01/07/2015
NEWS STORY
It's great to be home. Not just to the Manor Marussia F1 Team's home track of Silverstone, quite literally on the doorstep of its temporary headquarters at the circuit's Innovation Centre, but also to the birthplace of the Formula One World Championship, created here in 1950.
The British Grand Prix always has a fantastic sense of occasion, topped and tailed by a host of great British sporting events. The crowds are among some of the most passionate and exuberant on the F1 calendar, transforming the sweeping landscape of what was once a World War II airfield into packed grandstands full of cheering fans and a vast sea of Union Jack flags.
This race also affords a rare opportunity for the wider Manor Marussia F1 Team members to share in the occasion and see the cars and drivers performing right in front of them.
Will Stevens: "Silverstone is without doubt the highlight of my debut season and I can't wait to get the weekend started. It's a busy one, for me and the team, but this is a real opportunity to reward the support of the great British fans, so I'm going to savour every minute.
"As a racing driver, you never need an extra incentive to do well in a Grand Prix, but you do get that at Silverstone as a British driver. It's such a great and historic venue and the scene of some fantastic races in the past 65 years, you can't help but feel that you're racing somewhere really special. The sight of all those Union Jacks is fantastic and it does make an already fast and exhilarating lap even more enjoyable."
Roberto Merhi: "It's hard to believe we're almost at the middle of my first season in Formula 1, but I'm really pleased with how things are going. I feel like I've made some pretty big steps at every race and hopefully this weekend will be another good one for me and the whole team. It's shaping up to be a very busy home race for us, with lots of partner activity and opportunities to meet the team's home crowd.
"Silverstone is a great track and I love driving here. It's really fast and flowing and pretty interesting from a technical point of view. We have some new developments for this weekend so I'm looking forward to seeing what they can bring in terms of our performance. I hope we will see both cars take the chequered flag on Sunday and have a fun time until then."
John Booth, Team Principal: "Being in our own backyard whilst doing what we love is a real treat for everyone in the Team. This year we really are on home turf as our temporary headquarters is right next to the circuit entrance. It also makes a very pleasant change for most of the race team to be able to spend the weekend at home in their own beds.
"The Circuit has a magnificent history, but the Silverstone of today has a fantastic festival atmosphere that we all enjoy. We know we can count on a very warm reception from the British fans, who have always been so supportive of our team and drivers. It looks like we can also count on some very warm weather, which is great news for everyone in the grandstands.
"It's true that a home crowd always provides an extra boost, and to add to that we have a new bodywork package for this race, which is the product of a lot of hard work over the past few months to help develop our current car and ensure we continue to reduce the gap to the teams ahead. All in all, we're looking forward to an exciting weekend and hopefully another Silverstone classic."