Mercedes: A Deliberate Late Launch
Mercedes AMG will only launch their 2012 car in Barcelona on February 21. The German team, however, believes they've made the right choice by postponing the launch of the W03 in order to develop it as much as possible before its first laps.
Mercedes will test its 2012 single-seater during the second testing session, which will take place in Barcelona from February 21 to 24. The German team will therefore appear in Jerez from February 7 to 10 with its 2011 single-seater.
Norbert Haug, vice-president of Mercedes-Benz’s motorsport division, stated that it does not worry him at all. On the contrary, launching the new car only in Barcelona is part of a process chosen by the team.
«If you have a half-year period to develop a single-seater, then 10 days can be something crucial. That was our decision. We want to conduct the tests with a healthy single-seater, finalized in every detail. That’s why we need time to develop it,» Norbert Haug told Autosport.
Haug confided that the Mercedes AMG team was in no way behind in the design of its future challenger. It simply decided to take more time than its rivals to develop its single-seater as much as possible.
It is important that we made this decision knowingly. I know that all the other teams will be present with their new car (in Jerez) but this is not unusual. Other teams that are in a process to move forward have decided to launch their car in the second test session, so this is not something new.
«We appreciate that other teams have different schedules and we are ready for these first tests. We are not behind schedule, we are simply following what we have planned, and then we will see what this brings.»
Mercedes will therefore only have 8 days to test its new single-seater before the first Grand Prix – compared to 12 for its rivals. But Norbert Haug believes that being able to test the 2012 Pirelli tires with the 2011 car will provide a true basis for comparison. He also revealed that some elements of the 2012 car will be tested as early as the Jerez trials.
«We will have some parts to test for the first trials. We can use the new generation of tires, which is a good way to have a reference because we have the data from the old tires for comparison. We need to learn more about the behavior of the tires on our single-seater, » added Haug.
