Rosberg: “Hamilton plays an important role in Mercedes’ poor results”
The 2016 world champion, Nico Rosberg, did not hold back with his former teammate Lewis Hamilton. According to the German, the Brit bears a large part of the responsibility for Mercedes' poor results and suffers in comparison to his teammate George Russell.
It’s difficult to recognize Lewis Hamilton, the seven-time world champion, at the start of the 2022 season. The British driver, who came so close to winning an eighth title last December, is struggling this year. Currently only in seventh place in the standings, he is already 21 points behind his teammate George Russell and has only a four-point advantage over his closest pursuer… Valtteri Bottas.
Third in Bahrain in the opening race, Hamilton didn’t confirm that he could be the party pooper in the anticipated battle between Red Bull and Ferrari, as the Mercedes W13 is still a step below in terms of performance. In Jeddah, he had a disastrous qualifying (eliminated in Q3 for the first time since 2017) and couldn’t make up for lost ground in the race (10th).
In Melbourne, the Silver Arrows were better and the British driver finished in fourth place, just behind Russell who secured his first podium with Mercedes. But at Imola, Lewis Hamilton experienced a setback, only managing a thirteenth place in qualifying, behind his eleventh-place teammate. Even losing a position in the sprint, the British driver started only fourteenth on the grid.
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In the race, Hamilton didn’t show much to make a comeback and he remained stuck behind Gasly and Albon for most of the Grand Prix, although he was certainly not helped by the conditions that made overtaking difficult. Ultimately finishing thirteenth at the checkered flag, the performance of the seven-time champion contrasted with that of Russell, who had a great race from eleventh place to finish fourth. Hamilton’s former teammate and fierce rival, Nico Rosberg, praised Russell’s performance and didn’t hold back on criticizing his former friend.
« [Russell] was P4, in the same car. Lewis certainly played a big role in the poor result this weekend. Russell achieved P4 after a brilliant weekend, so there was just more to extract from this car. Toto is obviously trying to motivate him again. », attacks Rosberg.
For him, Hamilton’s motivation will be a crucial element in the rest of the Mercedes season. It is so important that Lewis maintains this motivation throughout the season. It is important for the whole team. It’s quite easy for him to lose that now in this situation, explains the 2016 world champion.
