"It's going to be a very complex race," Mercedes boss says
Sunday 14 April 2013 05:56, UK
Mercedes Team Principal Ross Brawn says Sunday's Chinese Grand Prix will likely prove a "very complex" affair given the different race strategies on offer to the field.
After a promising start to the season, Mercedes have appeared strong throughout the weekend so far and Brawn said that was why they opted not to go down the route chosen by Vettel, Button et al. "With both drivers we were in a pretty competitive position. There's a set of calculations that tells you what should be the best strategy and if tyres work out the way we expect then we're comfortable with the strategy we've got," he said. "Also, quite frankly, starting ninth or tenth is a risky situation. There's always a risk at the start of a race and there's more risk the further back you go." The track appears something of a favourite for the Silver Arrows, who of course won the Chinese Grand Prix last year with Rosberg behind the wheel. What certainly helped on that occasion was the car's main deficiency - a tendency to eat its rear tyres - being masked by the SIC's long corners, which places more of an emphasis on having good front-end grip. However, Brawn doesn't think another strong showing 12 months on with the W04 would necessarily be a case of history repeating itself. "I think this car has actually been quite good at all three circuits (so far this season). Our car last year was rear tyre-limited and this is not a rear-tyre limited circuit. Nico was able to use the car very well last year and achieve the result," he added. "But I think, this year, it's not quite as strong. The tyres are pretty marginal front and rear. I think we've just got a good car we can work with, a car we can balance, and we'll keep developing it."
