German driver Nico Rosberg has said that he has a better status at the German team, Mercedes, after the departure of seven time Formula One world champion Michael Schumacher. The former Ferrari driver recently announced his retirement for the second time from the sport. He was replaced by McLaren driver Lewis Hamilton, who is a great friend of Rosberg. Even though Rosberg acknowledged that it was a great lesson to be a teammate of Michael Schumacher, it did not help him have any influence on the team. He believes that his improved positioning in the team may help Mercedes win more races in the future.
The German team has had a tough return to the sport after several years away from it. Even with the likes of Schumacher and Ross Brawn at the helm, they were unable to put together a winning team. As a result, they have brought in the 2008 world champion Lewis Hamilton in the hope of reviving their fortunes. So far, it has been a good start to the 2013 season, but Rosberg reckons that there is still a long way to go before the teams capable of challenging for the titles. The Mercedes technical director recently revealed that the team is working hard to challenge for the title in the 2014 season.
“I now have a stronger voice. And to me that’s a beautiful process in which I can help Mercedes become the best team. Sure [the title is] the big goal, but now I want to win races, because success is the most fun … We want to improve ourselves – in the direction of race wins,” said Rosberg, who has made an indifferent start to the season. He almost made it into the podium at the Malaysian Grand Prix, but he has also had two retirements as well.
The former Ferrari and Mercedes driver Michael Schumacher has said that he does not want to become a TV pundit in the future. The German driver is regarded as one of the best drivers of all time in the sport. He has the records to back up his claim, as he has managed to lift a record seven world championship titles during his illustrious career that saw him race for the likes of Benetton, Ferrari, and Mercedes. He drove for Mercedes in his second stint in the sport, which was not successful. Now, he has said that he does not want to involve in TV punditry because it would take away this time from the family.
Schumacher has said that he is keen on spending more time with his family, and TV punditry does not allow this. Hence, he would rather be racing or be spending time with his family rather than work as a TV pundit. The 43-year-old German has also revealed that he is now helping his wife Corinna in her interests like horse breeding. Regarding the 2013 F1 season, Schumacher has revealed that he has said that too much importance should not be given to winter testing. He has said that there will be different winners over the course of the campaign.
“That would not be my cup of tea. Things move so fast in Formula One that I’m already actually a long way off the pace. Secondly, I would again be away from my family so I might as well be driving. [had I been away] that would have been more fun. We also know that winter tests are only of limited relevance. I think the season will be really tight. We had seven different winners in 2012 in the first seven races. And I think this is a trend for this year,” said Schumacher.
The 27-year-old Lewis Hamilton has said that he wants to emulate the achievements of Michael Schumacher at the Italian team Ferrari during the start of the 21st century. Back then, Ferrari were a struggling team due to several mechanical and reliability problems. Schumacher went to the Italian team as a champion, and managed to get them to 5 consecutive world championship titles. It is a record that also helped the German take his total tally to 7 world championship titles. Hamilton recently completed the move to Mercedes amongst a plethora of criticism due to the current form of the German team.
Since the return to the sport a few years ago, Mercedes have been unable to win races. Even with the former Ferrari driver Schumacher at the helm, they were consistently at the back of the grid. Hamilton has now gone to a team where he does not seem to have chances to win the title, but the Englishman is more concerned about creating a legacy. He has compared the way he has moved to McLaren to that of Schumacher’s move to Ferrari several years ago. Schumacher was able to guide the team to success along with a great group of people, and Hamilton has seen the similarities at Mercedes as well.
“I just want to try something different. I’m not scared to try new things. I really wanted a different experience. Michael went to Ferrari as champion, which was more positive. I like to think I could do something similar. He did it with a great group of people. I definitely feel I have joined a team with great people around me. Part of this move is about achieving that next step. I could be a good driver but I want to be great,” said Hamilton, who has one world championship title.
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May 14, 2013 6:55 am | 
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