Mercedes excited for penultimate race in Brazil
The Brazilian Grand Prix, the penultimate round of the 2010 FIA Formula One World Championship, takes place on Sunday 7 November at the Autodromo José Carlos Pace in Sao Paulo. The 4.309km anti-clockwise track is the highest on the calendar at 800m above sea level and its inner city location at Interlagos makes the circuit one of the most atmospheric venues of the year.
Nico Rosberg:
"The Brazilian fans are always fantastic and Interlagos is a really fun track to drive so I'm looking forward to the weekend in Sao Paulo. The combination of the tight infield and the long straight make the track layout very unique. The fact that Interlagos is at a very high altitude level means that the engine has less power due to the thinner air and the car has less grip and lower downforce which is a challenge. There are good overtaking opportunities and the weather always seems to play a part in the race weekend to make it more unpredictable. It was disappointing not to finish the race in Korea from such a strong position but our performance over the weekend was good and we were able to get the most out of the car. It would be nice to continue this and finish the season with strong performances."
Michael Schumacher:
"The season is coming to an end and I have to say that I am very impressed with how our guys have coped with it, especially in the last few flyaway races. Even though we have not had any big developments recently, we have still delivered promising performances. The characteristics of the Interlagos circuit are not too far away from those of the last races so we can go to Brazil in quite a confident mood. Our fighting spirit is good and we would like to finish the season in a positive way. So I am looking forward to going to Sao Paulo and hopefully achieving another result that I can be happy with."
Ross Brawn:
"The Brazilian Grand Prix is always a fantastic occasion and with the intense battle for the World Championship, it will be an exciting weekend for the fans at the circuit and watching around the world. Interlagos provides several challenges with its high altitude location and the bumpy surface creating two of the key engineering considerations when setting up the car. We have had a run of strong results recently, considering our relative performance position, and I am optimistic that we can continue the recent trend at the last two races. Of course this is not a position that we are happy with and we are working very hard to ensure that we are back where we want to be next year, challenging for race wins."
Norbert Haug:
"The last two races of a very exciting Formula One season will take place within eight days in Sao Paulo and Abu Dhabi which is an enormous challenge at the end of a long and demanding season. Everybody at the Mercedes GP team is fully motivated as the last five races have seen our team achieve the best possible results with our current technical package. We have finished regularly behind the World Championship contenders and sometimes between them. At the last race in Korea, we showed better potential with Michael finishing in fourth place and Nico ahead of the eventual second-placed finisher Lewis Hamilton, prior to being taken out of the race. Everybody in our team is fully focused and concentrated to finish the season with the best possible results and build the baseline for better results on a regular basis in 2011."
Interlagos Stats:
Circuit Length: 4.309 km Race Distance: 305.909 km Number of Laps: 71
Full Throttle: 63% Brake Wear: Medium Tyre Compounds: Super Soft/Medium Downforce Level: Medium 7/10 Tyre Usage: Medium Average Speed: 216kph (134mph)
