Current Mercedes

Mercedes GP

FIA Entry: Mercedes GP Petronas F1 Team
Car 7: Michael Schumacher
Car 8: Nico Rosberg
Engine: Mercedes V8
Team Principal: Ross Brawn
Technical Director: Bob Bell
Race Engineer Car 7: Mark Slade
Race Engineer Car 8: Tony Ross

Stats as of end 2010

First Entered 2010
Races Entered 19
Race Wins 0
Pole Positions 0
Fastest Laps 0
Driver World Championships 0
Constructor World Championships 0

Team History

The Mercedes team history splits into two parts. In 1954 the famous pre-war Silver Arrows entered the F1 world championship and recorded a 1-2 at their first race. Fangio went on to win the drivers championship that year and again in 1955. Mercedes withdrew at the end of the 1955 season after the accident which killed 80 spectators at Le Mans which involved one of their cars.

The current team entered F1 in 2010 after Mercedes bought Brawn Grand Prix. Brawn Grand Prix, winners of the Drivers Championship, with Jenson Button, and the constructor’s championship in 2009, grew out of the ashes of Honda’s F1 entry after Honda had withdrawn from F1 at the end of the 2008 season after only a single Grand Prix win for Button in Hungary 2006.

Prior to the Honda takeover in 2006 the team had raced under the name of British America racing which had acquired the assets and race entry of the Tyrrell F1 team in 1999. BAR competed in 118 races without a single victory. The high points for the team were 2 pole positions (both for Button – San Marino 2004 and Canada 2005) and 2nd in the constructors championship in 2004.

Tyrrell were amongst the most successful private F1 teams taking part in 463 Grands Prix, scoring 33 victories and 3 Drivers Championships, all with Jackie Stewart.

2010

Having replaced Button and Barrichello with Nico Rosberg and 7 times WDC Michael Schumacher many expected great things of the new Mercedes team in 2010 but they had an indifferent season.

Rosberg managed 3 podiums for the team but Schumacher, coming back from retirement, struggled with the new cars, tyres and limited testing under the revised regulations. The team finished 4th in the Constructors Championship.

2011

For 2011 Mercedes retain the same driver line up and are hoping for better things from their MGP W02 chassis.
 
Only one to wield the lazer scaple to makes sure his chin is completely hairless. Oh I'm also doubley up as the guy that makes up excuses for him as to why Ralph can't come and watch the Grand Prix from the Merc garage.

I probably should get back on topic!

Anyone else really incouraged by the Mercs picking up form at the moment? I think they're getting there - would be awesome for next season if we have 4 teams battling at the front
 
It would be awesome if we had two teams battling it out at the front.

So far Mercedes have only scored in double figure this season eight times in thirteen races. They need to be a lot better to be fighting for the lead. However I cannot see a circuit ahead which will benefit from their grunty engine with lack of downforce style of racing.
 
Costa was there at Ferrari when Brawn and Schumacher were in their pomp and also when Raikkonen won the title.

I don't think he designed any of the Ferraris that won titles. Rory Byrne (Costa's boss) designed the winners for Schuey - and Nicolas Tombasiz for Kimi.

So, it's a reunion of sorts for Costa with Schuey and Brawn.

Didn't Willis work at Brackley too (BAR, Honda)? I think he went from Williams to the fore-runner of Mercedes GP. Non?

I think Willis worked under Newey at Williams...and then he also worked under Newey again at Red Bull after Willis was dumped by BAR/Honda.

EDIT:

I read the link after I wrote the above...so apologies if some of it seems like a rehash of the link (other than the idea that these guys aren't winners like Byrne, Newey and Tombasiz.)
 
Mercedes certainly getting the right guys behind the team

Bob Bell - experience with Renault
Geoff Willis - he is returning back to his former employees ( BAR/Honda before he left under a cloud..lets say the results got worse after he left until Ross sorted the team out )
Costa - he's wrongly taking the flak at Ferrari but thats how they always work if the car underperforms looking for scapegoats

Mercedes apparently have vacancies for 140 engineers.

This has gone from having
1) Selected Brawn because they operated on a rigid cost structure to work being a smaller team than the 3 top teams
2) Sacking engineers back at Stuttgart due to global recession and cost cutting
3) Having originally gone into F1 with Sauber with a view turning it into full Mercedes team if the results were good..why did not they stick it or at least go and buy Sauber then in early 2000's'

Its all well getting the key personnel its about working together as one team. Ross managed to sort it out when the team was Brawn because he knew when to delegate and when to take decisions and put them together into a winning car...

so will Mercedes listen to Ross now he's got the key people he needs
 
Mercedes certainly getting the right guys behind the team

Bob Bell ... Renault

so will Mercedes listen to Ross now he's got the key people he needs

I think Bob Bell is a great hire!

