summer break with fresh motivation and energy and will try to set an exclamation mark to the Belgian GP.”

Nico Rosberg

“Spa is probably one of my two favourite circuits on the Formula One calendar, along with Suzuka in Japan. It’s not only one of the most challenging tracks that we race at, but it’s also great fun to drive a Formula One car there. The circuit layout has many high-speed areas so it should suit our car well. It’s been nice to have a short break over the last few weeks and to spend time relaxing with my family and friends, but it will also be good to get back into the racing rhythm again this weekend. I know that the guys at the factory have also enjoyed the break, and that we will all be pushing hard from now until the end of the season to get the best possible results.”

Ross Brawn, Team Principal

“After the summer break, everyone is looking forward to the second half of the season getting underway in Belgium this weekend. Spa is one of those tracks which are universally loved by drivers and fans, and the racing is always thrilling, usually helped by a large dose of inclement weather. It’s a truly classic circuit, and the fast, sweeping corners make it a great venue to watch the cars in action. With the two-week shutdown, there has been limited opportunity to develop the car since the last two races in Germany and Hungary, a situation which of course applies to everyone. However, we will be working hard to make the most of the weekend, and look forward to an exciting countdown to the end of the season. Congratulations to Michael who marks his 20th anniversary in Formula One this weekend. It has been an honour and a privilege to work so closely with him for 17 of those 20 years, and I look forward to more good times ahead together.”

Norbert Haug, Vice-President, Mercedes-Benz Motorsport

“It is always a pleasure to visit Spa-Francorchamps. This is one of the classic circuits and a true link back to the road racing history of Formula One. There is little left to say about the track itself – it offers a complete challenge to the car and engine, with some of the slowest and fastest corners of the season, plus the longest full-throttle period of the year at over 23 seconds, which is the reason why we dyno-test our engines using Spa simulation runs. Our team members have been able to recharge their batteries during the mandatory shutdown period, and we will head to Spa fully motivated for the final part of the season. It will be a special weekend for Michael, who will mark the twentieth anniversary of his Formula One debut this weekend, which is an outstanding and remarkable achievement. The races at Spa have historically been full of surprises and the weather has mostly played a major role. The layout of the circuit should suit our current technical package a little bit better than was the case at the previous two races.”

On a damp afternoon at the Hungaroring, MERCEDES GP PETRONAS driver’s Nico Rosberg finished 1 lap behind McLaren-Mercedes driver and first place finisher Jenson Button, to place ninth at the Hungarian Grand Prix, scoring two points. Team-mate Michael Schumacher was forced to retire due to a gearbox problem on lap 26.

Both drivers had good starts with Nico gaining three places and Michael four positions. Nico completed four stops: on lap 12, 27, 50 and 54, running intermediate/option/prime/intermediate/prime. Michael completed two stops: on lap 13 for options and lap 26 for primes.

Nico Rosberg

“I had a decent start today and gained three positions which was encouraging. In the middle of the race, the prime tyres no longer had any grip in the increasingly damp conditions so we took the decision to put on intermediates. Unfortunately the rain shower proved not to be very strong and we had to switch to slicks which cost me a few positions. I pushed very hard to catch Buemi and Di Resta, and managed to close the gap, but it was impossible to overtake them in the last corners. So I collected just two points, but still more than last year. Now I’m looking forward to the next two races after the break. Spa and Monza are high-speed tracks where the Mercedes-Benz engine power in our car should be a benefit.”

Michael Schumacher

“An unfortunate end to my race today when we suffered a gearbox problem which forced my retirement. As far as we know, this had nothing to do with the spin I had when fighting with Felipe which was mainly caused by avoiding contact. At the start, we gambled a little with low tyre pressures as we were expecting the track to dry quite quickly, but that turned out to be very slippery to drive. I came in for dry tyres one lap too late, but we can only handle one car at a time obviously. From then onwards, the race developed normally, but I would not have been able to make a very big step forward from the position I was in when I retired.”

