Nico Rosberg has tipped Mercedes’ rivals to have closed the gap during the three-week break since last month’s Chinese grand prix.<\/p>\n
The Brackley based team has utterly dominated the opening four ‘flyaway’ grands prix of the new turbo V6 era.<\/p>\n
But the start of the European season is traditionally the scene of vast improvements up and down the pitlane, as teams add the first major developments to their fledgling cars.<\/p>\n
“Until now we have had a big gap to our nearest competitors,” championship leader Rosberg is quoted by German-language Speed Week.<\/p>\n
“But three weeks have passed since China and for sure a lot has happened.\u00a0 So we will have to wait and see,” said the German ahead of this weekend’s Spanish grand prix.<\/p>\n
“I hope that we still have an advantage, but we will have to see how big it is.\u00a0 I am confident that we will still be the fastest.<\/p>\n
“But we are also aware that the competition has been working around the clock to catch up,” added Rosberg.<\/p>\n
At the same time, Barcelona is usually a key indicator of how the rest of a F1 season will look.<\/p>\n
Not only is the Circuit de Catalunya a frequent test venue for the sport, the nature of its layout is a good indicator of how a car will perform on most types of tracks.<\/p>\n
“A car that performs well in Barcelona should perform well everywhere,” agreed Paul Hembery, tyre supplier Pirelli’s F1 boss.<\/p>\n
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