Zoom A mixed view of the first eight races of the season

Norbert Haug, Vice President of Mercedes-Benz Motorsport, shares his take on the McLaren team's performance so far this season. Additionally, as we near the British and German events, Haug assesses the results recorded by Lewis Hamilton and Heikki Kovalainen over the first eight races of the season.

The British Grand Prix marks the end of the first half of the season - what’s your half-term report on Vodafone McLaren Mercedes?

"It’s mixed. Clearly, we’ve had several opportunities to score more than the 58 points we currently have in the Constructors’ Championship. Our highlights have been Lewis’ two Grand Prix victories in Melbourne and Monte Carlo - the most prestigious race of the year. But there’s still everything to play for in the next ten races."

Does the team face an uphill struggle in the second half of the season?

"I see it differently: in the first eight races, it was possible to achieve an average finishing position of third and still lead the championship. Current leader Felipe Massa had two no-scores in the opening two races but still came back strongly. And Heikki would probably have doubled his current score if he hadn’t been hit by misfortune - the Safety Car in Melbourne, the crash in Barcelona and the starting problem in Monaco, none of which were his fault."

"And in the two most recent races, Lewis had the pace to score a lot more than zero points. These first eight races have been hard fought and provided us with four different winners and four different overall leaders. It’s been fantastic sport. We’ve been able to win championships from this position in the past and we still believe we have every possibility of taking the title battle right to the wire."

What does the British Grand Prix mean for McLaren Mercedes?

"Silverstone is the first of two consecutive home races. Great Britain as well as Germany are enormously important markets for our title partner Vodafone and for Mercedes-Benz. The race in Silverstone is sold out, which we feel our team and particularly Lewis Hamilton have something to do with. I have great respect for the circuit and for the drivers’ performance at Silverstone. The layout is unique, only in Monza and Spa are the average speeds higher than at Silverstone."

"Of course, many of our colleagues at McLaren in Woking and Mercedes-Benz HPE in Brixworth, some with their relatives, will be there to keep their fingers crossed for the race team. All of them would certainly prefer a victory even more than a pay rise and everybody in the team works hard for this chance."

D.B. © CAPSIS International