Ross Brawn

“Our race began well with good starts from both drivers and generally looked quite encouraging, particularly when we made the move to prime tyres at the right time. We were planning on a two-stop strategy, however the shower caught us out as we expected it to get much heavier, which didn’t happen. So that was clearly the wrong move and spoilt the race for Nico who had to try and recover from there. Michael unfortunately had a gearbox problem which forced the early retirement of his car. It’s not been a particularly auspicious weekend for us but we will take a lot of lessons from here for when we have a better car to work with.”

Norbert Haug

“In the end, it did not pay off to put Nico on intermediates when we were expecting more rain. He would have finished in seventh place which he missed by one and a half seconds after his four stops, rather than in ninth position. Nico showed good speed in the last part of the race, and the team will build on that after the summer break. Michael’s car suffered from a gearbox problem which we still have to investigate. Congratulations to Jenson Button and McLaren Mercedes for winning this dramatic race; well done and victory number 77 with Mercedes-Benz power since the start of the new era in 1997 and the 253 races since then. A well deserved summer break now for everybody and afterwards we are looking forward to the Belgian Grand Prix which will mark Michael’s 20th anniversary in Formula One.”

Saturday’s qualifying round for the Hungarian Grand Prix saw Nico Rosberg and Michael Schumacher qualify in seventh and ninth places. Nico’s tire usage was: Q3: New Prime/New Prime, Q2: New Option, Q1: New Option. Michael followed the same tire strategy, however he completed one extra New Option tyre run in Q2.

Both Rosberg and Schumacher will have the benefit of starting on the cleaner side of the grid for Sunday’s race at the Hungaroring. Michael Schumacher currenlty holds the tracks lap record with a time of 1:19.071. During Last year’s Hungarian Grand Prix, Rosberg retired while Schumacher finished the race in 11 position.

Nico Rosberg

“Qualifying in seventh place was ok today; we had a good set-up after this morning’s practice and I did a good lap in Q3. I’m pleased to have saved one set of new option tyres for the race which will hopefully help me to score some good points.”

Michael Schumacher

“The positive thing that I can take from qualifying today is that I will be starting from the better side of the grid in ninth place. However there are also things which we need to investigate further as the first two sectors did not work out well for us today. They were fine with the prime tyres, but not with the super softs, so we will have a close look into the reasons why. As always, we will try to do the best that we can in the race tomorrow.”

Ross Brawn

“A reasonable qualifying session for us today with Nico and Michael getting the most out of the car that we had. Our positions are about where we are at the moment. During this morning’s practice session, we focused on our race performance, and that should pay off for us tomorrow afternoon. It’s likely to be quite a tricky race with the tyres as the super softs are right on the limit, so we will have to look after them carefully and make the most of them.”

Norbert Haug

“Nico and the team did a good job today in getting the maximum from our current technical package and putting the car in seventh position behind the three top teams. The fact that Mark was on pole one week ago and now is in sixth place demonstrates how tough the battle in this group is, and how challenging it is to break into the top six this season. Michael had a more difficult Q3 and struggled slightly with the set-up of his car. By using primes in Q1 and doing only one outing in Q2 and Q3, Nico saved one set of fresh options for the race which will be very helpful tomorrow. It will be a challenging race for us and our aim is to come home where we are starting or slightly better.”

MERCEDES GP PETRONAS drivers Nico Rosberg and Michael Schumacher finished their home race in seventh and eighth positions Sunday as a chilly Nürburgring circuit hosted the 2011 German Grand Prix.

Nico completed three stops today, on laps 14, 36, 53, running option/option/option/prime while Michael completed three stops, on laps 15, 37, 56, running option/option/option/prime. Michael’s spin on lap 23 cost him over 15 seconds before he began his recovery drive to eight place.

MERCEDES GP PETRONAS scored a total of ten points, equally the points haul from the last race at Silverstone.

Nico Rosberg

“I had a good start to the race today and made up one position on the first lap to be running in fifth place. However I didn’t have a perfect set-up today and the car wasn’t working quite as well as in qualifying. I had some good battles with Massa but despite pushing hard, it was impossible to keep him behind me. Seventh place is ok but we know that we have some work to do to maximise our latest upgrades in the race. I have a great team behind me, both the engineers and the boys in the garage, so I am confident that we will do this and we will see what happens next week in Hungary.”

