Mercedes hoping for glory on home soil

By Karl King
May 5 2006

Thinking back to the 2005 European GP at the Nurburgring is something McLaren fans will be trying to forget. Kimi Raikkonen dominated the race until vibrations from a flat spotted tyre broke his suspension on the final lap after the team elected to keep him out.

The win was gone then, but the team are hoping for a repeat performance in 2006...except for the last-lap drama of course!

"We have always been fast at the Nurburgring and last year we held the lead until the last lap, when Kimi's suspension broke due to vibrations he encountered since the halfway point of the race because of a flat-spotted tyre," said Mercedes motorsport chief Norbert Haug. "To hold the same position through to the finish line would be the greatest reward for everybody in the team who had continuously worked hard since we began testing on 23rd January."