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Nico Rosberg does not think Sebastian Vettel and Ferrari are ready to topple Mercedes in F1. The two top teams battled for the title this year, but ultimately Lewis Hamilton won the championship with two races to spare.
And outgoing world champion Rosberg told the German source T-Online: "I do not think Vettel will have a better chance next year. This year, the opportunity for him to win the championship was huge, but Mercedes as a whole team is just so strong.
"So I think the gap between them and Ferrari could even get bigger in the coming season. But let's see. Even Mercedes has made mistakes, and Sebastian has to hope for more of that and to be there at the right moment," the retired German said.
Sebastian Vettel himself says his biggest mistake during his failed 2017 title bid was Baku. His rival Lewis Hamilton wrapped up the championship two weeks ago in Mexico, and Ferrari's Vettel admits it was "very" disappointing.
But he told La Gazzetta dello Sport: "It's already time to turn the page: "There are still two races where we will think about 2018. And there is still the second place (battle with Valtteri Bottas) to defend and 50 points still available," he added.
After the disappointing championship defeat, Ferrari president Sergio Marchionne said some of the reason was car reliability, and another part was due to driver errors. Vettel, referring to when he controversially crashed into Lewis Hamilton, responded: "I was really wrong only in Baku. The rest of the season went well enough."
Grand Prix of Belgium
C. Sainz jr
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Replies (4)
Login to replyf1dave
Posts: 782
Who is this Rosberg guy, and why should anyone care what he thinks ?
calle.itw
Posts: 8,527
Because he know his stuff, unlike guys like Villeneuve? And Im pretty sure most of us agree with him, unfortunately. The reasons Ferrari could challenge them this year were that they had a lighter car with better aero than Mercedes. Get the Merc on a diet, 1-2 kg would be enough, and they'd have no chance. Furthermore, while Im all for McLaren's veto of the full sharkfin, Mercedes ran with a halfsharkfin this year, meaning they have an advantage for next year already on the chassis side. Im also a bit worried that Ferrari might've put too much focus on this season, whereas Mercedes always afforded to put aside some resources for 2018.
Danimal5981
Posts: 659
Mercedes driven cars including the works team are switching to shorter wheelbase cars, because that's where the Merc, Williams and Force India are vulnerable. But it's a new concept so it might be a stroke of genius in which case Williams and Force India will make a jump forward, or it might pan out completely wrong and we'll have Ferrari and Red Bull (and possibly McLaren) in a much better position. Interesting winter ahead.
calle.itw
Posts: 8,527
It does certainly look interesting, and I hope it will be. I think its safe to say that Honda and Renault will improve, the rest is completely up to chance. :)