Lowe vows to fix issues to give McLaren shot at title

Mark Bryans 09:45 02/10/2014
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Mail
  • Pinterest
  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • WhatsApp
  • Pinterest
  • LinkedIn
  • Reliability issues: Of the 14 races held so far this season, Mercedes have failed to finish five, with Lewis Hamilton (above) retiring three time to two for team-mate Nico Rosberg.

    Mercedes will “redouble” their efforts to improve reliability and give their drivers an equal shot at the Formula One World Champion­ship, according to executive techni­cal director Paddy Lowe.

    Lewis Hamilton heads into the Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka this weekend just three-points clear of team-mate and title rival Nico Rosberg – with the competition between the pair likely to run until the season’s climax in Abu Dhabi.

    Rosberg was forced to retire from the Singapore Grand Prix after resi­due caused a short-circuit.

    That was Mercedes’ fifth retire­ment in a season where they have had the fastest car at almost every Grand Prix, with Hamilton not fin­ishing three races to Rosberg’s two.

    World champion in 2008, Ham­ilton took full advantage of Ros­berg’s woes in Singapore to pick up back-to-back victories and move to the top of the standings, albeit by a slender margin.

    The Brit has said he wants a “straight battle” against his team-mate on the track to decide the title, rather than the championship being determined by whose car holds up best and Lowe has stressed that everyone at Mercedes is work­ing towards improving technical difficulties.

    “Credit must go to the team in terms of the strategy (in Singapore) – which was bold but absolutely the right call,” he said.

    “It demanded a lot from Lewis in terms of his performance in the final phase of the race – but as always he delivered faultlessly.

    “On the other side of the garage, it was very disappointing to have lost Nico’s car in Singapore. This was down to the failure of a part which we have been running faultlessly since its introduction six years ago and so demonstrates the challenge of ensuring reliability.

    “Clearly, this is an area in which we need to perform a lot better in the future. Reliability is something we have been working on inten­sively over the past 12 months and we will redouble our efforts mov­ing forwards. Now, we look ahead to Suzuka.”

    Meanwhile, Mercedes’ head of motorsport Toto Wolff has sug­gested there is a remote possibility that Hamilton and Rosberg will not be the team’s pairing for the 2015 season.

    Both remain under contract with the team but, after a fractious year in which both have had issues with one another, Wolff claimed that he was only “99 per cent” certain that the duo would continue as team-mates.

    “You have to hold something back because exceptional circumstances can always arise. In life, nothing is ever 100 per cent for sure,” he said.

    Elsewhere, Caterham have announced that Kamui Kobayashi has retained his seat for his home race.

    Hiring the experienced Japanese racer appeared an astute move by the struggling Caterham team, whose future in the sport remains uncertain. But Kobayashi has struggled in a car which has been the slowest on the grid at most rac­es this year and he has been fighting for his place since August at Spa.

    Kobayashi achieved his only F1 podium to date with a third-placed finish for Sauber in 2012 at Suzuka.

    “I’m very excited to be back in front of all my Japanese fans and racing at Suzuka; I’ve been waiting for this race for over a year,” Koba­yashi said. 

    Recommended