They signed every major designer and engineer they could last year. There can't be many left out there. Since then all they've done is gone backwards. The phrase "too many cooks" come to mind.
10:35pm to 12:25am. Ergh.
Doesn't look like they've gone backwards, the newer exhaust is clearly far superior. They've got two drivers, one with severe bad luck this year and the other under performing. The car is moving forward, but so is everyone else.
WE ultimately don't know whats going on behind the scenes, teams take time to work well together in any situation, a football team, a coding team, a design or engineering team as well. We also don't know who is focusing where, is 95% of Ferrari's work trying to clinch the title this year by focusing on this years car, or 50/50 with next years car, or 20/20/60 this year, next year, 2014 cars? Same goes for Merc, if you know your team needs time, and that they aren't going to pull out a miracle for the car this year, I'd be directing more of their overall time towards the 2014 car.
Frankly if Merc spent all their time on this years car, I don't think they'd beat an established Newey team, even if they were closer to Red Bull or Ferrari, I don't think Rossberg would have stood a chance against them and Schumi probably not either.
Everyone, me included, can guess all we like. ultimately the cars they have in 2014 will do the talking, I'm personally not expecting completely massive things from Merc in 2014, new engines, whoopdedoo. If they had a new engine miles better than everyone in 2009... but they didn't have a double diffuser and everyone else did, they'd have lost, best engine on the grid, a big gain, double diffuser, they'd have been owned in the corners anyway.
Engine is one of many parts, Merc like anyone else, need to get every part of the car right, or at least close enough, to let any engine difference matter. Great engine but RBR having a bunch of other advantages, great engine won't be enough, and of course that assumes that Merc will come up with the best engine.
Hamilton left Mclaren, because Mclaren can't be trusted to produce a winning team. Tactics, nope, team manager, nope, reliable car, seemingly not. Merc might not get any of that right either, the difference is Hamilton knows the current Mclaren team and knows they aren't good enough, he doesn't know the Merc current team, they could work out, they might not. If it doesn't work out, he'll move on again.
If a seat at Ferrari or Red Bull were open I don't think there is a chance he'd have gone Merc, but one of the best seats not being open doesn't mean staying at a team that constantly screws you is the best option. He's trying out Merc, if that fails, he can move on. I'd prefer to try my luck at Merc then jump to Ferrari/Red bull if a seat opens up than wait at Mclaren.