It's a promotion for Bell because Renault aren't Renault anymore and Mercedes want to be Champions.

Will Mercedes listen to Brawn?

If they want to win Championships, yes.

Most likely, they'll end up thinking their way is the best way and they won't listen to him. In other words, I don't expect them to be winning Championships whilst Brawn is there.

If I were the board in Stuttgart, i'd give Brawn carte blanche...but they probably won't.

We'll see.
 
I think Bob Bell is a great hire!

It's a promotion for Bell because Renault aren't Renault anymore and Mercedes want to be Champions.

Will Mercedes listen to Brawn?

If they want to win Championships, yes.

Most likely, they'll end up thinking their way is the best way and they won't listen to him. In other words, I don't expect them to be winning Championships whilst Brawn is there.

If I were the board in Stuttgart, i'd give Brawn carte blance...but they probably won't.

We'll see.

I think someone should remind the muppets at Stuttgart who's got the most experience at winning titles - Ross BRawn who managed to sort out Honda / Brawn from a laughing stock into a championship winning team

Better than anything that corporate puppet Nick Fry ever did at Honda
 
I think all the criticism of Mercedes is terribly unfair. They're doing no worse or better than a team with their resources should be. And Norbert Haug has been around for donkey's years and seen it all.

If and when the resource restrictions begin to bite, the top teams should come back towards Mercedes.

As for going back to 1994-95, choosing between Sauber and McLaren was what our American friends call a 'no-brainer'.
 
It looks like Ross Brawn is building a team for world domination now though. Wonder how much input the new design team will have on the 2012 challenger.

Hey look, found a pic of Ross with Nick Fry...

462387.jpg
 
I think all the criticism of Mercedes is terribly unfair. They're doing no worse or better than a team with their resources should be. And Norbert Haug has been around for donkey's years and seen it all.

If and when the resource restrictions begin to bite, the top teams should come back towards Mercedes.

As for going back to 1994-95, choosing between Sauber and McLaren was what our American friends call a 'no-brainer'.

Mercedes always wants things done their own way and luckily for Ron he was smart enough to see that it should be shared decision 50/50 and not let them get the upper hand by selling his shares to Middle East backers. Heidfeld could lay the blame on Ron Dennis for not giving him the Mclaren drive and having a more successful F1 career

Mercedes asked (pressurised ) Ron to sign Mansell in 1995 and lets say it was disastrous given Ron was never a fan of Mansell from the beginning and the "too fat for the Mclaren car" did not help.

The criticism at Mercedes is justified given the rubbish PR spin they've been giving from the beginning. It was their decision to not retain Button and/or deliberately tie Ross' hands.. right now Jenson is laughing back at their faces. Even Rosberg is getting frustrated that what he thought was a top team has not worked out.

Last year they blamed the car for Schumacher's failings but then what were they expecting from a guy who did not F1 for 3 years?
 
Last year they blamed the car for Schumacher's failings but then what were they expecting from a guy who did not F1 for 3 years?

What were they expecting from a guy who hadn't won a championship for 6 years!?!?

I suspect they wanted the Name as opposed to a really fast driver who'd won a recent title.
 
I was very much under the impression it was Marlboro who wanted Mansell. I'm sure Mercedes probably didn't mind, but my recollection is certainly that it was Marlboro who were pushing it.

In fact, I believe that the agreement between Marlboro and McLaren included a clause that the team would have a GP winner in the car. Not sure whether it was a condition that would reduce the money paid, or allow them to exit the contract (unlikely) but it was something strong enough to pressure Dennis into making an appointment that wasn't necessarily his own first choice.
 
I was very much under the impression it was Marlboro who wanted Mansell. I'm sure Mercedes probably didn't mind, but my recollection is certainly that it was Marlboro who were pushing it.

I would probably agree with that, since Mercedes are still there and Marlboro went quite swiftly out the door, despite a 20 year "partnership", and merging McLaren and Project 4 in the first place!
 
What were they expecting from a guy who hadn't won a championship for 6 years!?!?

I suspect they wanted the Name as opposed to a really fast driver who'd won a recent title.
Ala just like they did back in 1995 wanting Mclaren to sign a big name driver to match their ambitions so Ron had to ditch Brundle for Mansell
 
Ala just like they did back in 1995 wanting Mclaren to sign a big name driver to match their ambitions so Ron had to ditch Brundle for Mansell

I thought a few here already mentioned that it was "Marlboro" that wanted Mansell not "Mercedes"?
 
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