Nico, o colunista
Vamos ler!!!
Firstly, let me begin by saying, it is great to be a columnist for MailOnline and I look forward to you joining me on my trip around the Formula One world this season. I hope you enjoy my work, and please give me some feedback on Twitter.
Ahead of the first race, and even before we got to pre-season testing, the main thing I had to do was lose weight over the winter because the cars are so much on the limit this year. I had to go through a strict diet programme.
It is tough because it is easy to just diet, but if I need to diet and become really fit through physical training, it becomes quite difficult. I haven't had any sugar for months now, and at first it was tough.
New weight regulations and technology
The new weight regulation is just one in a huge overhaul of the sport's rules this season, and there are two sides to the new regulations. It is good the sport has gone to more efficient energy, for example, as it is important to follow the direction of the rest of the world.
At the same time however, the cars are slower, which I don't like. As a driver you want to go faster and faster, but this year we are slower and that is a bit of a pity.
To drive, they are quite similar to previous years but what is different is the new technology. There is so much that we have had to get used to and it is complicated. The whole steering wheel, for instance, is custom made.
I now have a smart phone display on the steering wheel and I was also able to put the buttons wherever I wanted, so that was already a complicated process in itself. The team helped me a lot, but it has been time consuming to get it right.
Reliability issues
I am hoping that we will be towards the front in Melbourne, but where we are going to be exactly, I don't know. We must remember that reliability is on the edge for every team at the moment. It is going to be so tough just to get to the end of the race.
The team have worked incredibly hard. They have been pulling all-nighters since the last test in Bahrain trying to fix the final bits and pieces. I was in the factory last week, and on Thursday, at 9.30 in the evening, they were still flat out.
That was in the engine department where they were still trying to produce some extra bits because the next morning the engines had to fly out to Australia. They spent the night building them so they could make the deadline, so it is really, really on the edge.
A lot of cars won't make it to the end of the race and there are going to be a lot of reliability problems. If it is too much it won't be good for the sport but it shows that everyone is on the limit and that is part of Formula One - it always has been.
Our chances of success
At the first pre-season test in Jerez you couldn't really determine anything but in Bahrain you got a better gauge of where everyone was, and it became clear that we had a good car and were in a decent position.
It is early days, and we have to remember last year that we were in a strong position after testing but in the races we weren't as good as we hoped. We need to be cautious, but we are optimistic.
Red Bull team principal Christian Horner has said we will win the opening race by two laps, but I would will be very careful about Christian's assessment. Never underestimate Red Bull or the others.
On Red Bull, it is always a surprise if they don't waltz away with the victory because we have become so used to that from previous years. It is too early to say that is not going to happen here because they have surprised everybody before so we have to be very careful. Red Bull is Red Bull, and they are the benchmark and the best team, so we assume that they are going to be the benchmark again, but if not, then great. However, we are focused on ourselves and making sure we get the best out of what we have. What others do is not really in our control.
I know I start among the title favourites but do I feel extra pressure this season? No, not really. The opposite, in fact. The whole experience becomes even more enjoyable if the car is quick, and then the hope of having real success and sharing that with the team.
My competition with team-mate Lewis Hamilton
Back at the 1998 Australian Grand Prix, McLaren drivers Mika Hakkinen and David Coulthard had a deal in place in whichever driver got to the opening corner first would be allowed to win the race, but I wouldn't like that, and I don't think the team would either, so we are going to try and avoid such measures.
Lewis Hamilton and I have always been competing, even for championships, as far back as our karting days, so it won't be an unusual situation if that happens this year, and I am confident we will be able to handle it. It will be tough at times - that is normal - but we just need to keep on working it out. We still get on well, so that is a good thing.
On my former Mercedes team-mate Michael Schumacher, I wish him a strong recovery after his skiing accident in December. I am hoping for the best and also wishing his family strength.
And finally...
I am a big Bayern Munich fan. Unfortunately I missed their match against Arsenal on Tuesday, but I was very pleased they went through. They are an amazing team at the moment.
It is so tough to win the Champions League because you also need a lot of luck. Skill wise they can do it, but they need the luck as well to win it for a second time.
Source: Daily Mail Online
Bacana, né? Gosto de colunas de pilotos. Ainda mais assim grandona e bem escritinha. Vamos ver se ele vai seguir com essa disposição toda para comentar tudo tim tim por tim tim.
By Lu
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