Mercedes Preview : Monaco vs Nürburgring 24h

Two classic events on one weekend: Formula One travels to the Mediterranean for the Monaco Grand Prix, while the Nürburgring hosts its annual 24-hour race.

• This is what happened: Weekend results and facts
• News from the Mercedes-AMG Motorsport teams
• A question for each of the three winners from last year’s 24-hour race
• Social media news: What’s new online?
• This week’s important dates and events

This is what happened: Weekend’s results & facts

• DTM: Lucas Auer and Robert Wickens in a one-two victory in Race 1 at the Lausitzring
• DTM: Mercedes-AMG Motorsport leading all three championships after the second of nine race weekends
• ADAC GT Masters: Luca Ludwig and Luca Stolz finish runners-up in Race 1 at the Lausitzring
• Blancpain GT Series Asia: Maximilian Buhk and Hunter Abbott win second race in Thailand

News snippets

We’re off to Monaco: It’s that time of the year again! This coming weekend, Formula One stages the crown jewel in the racing calendar – the Monaco Grand Prix. The Silver Arrows have fond memories of the circuit that winds its way through the streets of the Principality. In the period 2013 – 2016, the team has won there four times in a row. The first three of those wins went to reigning World Champion Nico Rosberg, with Lewis Hamilton taking the honours last time round. Over the years, there have been eleven victories and 22 podium finishes for cars powered by Mercedes engines.

Lausitzring specialists: The Mercedes-AMG Motorsport DTM Team includes several drivers who have so far shown a distinct penchant for the Lausitzring. They proved this again at the Motorsport Festival Lausitzring, which constituted the second weekend of the 2017 DTM season. Gary Paffett had already won three times on this particular circuit, while Lucas Auer lifted his second winner’s trophy there on Sunday. He now has three DTM victories to his credit, with the latest coming at the same venue where he celebrated his maiden win last year. Another Lausitzring specialist is Robert Wickens. In his last four races on this track, the Canadian has made a podium appearance each time. The only other circuit on which he has had four Top Three finishes is the Norisring.

Stat-Attack Lausitzring: The fourth race of the 2017 campaign on Sunday marked the 200th since the DTM was revived as a series in the year 2000. During this period, Mercedes-AMG Motorsport have registered 13 victories at the Lausitzring, including the win for Lucas on Saturday. This tally makes the brand with the three-pointed star the most successful at the Lausitzring. In the driver’s championship, Lucas has a lead of 16 points over second-placed Jamie Green. These two drivers are the only ones to have won a race so far this season, both of them standing on the top rung of the podium twice.

Two victories, one podium: Monaco is not the only city to boast a famous street circuit. Last weekend, Pau in southern France hosted the FIA Formula 3 European Championship. Maximilian Günther was the most successful contestant, claiming two race wins and a P3 finish. The test and substitute driver for the Mercedes-AMG Motorsport DTM Team thus becomes the first German racing driver since 2011 and only the fifth ever to win the Grand Prix de Pau. “This victory is very important to me,” said Günther, who took his first Formula 3 podium in 2015. “It’s really cool when you look at the list of previous race winners. It makes me mega proud to see my name up there alongside theirs.” Günther is now only three points behind the championship leader. In the second race, six Mercedes-powered cars crossed the line in the Top Seven. In the third and final race of the weekend, the first four places went to drivers with a Mercedes-AMG Motorsport Formula 3 engine.

Tense situation in the Japanese Super GT Series: In the third event of the season hosted by the Autopolis International Racing Course at Hita (JPN), the pairing of Tatsuya Kataoka and Nobuteru Taniguchi (both Japan) finished fifth in their number four Mercedes-AMG GT3. In the GT300 general classification, the GOODSMILE RACING duo dropped from second to third place in both the driver and team championships but are still within striking distance of the top, just four points adrift.

Buhk and Abbott win at the Chang International Circuit: Same continent – different country: things went better for Maximilian Buhk and Hunter Abbott in the Blancpain GT Series Asia which was this time staged in Buriram, Thailand. In the second of two races last weekend, the German-British duo driving the number 999 Mercedes-AMG GT3 won the race by a margin of almost twelve seconds. Abbott continues to lead the drivers’ championship on 63 points. Buhk, who missed out on the first fixture of the campaign in Malaysia, is currently fourth. After four out of twelve races, GroupM Racing are way out ahead in the team championship with a lead of 28 points.