Michael Schumacher

“It was a pretty exciting race today with lots of action for both the spectators and the drivers. Hopefully everyone in the grandstands was entertained and it made up for the cold temperatures a little. My spin caught me by complete surprise, but that spot is known to be tricky in wet conditions, even if the conditions were not so wet today. Anyway, it obviously cost me some positions which was a shame. Towards the end, rain could have helped but the chances were low so I did not count on it. All in all, I am ok with the race. With the little improvements we have made, we can look forward to Hungary now.”

Ross Brawn

“Things looked pretty good for us in the early stages of the race, with Nico running strongly in the top six, and he seemed set for a top six finish. However, the pace was not there in the third stint, which cost him a position. As for Michael, we believe that he braked on a damp patch on the way into turn 10, which caused him to spin. After that, he drove a strong recovery to finish less than ten seconds behind Nico. We saw some good racing all through the field today, with our drivers involved in plenty of it, and scored a few more important points for our Championship position.”

Norbert Haug

“At least we scored points with seventh and eighth positions for Nico and Michael. Our race speed was somewhat compromised as both Nico and Michael needed to save fuel for quite a long period of time. At the beginning of the race, our speed looked better relative to the pace of the top three teams than it did from one-third distance onwards.”

The 2011 F1 season welcomed a plethora of major rule changes, including but not limited to, the implementation of the Drag Reduction System (DRS) as well as the introduction of Pirelli tires. TV viewership is up worldwide making the changes appear to have made a positive impact.  What hasn’t been considered is the effect that all of the new regulations have had on the races and drivers themselves.

Now that it is mid-season, we have a look at the facts from the track.

How many overtaking manoeuvres have been made in the first nine races?

The raw total of overtaking manoeuvres during the first nine races is 623, including moves between team-mates, and passes by faster cars on the bottom three teams. This doesn’t include overtakes on the first lap or passes made because of damage.

What is the breakdown of overtaking manoeuvres?

Of the 623 passes, 175 were by faster cars on the bottom three teams and 43 were between team-mates. There have been 180 DRS-assisted passing moves, and 225 ‘normal’ (i.e. non-DRS) passes.

Which races have seen the most passing?

The top three races, using raw totals, were Montreal (136 passes), Istanbul (123 passes) and Shanghai (97 passes). The fewest were Monaco (22 passes), Silverstone (29 passes) and Melbourne (30 passes). Interestingly, the race in Valencia featured 44 passes – twice as many as in Monaco. Of these, 16 occurred in the first DRS zone and six in the second.

What has been the influence of DRS on overtaking?

DRS has accounted for 29% of passing manoeuvres in 2011. DRS passes have outnumbered normal passes at four races: Shanghai (33% of total), Istanbul (41% of total), Barcelona (35%) and Valencia (50%). The highest number of DRS passes was at Istanbul (50), followed by Shanghai (31) and Barcelona (29). The fewest were in Monaco (2), Melbourne (5) and Silverstone (6).

What has been the balance between DRS passes and normal passes?

The race in which DRS passes outweighed normal passes to the greatest extent was Valencia: 50% of passes were DRS-enabled, compared to 11% of normal moves. The race at which normal passes outweighed DRS moves to the greatest extent was Monaco, with 64% of normal moves compared to 9% of DRS moves. The next most extreme was Silverstone, with 55% of normal moves compared to 21% of DRS-assisted passes.

How much passing has been done on the first lap?

Although it could be argued that the new rules have diminished the importance of track position in the early stages of the race, a good first lap remains an important asset. Nico Rosberg and Michael Schumacher have only lost position on the first lap on three occasions between them this season (excluding the damage Michael sustained on lap one in Australia). Michael has made up three or more places on the first lap on four occasions; the best of these was a gain of five places on lap one in China.

How have the tyres affected the racing?

From all of the normal passes, just over 55% occurred when the difference in tyre age between the two cars was less than five laps, and 45% when it was more than five laps. Of the 180 DRS moves, 52% had tyre age difference of less than five laps, and 48% when it was more than five laps. The race where the difference in tyre age had the biggest impact was Barcelona, where ‘old’ tyres accounted for 69% of passes. The least influential races were the wet events in Montreal and Silverstone.

