Rosberg hoped for more than fifth
Date published : 13 Mar 2010 - 14:41:11
Nico Rosberg admitted to a little disappointment after qualifying fifth for the Bahrain season-opener but earned bragging rights by beating his legendary team-mate Michael Schumacher.Rosberg went into Q3 with high expectations after setting the pace in Friday practice, but Mercedes GP couldn't quite replicate that speed in low-fuel qualifying trim.The result left the younger of the team's German drivers with mixed feelings.To be honest, we were hoping for a bit more today although we were lacking the pace to challenge right at the front so I guess we should not be too disappointed, said Rosberg, who was 1.1s shy of Sebastian Vettel's pole time.It was so difficult out there with the tyres overheating. If you made a small mistake and got oversteer, then you lost a lot of grip for the next few corners.It's going to be very important to look after the tyres tomorrow in the race. Overall it's a good start for me and with a bit of luck, we should be able to challenge for a podium place tomorrow.Schumacher was 0.3s adrift of Rosberg in seventh, but felt that was a respectable performance in his first F1 qualifying session for three and a half years.I am satisfied with seventh place today having been away from Formula 1 for such a long time, he said.By coincidence, it's the same grid position that I had when I started my career at Spa in 1991.It was fun to work with my new team and I appreciate all their efforts to support me as I get back into the swing of things.The boys are really good and I feel that we've improved step by step over the weekend.I'm looking forward to the race and I expect even more to come.Team boss Ross Brawn said the balance of the W01 chassis had deteriorated as the temperatures rose in the afternoon.It was a reasonable qualifying session today although we hoped for more after this morning's practice, he said.The balance of the car suffered between practice and qualifying, possibly due to the increasing track temperatures, and we lost some pace as a result.Nico drove very well today in all sessions and Michael, taking part in his first qualifying session since 2006, is getting back into the rhythm as he gets more miles in the car.Make sure you don't miss out on taking part in our new live chat feature on itv.com/f1 during Sunday's grand prix