Class victory and a podium for Lechner Racing: Mario Plachutta enjoyed a successful weekend in the DMV GTC. The Austrian driving the number 67 Mercedes-AMG GT3 entered by Lechner Racing finished third in his class in both of the first two sprint races. But it got even better: in the final Dunlop 60 race, Plachutta celebrated a class victory as well as a P3 in the general classification

A question for the three winners of last year’s 24-hour race

When the 24-hour race at the Nürburgring is contested on the weekend of 25th ‑ 28th May 2017, there will be some changes to the regulations. Adam Christodoulou, Maro Engel and Manuel Metzger will be aiming to defend their title together with new co-driver Yelmer Buurman. What are their expectations for this highlight of the endurance racing calendar?

Adam Christodoulou: For me, the 24 Hours of the Nürburgring is the biggest and best race in the world. I just can’t wait to get going again with the number 1 on the bonnet of the car I share with Maro and Manuel plus Yelmer this time round. I still have goose pimples when I think back to our victory last year. Taking the lead on the final lap made the whole experience even more incredible. Everyone – the entire team, my co-drivers and the engineers – went crazy when we crossed the finish line as winners. The challenge this year is all the greater – for one thing living up to what we achieved last year, and for another, the fact that our results in the VLN races so far haven’t been as stunning as last year when we were making podium appearances right from the start. In 2017, there have been some changes to the regulations affecting our Mercedes-AMG GT3, including the tyres and aerodynamics, which is why we haven’t yet been able to achieve the level of performance we were hoping for. Over the course of the previous VLN races this season, we have been very busy with the preparatory work and setup, trying to put together an optimum package for the highlight of the season at the end of May.

Maro Engel: It was my dream from a very early age to one day win this 24‑hour race. It has a special place in my memory, because I won it with Bernd Schneider as my co-driver. When I was a child, he showed me the ideal racing line on the kart track, so standing alongside him on the podium was something very special. When I see the pictures, I still get very emotional: first the pole position, then the race with its grandstand finish and lastly lifting the winner’s trophy – that was amazing. In the world’ s toughest car race, the level of competition in 2017 is going to be as high as ever. It’s unbelievable looking at the quality on the grid – so many manufacturers, so many works drivers. The battle for supremacy will once again be extreme, and I think our opponents will be more determined than ever to strike back after our quadruple victory in 2016. But we are also very well equipped for what lies ahead, with a powerful car, great teams and a very strong squad of drivers. I’m also back in two cars this year. This is an additional challenge and an exciting responsibility. My team-mates are making this easy for me, however, because they work very professionally and give me tremendous support. And our target for 2017 remains the same – to win the toughest race in the world.

Manuel Metzger: The competition will probably be even tighter than in recent years. Porsche have made a strong impression in the VLN races so far, and we also know that the BMW teams are strong. They will be competing on the same level as us, just like the Audi teams. I’m expecting an exciting four-way fight between us and these three opponents. But Bentley are not to be underestimated either, so it should be a very close contest. The changes to the regulations have meant that we’ve had to find a new setup. We all have to get used to the new ground clearance, discover how the modified wing functions and understand how the new tyres work. When we put in our first laps on the Nordschleife this year, we could hardly have anticipated how the car would behave. But with the VLN races and the qualifying race, we’ve since had enough opportunities to get used to these changes. I’m now looking forward to driving the number one car this year and pleased that our driver line-up is almost unchanged. We have a strong team and are determined to go on the attack again.

Social Media News

#BehindTheScenes: Ever wondered what’s going on behind the shutters of the top-secret Formula One engineers’ trucks? Then it’s time to find out, with the help of our expert guide – Lewis Hamilton!

Watch video: www.youtube.com/watch?v=MWqkQDrnK4M

#StrategyAnalysis: Before we head off to Monaco for the highlight of the season, we take a closer look at Lewis’s victory in the Spanish Grand Prix and analyse the impact of the virtual safety car on the race.

Watch video: www.youtube.com/watch?v=CH_dTi0mdJ0

#MilleMiglia: Mercedes-Benz Head of Motorsport Toto Wolff and Engineering Director Aldo Costa took a break from Formula One last weekend for a trip down memory lane: they drove a Mercedes 300 SL in the legendary Mille Miglia.

Watch video: www.youtube.com/watch?v=VzyPJs9pUq

Upcoming events & dates

Source : Mercedes.com

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