How many pit-stops have there been in 2011?

In nine races, there have been a total of 560 pit stops (this raw total includes penalties). Of these, 11 have been drive-through penalties and four have been ten-second stop-go penalties. The race with the highest number of stops was Istanbul (82 stops), followed by Barcelona (77 stops) and Montreal (76 stops). The fewest number of stops were in Monaco (43), Melbourne (46) and Silverstone (54). Two races have seen no penalties served – Barcelona and Valencia. The highest number of penalties was in Montreal, with four drive-through penalties.

MERCEDES GP PETRONAS driver’s Nico Rosberg and Michael Schumacher finished the British Grand Prix in sixth and ninth places at Silverstone while Fernando Alonso of Ferrari took the podium. Rosberg and Schumacher’s finish added 10 points to the teams totaland took the MERCEDES GP PETRONAS team to fourth place in the Constructors’ Championship.

• Both drivers started the race on intermediates tyies, meaning that they no longer had to use both dry compounds.

• Nico ran a two-stop strategy, stopping for option tyres on laps 12 and 30, and making his final set last 22 laps.

• Michael’s race was compromised by a collision with Kamui Kobayashi (retired after 23 laps due to oil leak) on lap 9 whilst running in ninth place.

• This forced Michael to pit for a new nose and cost him a 10s stop-go penalty.

• Michael made three stops: on lap 9 for option tyres and a new nose, lap 16 for the stop-go, and on lap 31, again for options.

Nico Rosberg

“I’m pretty pleased with our result this weekend. First of all because in qualifying we had the potential to be in the top five, and secondly we had a really good strategy in the race. My start was not good, so being able to eventually finish in sixth place is a nice result for us. And hopefully it’s the start of an upward trend, before our next home race in Germany, so I’m looking forward to confirming our performance at the Nürburgring. In the next few days, we will analyse the whole weekend with our new developments on the car, and will work hard on improving it even further.”

Michael Schumacher

“My result today is a bit of a shame, and of course I am not happy about it. I think fifth or even fourth place would not have been out of question today thanks to the superb job the guys back in Brackley and Brixworth have done. I would so much have wished to bring them some decent points this evening when we go back to the factory for a BBQ with their families. But unfortunately, and due to my fault, I cannot. Having used DRS for the first time in the race, I was arriving at the corner with over-run. Underestimating the effect, my braking was not good and this is how the collision happened. It was right to get a penalty but why it had to be a stop-go, and not a drive-through penalty, I would like to understand better as I felt it was too hard. Anyway, the good thing is that step-by-step, the hard work of our team is paying off more and more, and this is a good feeling heading towards our next home race.”

Ross Brawn

“This was a solid result for the team and a decent haul of points: after starting ninth and 13th respectively, Nico and Michael made good progress up the field. They had mixed fortunes at the start – Michael gained four positions, while Nico dropped three places as he lost out in the first few corners. Michael’s race was obviously spoiled by his collision and it carried a double penalty, as he did a slow lap to the pits and then had the stop-go penalty. However, after that he drove very well and climbed back from as low as 17th to score two points. Nico’s race was more straightforward, but we set him a real challenge asking him to go the end of the race from lap 30, and he did an extremely solid job to achieve that. This was the first race for this car specification, with new exhaust outlets and aerodynamic developments, and we had only an hour of dry running, mainly with one car, before qualifying. With that in mind, we can be encouraged by our performance today. One of our previous difficulties had been making the tyres last properly, but both drivers managed to run over 115km on a set of options this afternoon, which suggests we have made some good progress in this area.”

Norbert Haug

“The start of the race in partly damp conditions did not quite develop according to plan. Nico lost three places on lap one whereas Michael gained four. Taking into consideration that Nico completed the first lap in 12th, sixth place is a respectable result. We showed today that we could handle the tyres during a two-stop strategy, when most of the top ten finishers chose three stops. Michael had an eventful race, touching Kobayashi’s Sauber in the early stages, which forced him into the pits early for a nose change, and some laps later, a stop-go penalty. He then dropped back to 17th, so his recovery to ninth place was impressive. Well done to our team at one of our home races. We all will work very hard to further improve our package for our next home race at the Nürburgring in a fortnight.”

