Hamilton has had the edge all year on Rosberg
The war of words between Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton is rumbling on as they arrive in the Middle East for the Bahrain Grand Prix.
The renewed spat within the Mercedes team began following Sunday’s race in Shanghai where Rosberg accused his world champion team-mate of deliberately slowing in the second stint, allowing the Ferrari of Sebastian Vettel to close in on the German.
The claim met with a largely bemused reaction as most believed it was Rosberg simply finding something to complain about as he continues to fail in his attempts to beat Hamilton in 2015, something he has yet to do.
Leaving China it seemed Rosberg had wanted to put his outburst behind him saying it was in the past, however, Hamilton has been less willing to let the subject drop saying Rosberg had not tried hard enough in his effort to beat him in the race and was happy to finish second.
In the latest back and forth, Rosberg has hit back again describing the 30-year-old’s driving as “irrelevant” in a statement that seemed to suggest there could be a split emerging in the Brackley based team.
“We are starting from scratch again. Lewis can drive as he wants – it’s up to him. It’s is completely irrelevant to me,” Rosberg was quoted by the Mirror newspaper.
“I just have to try again to make a comeback and go on a run like I did last year.
“I admit, when I sat next to him on the podium at the press conference, I was p*****d [off],” he added.
“Between Lewis and I sometimes it is going well and sometimes less good, now we’re in a difficult situation again but I see no reason to discuss what happened.
“There will be no big change in our relationship.”
The renewed tension between the two Mercedes drivers comes at a time when the dominance the team enjoyed in 2014 and in the opening race in Australia has come under threat from the re-emergence of Ferrari.
Indeed with Vettel claiming an unlikely victory in Malaysia at the end of last month murmurs began as to whether Mercedes may opt to impose team orders to stave off an increasing challenge from the two Prancing Horse’s.
But the likelihood of any such intervention by team bosses Paddy Lowe and Toto Wolff could well now be met with stiff resistance or ignored altogether by Rosberg as he looks to right what he feels was the unsportsmanlike actions of Hamilton in Shanghai.
The more selfish attitude the second generation driver is showing could well be the final asset that he needs if he wants to make that step up from a good driver to one who can win world titles because as intelligent as he is, brains will only get you so far going up against a driver with the stature of Hamilton.
What the tension also does is come at a time when the Briton is still a signature away from signing a new contract with Mercedes for after 2015.
While it is perhaps surprising to see Hamilton, who really has had Rosberg in his pocket in the first three races, actually get drawn into a spat with his team-mate, if anything more long-term was to come out of the Shanghai slanging match, particularly if a repeat of the events of Spa last year or anything along those lines was to happen, given Nico is signed on at Mercedes for another two years after this, is that something Lewis would want to put up with?
But in the shorter term what it will also do, is potentially take Mercedes off their game in terms of focusing solely on combating Ferrari. With harmony at Maranello seemingly the highest it has been in several years that will only benefit the Scuderia in closing the gap to the Silver Arrows if they have to start watching what goes on within rather than the threat from the outside.
It’s almost incredible that this has come approaching the venue of one of the greatest battles between Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg last year, under the lights at Sakhir. Heading into this weekend, a more determined Rosberg is perhaps the perfect ingredient to make the 2015 edition of the Bahrain Grand Prix as intriguing as it was 12 months ago, so while for Mercedes it is a headache they could certainly do without, for the rest of us we say long may it continue!
Images Courtesy of Mercedes AMG F1 Team
