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Mercedes would welcome BMW, Audi in F1

Mercedes would welcome BMW, Audi in F1

  • Published on 01 Dec 2014 12:13
  • comments 0
  • By: Rob Veenstra
Mercedes would like to go head-to-head in F1 with Germany's other two premium carmaker brands. That is the claim of Daimler CEO Dieter Zetsche, after Mercedes-Benz in 2014 finally succeeded in winning the drivers' and constructors' championships with a dominant display.

Zetsche told Germany's Sport Bild: "We share - and I'm talking about the premium business - about 80 per cent of the world market share with Audi and BMW. Of course," he added, "we greatly admire Red Bull and Ferrari and the other teams, nevertheless other manufacturer teams would be very much welcomed by us."

Mercedes bought and renamed the title-winning Brawn GP team - formerly Honda - after 2009 and initially targeted success with the F1 legend Michael Schumacher. Zetsche admitted: "We never imagined that success would be so difficult and take so long to achieve."

But he said that Mercedes is now fully committed to F1. "If we do something, we do it properly," said Zetsche. "Therefore, we have at no time asked the fundamental question, and nor do we have plans to change anything on that commitment now."

He admitted that the new electric open wheeler series Formula E is "worth considering" from Mercedes' point of view, but he ruled out Le Mans. "A whole year working for 24 hours, we do not consider to be a good cost-benefit radio," said Zetsche.

He also played down all the current talk about F1 being in crisis. "It is absurd to say formula one is dead," said the 61-year-old. "I cannot think of a more exciting season. All the criticism was led largely by those who were not successful," Zetsche added.

And he also blamed people like Bernie Ecclestone for talking F1 down in 2014. "Most definitely we have not sufficiently exploited the potential of formula one, because the official channels of communication have not been used in a professional way," said Zetsche. "We are more committed than ever in contributing to professionalise the sport in this regard. Better engaging younger fans is a central question," he added. (GMM)
F1 News Ferrari Mercedes Brawn GP Honda

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Date
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Bahrain
3 - Mar 5
Bahrain
Bahrain International Circuit
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Saudi Arabia
Jeddah Street Circuit
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Australia
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Azerbaijan
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Austria
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7 - Jul 9
United Kingdom
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21 - Jul 23
Hungary
Hungaroring
28 - Jul 30
Belgium
Spa-Francorchamps
25 - Aug 27
Netherlands
Circuit Zandvoort
1 - Sep 3
Italy
Monza
15 - Sep 17
Singapore
Marina Bay Street Circuit
22 - Sep 24
Japan
Circuit Suzuka
6 - Oct 8
Qatar
Losail International Circuit
20 - Oct 22
United States of America
Circuit of the Americas
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Mexico
Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez
3 - Nov 5
Brazil
Interlagos
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United States of America
Las Vegas Street Circuit
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Date
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Bahrain Bahrain International Circuit
3 - Mar 5
Bahrain Bahrain International Circuit
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Saudi Arabia Jeddah Street Circuit
31 - Apr 2
Australia Albert Park
28 - Apr 30
Azerbaijan Baku City Circuit
5 - May 7
United States of America Miami International Autodrome
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Italy Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari
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Monaco Monte Carlo
2 - Jun 4
Spain Circuit de Catalunya
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Canada Gilles Villeneuve
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Austria Red Bull Ring
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Hungary Hungaroring
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Netherlands Circuit Zandvoort
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Singapore Marina Bay Street Circuit
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Qatar Losail International Circuit
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United States of America Circuit of the Americas
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Mexico Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez
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Brazil Interlagos
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