SEPANG, Malaysia (Reuters) – Mercedes’ Michael Schumacher was only able to qualify 11th for today’s Malaysia Grand Prix as once again team mate Nico Rosberg outperformed him in a struggling car with rear wing problems.
Germany’s Schumacher, Formula One’s most successful driver with 91 grand prix wins, has continued to labour behind his compatriot and team mate Rosberg at Mercedes since he came back from retirement ahead of the 2010 season.
Yesterday, at an overcast Sepang Circuit where track temperatures reached 44 degrees, Schumacher was left frustrated as he failed to reach the final stage of qualifying again, matching his 11th place achieved in Australia a fortnight ago.
“We had some issues with the rear wing activation today and unfortunately that’s what compromised my last run in Q2,” Schumacher told reporters after missing out on the final 10-driver shootout by his team mate’s final flying lap at the end of the session.
“The car became difficult to drive, which is a real shame as it had been working very well during the earlier runs.”
Schumacher, 42, who has won three times at Sepang, spoke positively of the progress that the German team had made since both failed to finish in Australia but he was unable to demonstrate it like the younger Rosberg who qualified ninth.
“The performance was much better with the wing, so of course we had to use it and I would still say that we have made a step forw
ard thanks to the hard work from our guys,” the seven-time world champion said.
Rosberg, who claimed the team’s first podium finish here last year, was also hampered by issues with his wing.
“The team have made some good progress here and I had a decent balance up to Q2 today (yesterday). Unfortunately I lost that feeling in Q3, which combined with the rear wing issue, meant we weren’t able to get the performance out of the car which is frustrating,” he told reporters.
