Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg have revealed the 2014 Mercedes - the W05

Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg have revealed the 2014 Mercedes - the W05 - in the Jerez pitlane ahead of the first pre-season test.

Hamilton will once again be partnered by boyhood friend Rosberg who, much to the delight of commentators around the world, will race with a black helmet this year making it easier to distinguish him from his team-mate. "I am massively excited ahead of getting in the car properly, after our short shakedown at Silverstone last Friday," the German said. "It's been a really intense period and I am just so looking forward to driving the car. This year will be much more complex with all the new technologies and I think it's great; it will help make the sport really contemporary. It's all focused on being more fuel efficient and using Hybrid energy, which for me is a good route and something that will make the racing even more interesting. "After finishing the Pirelli test last December in Bahrain, it's only been a month away from the car for me and that's a positive because it means I will be up and running straight away. We have three tests coming up and, as always, the track time will be very limited. So it's going to be a massive mission to get ready and reliable. I think we are on track but it's going to be so difficult for all the teams and I just feel lucky because I have such a great team behind me. I am confident we can get the job done. "I have completely changed my helmet design for the new season and, of course, I will have the number six on the nose of the car. My Dad wrote me an email in the winter saying it had been a lucky number for him when he became world champion, but that didn't convince me. Then my fiancée said it was her lucky number, too, so that got me thinking a bit more! And then I remembered that I won a championship with this number back in 2002. Hopefully that will be the key to an easy season!" This season marks the start of the post-Ross Brawn era at Mercedes with Paddy Lowe heading up the Technical side of the team. The former McLaren man, who effectively now shares the team boss role with commercial chief Toto Wolff, is excited about the challenge ahead. "For 2014 we have probably the greatest change in regulations in Formula 1 history and the start of a new era for our sport," the Executive Director (Technical) said. "From a technical and also a racing perspective, this is an incredibly exciting time for Formula 1 We are introducing technologies that are new not just to racing but to the wider automotive world as well. The headline is that of improved efficiency and the fact that we will be completing races with advanced Hybrid systems on just 100 kg of fuel sends a great message about the technology that Formula One can deliver. But it is also about the technology that Mercedes-Benz can develop compared with our competition, both for the chassis and the new Power Unit. "The whole team has done a fantastic job on the management of the project and its delivery. We have hit our milestones and hit our targets but, as ever, we will only begin to understand how successful we have been once we begin running in anger on track. "The new car is an elegant but aggressive design and, as is often the way, its beauty is much more than skin deep; the internal engineering of the car is extremely innovative and intelligent. Our team can be justifiably proud of its work so far - but none of us are under any illusions about the amount we still have to do before the first race in six weeks' time." The Sky Sports F1 Online team