• Indian Grand Prix

Rosberg not expecting to remain in top four

ESPN Staff
October 26, 2012 « Red Bull 'incredibly motivated' - Webber | Button worried by McLaren pace »
Nico Rosberg finished second practice in fourth place © Sutton Images
Enlarge
Related Links

Nico Rosberg said Mercedes made good progress during Friday practice for the Indian Grand Prix but is not expecting to be fighting the frontrunners this weekend.

Rosberg was fourth fastest in second practice and 0.801s off Sebastian Vettel's Red Bull, but does not think that is representative of his car's true pace.

"Until now I am quite pleased in general. I had a very good session and lots of good tests on the car that might have found some good set-up directions. Of course, it's looking better than it actually is because we are not that quick.

"Fourth is not the target [for qualifying], the target is to be in the top seven or something like that and see from there. I don't really know our performance relative to the others yet."

At recent races Mercedes has struggled with the car's balance in long corners and tyre degradation over long runs, but team principal Ross Brawn said he had seen improvements in both those areas.

"We've had a very solid day's work here today and completed our planned programme," Brawn said. "Our focus was on getting the car balanced which went pretty well over the two sessions. The tyres are very consistent here and, whilst there are still improvements to make to the car, we're looking in reasonable shape for the weekend."

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
ESPN Staff Close

ABOUT COOKIES

To help make this website better, to improve and personalize your experience and for advertising purposes, are you happy to accept cookies and other technologies.

More Info Here Cookie Choices