The British Grand Prix, the first of two home races for MERCEDES GP PETRONAS, takes place at Silverstone on Sunday 10 July. Located just eight miles from the team’s factory in Brackley, and 20 miles from Mercedes-Benz HighPerformanceEngines in Brixworth, Silverstone will be Round Nine of the 2011 Formula One World Championship.

• At 5.891 km, Silverstone is the second longest circuit on the current Formula One calendar.

• The current Silverstone layout is 1.24 km and 27% longer than the original first used for Formula One in 1950

• DRS can be used for 3.35 km around the lap in qualifying, equivalent to 57% of the lap distance

• The race has been won from pole position just three times in the last ten years

Michael Schumacher

“Silverstone is one of our home races where we will be backed by everybody from the factories in Brackley and Brixworth, and therefore we would love to do well and thank them for their hard work. However, with all the changes we have this season, it is difficult for me to judge how the track will suit our car. As always, we will probably only know more after the Friday practice sessions. We are in the process of developing further upgrades and new solutions which I am confident will help us to make a step forward again. The message for all of us is to put our heads down and work our way through, and as we are all sharing this attitude, I am sure we will get there.”

Nico Rosberg

“Silverstone is a very cool track. I’m really looking forward to all the fast corners, especially from Copse through Becketts to Stowe. I finished third last year and I hope to have another good result, especially because so many of the people working at Brackley and Brixworth will be there with their families. This is the first of our two home Grands Prix in July, so I want to give a good performance in front of our people. We will have a few new updates, and I’m curious to see how this will affect my car. Hopefully we can close the gap to the top a little bit.”

Ross Brawn, Team Principal

“Silverstone is always a special weekend for our team, with the home of the British Grand Prix being located so close to our factory in Brackley and to Mercedes-Benz HighPerformanceEngines in Brixworth. It’s a great opportunity for our staff and their families to see the cars in action so close to home. Having visited the new pit and paddock complex earlier this year, combined with the layout changes implemented in 2010, I believe Silverstone is now really a venue to be proud of. We are very much looking forward to competing there next weekend. We have been working very hard on developments for the car to improve our competitive position, and I would like to take the opportunity to thank the team for the commitment they have shown. We look forward to having a positive weekend at one of our home races.”

Norbert Haug, Vice-President, Mercedes-Benz Motorsport

“As one of the original rounds of the Formula One calendar since 1950, the British Grand Prix is a true classic race. The circuit at Silverstone has moved with the times and, after a new layout last year, 2011 will see the start-finish line move to its third location in the circuit’s history, as well as the introduction of a modern pits complex. In spite of these changes, though, the circuit has retained its essential high-speed character and the drivers universally love it. In dry conditions, 11 corners are taken above 200 kph while during the impressive sequence between Copse and Stowe, the cars never drop below 195 kph. It is a circuit that rewards efficient aerodynamic performance, while slow speed grip is also important through the new section of the circuit, making this a wide-ranging challenge for the car. Looking to our team’s performance, we know that we are currently not in a position to challenge the top three teams in Valencia and we cannot expect that situation to turn around at Silverstone. However, a lot of hard work is being done to improve our technical package and we all will focus on achieving a decent result.”

MERCEDES GP PETRONAS drivers Nico Rosberg and Michael Schumacher finished in seventh and 17th positions today at the European Grand Prix where Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel claimed his 6th win. Nico achieved the current potential of the car while Michael’s race was spoiled by a collision on lap 15.

