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Former Formula 1 world champion Nico Rosberg believes Ferrari is failing to provide clear enough instructions to manage the tension between Lewis Hamilton and Charles Leclerc. Rosberg experienced a famously intense intra-team rivalry while racing alongside Hamilton at Mercedes for four years.
Lessons from Mercedes and Team Orders
Hamilton and Leclerc have experienced several on-track clashes and disagreements over team orders since becoming team-mates at Ferrari. Hamilton ended up in the gravel at the start of the race in Monza, while a first-lap battle in Mexico saw both drivers run off the track and allowed Max Verstappen to claim victory for Red Bull Racing.
Ferrari team principal Fred Vasseur has expressed clear frustration over the incidents. However, as reported by Motorsport.com, Rosberg argued that the Scuderia has not handled the situation effectively.
Reflecting on his time at Mercedes, Rosberg recalled the 2016 Monaco Grand Prix, where he allowed title rival Hamilton past to chase Daniel Ricciardo for the win. He explained on the Beyond The Grid podcast that Mercedes established proper guidelines to ensure healthier cooperation when race victories were at risk.
Rosberg stated that the instruction was to drive as a team rather than championship rivals if a win was slipping away. He noted that although letting Hamilton past in Monaco was extremely painful, it was manageable because the instructions had been laid out clearly beforehand.
The 2016 champion added that Ferrari is currently falling short in this area, which leads to avoidable arguments between their drivers.
Wheel-to-Wheel Battles and Mercedes’ Rules
While Mercedes established clear protocols for team orders, Rosberg admitted they did not manage wheel-to-wheel battles perfectly. He explained that teams must delve deeply into the specifics of wheel-to-wheel combat to remove ambiguity, noting that Mercedes even attempted to print their own rulebook for such scenarios.
Discounting instances where they merely pushed each other wide, Hamilton and Rosberg collided three times during their Mercedes tenure at the 2014 Belgian Grand Prix and the 2016 Spanish and Austrian Grands Prix, costing them victories twice.
To deter unnecessary crashes, Mercedes eventually introduced a financial penalty requiring both drivers to share the repair costs of any collision between the Silver Arrows. Rosberg revealed that this policy once cost him $360,000.
The Role of Niki Lauda in Managing Conflict
Rosberg credited former Mercedes non-executive chairman Niki Lauda with playing a vital role in maintaining harmony between the two fierce competitors.
He contrasted Lauda’s approach with that of former executive director Paddy Lowe, whom Rosberg described as risk-averse and inclined to take the path of least resistance rather than confronting post-incident issues head-on.
According to Rosberg, Lauda excelled as a mediator because both drivers respected him deeply. Lauda was skilled at guiding Hamilton and Rosberg to acknowledge their own mistakes, helping them find common ground and move forward together after clashes.
