United States GP: Rosberg too conservative in Austin?
Leading for 24 laps, Nico Rosberg couldn't resist Lewis Hamilton in the second stint and let 7 points slip away in the championship race. For him, it was his lack of pace during a few laps that caused him to lose the race, while Toto Wolff mentioned a too conservative approach.
Starting from pole, Nico Rosberg managed to build a three-second lead after the first pit stop. However, on the 24th of the 56 laps of the United States Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton outmaneuvered his teammate by braking very late at the first corner before going on to win.
“We haven’t spoken to Nico yet, but when it mattered, he was probably too conservative with the tires,” said Toto Wolff, the director of Mercedes AMG F1 to Sky Sports. “In the end, he was faster and caught up with Lewis, not enough, but he was much faster and I think it was really a matter of over-managing the tires.”
On the German side, precisely, the perspective is quite different: « Very simply, I didn’t find my rhythm quickly enough; it took a long time. At the moment of overtaking, I knew there was a chance he would make the move. I tried to defend halfway, Lewis did a good job, and that’s it. 5 to 10 laps later, I started to feel good, but unfortunately, it was too late. »
After the last stop, Rosberg gained ground on his teammate: « It was the moment when I started to feel more comfortable. I never backed down, I was fully determined to put pressure on Lewis all along and I tried to get closer, but it just wasn’t possible today, » he admitted to Autosport.
Despite the 24-point gap separating the two men with two races to go, Nico Rosberg is still in the running for the title and will be until the last lap of the last race. Indeed, with the Brazilian Grand Prix and, especially, the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix with double points, the driver with number 6 can hope to collect a maximum of 75 points and win his first world crown. « The approach is the same for me: fully committed, all-out attack, try to be on pole and then win in Interlagos and that’s it. There are a lot of points to take and a lot of things can happen, as always. »