• Nico ran a three-stop strategy of used option/new option/used option/prime, stopping on lap 12, 30 and 45

• Michael’s race was spoiled when, as he left the pits after his first stop, he slid into Petrov in turn one on lap 15

• The contact broke his front wing and he had to do a full lap before making an extra stop to replace it

• After racing eighth in the early stages, Michael dropped to 20th after the additional stop, costing a likely points finish

• Michael stopped just once more after this on lap 31, for prime tyres, which he ran to the end

Nico Rosberg

“I’m happy with my seventh place today as that is the maximum that we could have achieved and we got everything out of the car. It was great to overtake Jenson at the start, and we made the right strategy choice to go for three stops. The introduction of DRS was a positive for the race here in Valencia, and we saw some nice overtaking moves. Now we need to keep pushing for our two home races to close the gap to the fastest teams. I’m sure the whole team will work very hard before Silverstone, and I look forward to racing in front of so many people from the team and their families.”

Michael Schumacher

“Not a very satisfying race for me today. The outcome was decided after lap 15 when I slid into Petrov and lost the points I could perhaps have achieved. Our race pace should have allowed me to finish more or less where I started, but that is only speculation after the incident. I saw Petrov quite late, even though I was aware that he was coming, and tried to brake as late as possible and go round the corner with him. But when I wanted to draw back, I locked the front wheel and slipped into him, which was clearly my mistake. From then onwards, the race was done and I just had to drive the car over the finish line. We will now look ahead to Silverstone which is one of our home races.”

Ross Brawn

“Nico achieved the current potential of the car today with another very solid, mistake-free drive. We couldn’t have realistically expected any more and he scored valuable points. As for Michael, his collision was frustrating because he was running at a very similar level to Nico in the early stages and could also have finished close to him, in the points. After our concerns earlier in the weekend, the tyres behaved well and we didn’t experience any serious degradation problems, which represents a step forward for us compared to previous races. However, we set our targets very much higher than racing for seventh place: our work in the next weeks will focus on improving the car’s performance in order to race with the teams ahead of us.”

Norbert Haug

“Nico’s seventh place is what we could realistically have hoped for today, finishing behind the three top teams with our current technical package, which is lacking performance. The team is working very hard to bring the planned updates for our cars in order to close the gap to the current top six runners. Michael had an unfortunate clash early in the race and the additional pit stop this required prevented him from scoring points.”

The 2011 European Grand Prix weekend began today at the Valencia Street Circuit with two uninterrupted and busy practice sessions, held in warm but overcast conditions. Both MERCEDES GP PETRONAS drivers ended the day in the top ten after P2.

• Nico and Michael ran a total of 111 laps today: this equates to 601 km, just three laps short of two race distances.
• The drivers focused primarily on race preparation and tyre evaluation during both practice sessions.
• Today’s fastest time of 1:37.968s was 1.3 seconds quicker than the fastest Friday time from 2010.

Nico Rosberg

“We had a bit of a tricky morning: it was clear that we had to change some things on the set-up but we managed to improve the car for this afternoon. It was important to learn as much as possible today but I am still not completely happy with the balance we have at the moment. There are a few new things to adapt to this weekend, such as the new engine mapping regulation for example, and that makes it a little more challenging. We have work to do this evening, but I am positive that we will make a good start to the qualifying day tomorrow.”

Michael Schumacher

“We had a typical Friday practice situation, running through different set-up possibilities and variations. As usual on Friday, our focus was more on the long runs, and all in all I am very happy because we managed to do a lot of work. In the morning session we still had some issues to sort out, and in the afternoon we just worked consistently on our car. All of us are aware, though, that under normal circumstances we will not yet be strong enough to fight for the podium, and will most likely find ourselves starting around the fourth row. But as we managed to complete our programme in a good way, I am still taking a positive feeling out of today’s practice.”

Ross Brawn

“We had two pretty reasonable sessions today and certainly improved the car from the morning to the afternoon. We focused on race preparation work, along with looking at how the tyres behave here – they seem to be quite consistent on initial evaluation. There are some areas where we need to try and improve before Sunday, but overall I think we have a good base to work from going into the weekend.”

Norbert Haug

“It was a solid first day on this untypical but nevertheless challenging street circuit in Valencia. We completed lots of laps and Michael’s time for fourth place was respectable. Nico and his engineers still have more work to do with the set-up of the car, but I am sure the guys will work hard to get an improved base for tomorrow. Our long runs with the soft tyre in race conditions showed lap times which were quite consistent but not fast enough to challenge the top three teams. We will try to make further improvements before tomorrow.”

