• Turkish Grand Prix - Qualifying

Rosberg: 'We're getting ever closer'

ESPNF1 Staff
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Nico Rosberg was just 0.012s away from Mark Webber in second place © Sutton Images
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Nico Rosberg warned that Mercedes were 'getting ever closer' to Red Bull after he qualified in third position for the Turkish Grand Prix.

After an encouraging race in China where Rosberg led for 14 laps, Mercedes continued its good form by being the closest challenger to Red Bull in Turkey. Rosberg said he was impressed with the way the team had bounced back from a disappointing opening two races, and the fact that it was able to preserve a set of tyres for the race meant he would continue to be competitive.

"It's really great to see," Rosberg said. "I'm very happy for all of us really because I think we've just done really well to come back from the difficult start all the way to where we are now, we're getting ever closer to where we want to be. That's really nice, today was a good day again. We got everything right, I think my car setup and everything, qualifying generally went very well and [we] even saved one set of options for tomorrow which is very positive for the race."

Team principal Ross Brawn was equally happy with the advances that Mercedes had made, saying it was down to the team getting the best out of what was already a quick car.

"We're pleased with the steady progress that we've made over the last couple of races," Brawn said. "At the start of the season, we said that the car had more potential then we were extracting from it, and that's now being proven true. There haven't been any dramatic changes; the team and drivers have just kept their calm, and worked hard to get our package sorted. I'm now hoping we can have a good race tomorrow."

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