Nico Rosberg settled for second place at Interlagos
The still leader of the drivers' championship was happy to have pocketed second place on Sunday in Brazil. But his lead was cut by a further seven points...
Nico Rosberg could not prevent the victory of his main title rival. While a win would have allowed him to clinch the crown at Interlagos, the driver who has won nine times this season settled for a “mere” second place, driving the entire race behind Lewis Hamilton.
“I can live with this second place,” said the driver with the number 6 in the heat of the moment.
« Lewis did a better job today, he deserves his victory. I was hoping for the win but I must be happy with this position. »
This edition was marked by numerous crashes, due to the rainy and precarious conditions. Even Nico Rosberg had his small mishap in the 47th lap, almost spinning out in the famous last climb leading to the final curve.
« The conditions were really treacherous. At the top of the climb, there was a lot of aquaplaning and many drivers went off the track.
I also had a close call when I nearly spun out, but fortunately it wasn’t at high speed, and I managed to regain control of the car!
LAP 47/71
Heart in mouth moment for ROS 😯
The points leader survives a half-spin coming out of the final corner!#BrazilGP 🇧🇷 #F1 pic.twitter.com/3SAMBB187r
— Formula 1 (@F1) 13 novembre 2016
Before that, Nico Rosberg had been challenged by Max Verstappen, who temporarily took away his second position after the first restart. A few laps later, he found the Dutch driver just ahead of him again after a small mistake on his part, still in that fateful last section:
« I arrived in the straight line and I saw it at 90 degrees very close to the wall, I said to myself “but what is this thing! »
In a race with multiple twists and turns marked by numerous incidents, Rosberg also had a word about the stewards, praising their good work.
« It was borderline but they were right. They made a good judgment of the situation: we were on a very precarious line! »
Fortunately, the failed tire strategy of Red Bull allowed him to reclaim his position. The German driver still wanted to commend Max Verstappen, who climbed to third at the end of the race after a beautiful series of overtakes.
« Max also did a good job. We knew that Red Bull would be very strong in the rain, but he drove a superb race.
Thank you very much to my team for choosing the right strategy and leaving me out with the rain tires.
After this spectacular Grand Prix, it is now time to turn towards the grand finale of this 2016 season. Let’s remember that he also won in Abu Dhabi last year:
« Now, I look forward to Abu Dhabi, where I had good memories last year. I will go there for the victory!
With this second place in the bag, Nico Rosberg comes from quite a distance, especially considering Max Verstappen’s race pace. Very discreet, he was never able to challenge his teammate for the victory, confirming a level below Hamilton in the rain, especially in light of the Grand Prix partly or entirely held in wet conditions this season: Monaco, Silverstone, and thus Interlagos.
Each time, he was clearly outpaced by the triple world champion.
But what would he have gained by going all out? By conceding only seven points, with 367 points on the scoreboard, he keeps the advantage for the end. The scenario is quite simple: a place on the podium will be enough for him to claim his first title, regardless of Hamilton’s performance.