Valencia Race Info:

• Race Date: 26 Jun 2011
• Circuit Name: Valencia Street Circuit
• Number of Laps: 57
• Circuit Length: 5.419 km
• Race Distance: 308.883 km
• Lap Record: 1:38.683 – T Glock (2009)

Among the scores of rule changes for the 2011 F1 season, one of the less prominent was that gearboxes must now last for five consecutive events rather than four. Furthermore, each team had to choose 30 ratio options before the season began to cover the demands of the 19 circuits, which must be able to cope with the slowest corners at Monaco, and the long straights of Monza, with DRS enabled. As the Valencia Street Circuit requires the most gear changes per lap of any circuit so far this season, 64, and the second-most per lap of any circuit behind Singapore, it provides the perfect opportunity to take a look at this crucial system.

The Valencia Street Circuit requires 64 gear changes per lap; only Singapore requires more, with 71 changes per lap. This equates to over 3,648 changes per race, compared to a season average of 3100 gear changes. This means, on average, the drivers are changing gear once every 85 metres, compared to once every 61 metres in Monaco, or at the other extreme, once every 143 metres in Spa.

In terms of mileage this year, gearboxes must be used for five consecutive races in 2011, compared to four in 2010. Last year, a gearbox was used for between 2,100 and 2,500 kms; for 2011, this is expected to be between 2,600 and 3,000 kms. During the five-race cycle, a gearbox would therefore perform over 25,000 gear shifts.

The toughest races for the gearbox are Monaco, Singapore and Abu Dhabi where the drivers shift gear every 61m, 71m and 82m respectively. The main factors that make a race demanding are torque levels and the number of gear shifts; Monaco and Singapore see the drivers shift gear over 4,000 times per race. At slow speed circuits, the ratios selected give a low car speed, which means the gearbox has to transmit higher torque for longer periods; also, the car spends more time in the lower gears, which is more damaging to the bearings. The gearbox also has to withstand torque spikes during a gear change; therefore, the more changes are made, the harder the gearbox has to work.

Temperatures and forces also are very important factors for the gearbox – it will typically run at up to 130°C and has to transmit around 5000Nm at the final drive. The gearbox itself weighs less than 40 kg and includes well over 500 individual components; these include not just gearbox functions, but also mounting points for the suspension, the rear crash structure and many hydraulic components.

In terms of transmitting torque through the gearbox, a gear changes takes zero seconds. The time for the mechanical parts to complete the shifting mechanism is less than 0.05s – that’s a third of the time it takes to blink an eye. At 250 kph, a Formula One car would travel almost 3.5m; around two thirds of a car length, in this time.

Article 9.6.2 of the Technical Regulations says all competitors have only 30 gear ratio pairs available for the season, and these must be declared before the first event of the year. This rule means that the teams have 30 ratio options available, not that only 30 ratios can be used. Within this range, ratios can be changed between races to adapt to circuit characteristics. The 30 ratio options are chosen based on pre-season testing with both drivers, plus lap simulation. Each driver has the same 30 ratios available.

When it comes to select ratios for a specific circuit, the first part of the process is to select top gear, which is done through simulation of various wing levels, plus the lap time compromise between DRS and non-DRS running for various top gears: optimising for non-DRS running could leave the driver on the limiter for too long when DRS is active, while the reverse scenario could cost too much lap time without DRS because the gearing is too ‘long’. At high downforce circuits, using DRS has increased top speeds by 15 kph, while speeds are very similar at medium downforce circuits like Montreal; its operation can also increase engine speeds by nearly 1,000 rpm.

The remaining ratios are picked after running the circuit on the simulator. The ratios must provide sufficient torque to exit a corner without the engine bogging down but, if the ratio is too short, it becomes difficult to control wheel spin on exit, or could make the car nervous on corner entry. Upon arrival at the circuit, planned ratios may be adapted to suit grip levels or wind direction. Within the range of 30 ratios, they can be freely changed between first and second practice. After P2, the team has just two hours to select final ratios for the remainder of the event.