Mercedes' Norbert Haug says Formula 1 young driver test confusion is 'ridiculous'
| By Jonathan Noble and Jamie O'Leary |
Tuesday, July 3rd 2012, 12:50 GMT |
 Mercedes-Benz motorsport boss Norbert Haug has labelled the uncertain situation surrounding Formula 1's young driver test as 'ridiculous' - with a number of teams now unsure about where they will run.
F1 squads had failed to reach agreement on a single venue for the annual test, so a compromise deal was thrashed out for teams to choose either a post-British Grand Prix test at Silverstone or a run at the Yas Marina circuit after the Abu Dhabi GP.
However, those plans were thrown into disarray when Silverstone informed teams that it could not make the circuit available as planned because of its British GP contract with Formula One Management.
Frantic efforts to try and reshuffle the three-day test did not come off, and in the end just three outfits - Marussia, HRT and Williams – have now provisionally agreed to run at Silverstone for two days at the end of next week.
Other outfits are now considering joining the Abu Dhabi teams, or even waiting until a test at Jerez at the end of the season.
The uncertain situation has left Haug unhappy, because he does not understand why F1 teams spent so much time failing to agree on something that appeared to be so simple.
"We'd love to have had it at Silverstone, but now we obviously need to find an alternative solution," he told AUTOSPORT. "It's honestly quite ridiculous to waste time over issues like this."
When asked if he would like the matter sorted out soon, or if Mercedes could wait until the end of the season, he said: "I'm not sure. As soon as possible."
Click here for an analysis of the young driver test machinations in AUTOSPORT Plus
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