Mercedes's Brawn eyeing Monaco GP repeat

Ross Brawn is hoping the unpredictability of Monaco will lead to another dream result on Sunday.

A year ago Brawn celebrated a momentous victory at a time when he was in charge of his own team, with Jenson Button leading the way around the streets of the principality.

It was one of the highlights of Brawn GP's double title-winning season, but a repeat for the man widely regarded as the most astute technical brain in the sport would appear to be a long shot.

Brawn is now in charge of Mercedes, but the German marque has failed so far to build on the momentum generated by the successes of last year.

Seven-time champion Michael Schumacher has struggled on his return to F1 after three years in retirement, although he achieved his best result of the season on Sunday with fourth in Spain.

Nico Rosberg had finished on the podium in the previous two races, but around Barcelona, the new-spec car was far from his liking and he lagged far behind in a woeful 13th.

Brawn, though, would like to think anything is possible as he said: "The Monaco Grand Prix is one of the most challenging race weekends of the year.

"But everyone revels in the special atmosphere, and as engineers we love the unique demands and extra pressure the street circuit generates. The drivers play their role at Monaco perhaps more so than at any other track.

"Precision, consistency, speed and control are essential, and with Michael and Nico, we are fortunate to have two drivers who excel here.

"Together with Mercedes-Benz, we achieved the dream result of a one-two finish last year.

"Whilst we are not at the pace of the frontrunners at the moment, at Monaco you just never know what can happen."

Despite an improvement in performance from Schumacher, the gap to Sunday's race-winning Red Bull driven by Mark Webber increased as the 41-year-old finished over a minute adrift.

Schumacher knows he and Mercedes will have to conjure up something special if he is to add to his five wins at the famous venue.

"We hope the characteristics of the street circuit suit our car better than in Spain last weekend," said Schumacher.

"On the other hand, we should be careful not to expect too much this time as we have seen in Barcelona there is still a lot of work ahead of us.

"So, other than having achieved my best result so far this season, I have taken with me a lot of motivation to work even harder with our engineers to improve the car further."