Mercedes teammates Lewis Hamilton, Nico Rosberg battle for Formula One
Lewis will not sleep well tonight, he will think about it, says Mercedes non-executive chairman
ABU DHABI: (AFP) - Lewis Hamilton will use his experience in Formula One showdowns to tackle teammate Nico Rosberg in Sunday s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix season finale.
Rosberg kept his nerve to take pole position in the deciding race where double points are at stake. And he hopes his Mercedes partner will crack under pressure. But Hamilton still goes into the race and his quest for a second world title with a 17 point lead over Rosberg.
"I m not particularly disappointed," Hamilton said. "Of course you always want to be on pole, but, today - I had good pace throughout qualifying and especially over long runs.
"Q1 and Q2 were good, in Q3 I didn t really put a comfortable lap together, it just wasn t a great lap.” "Nico did a great job but we are still there for the first tomorrow. I am looking forwards; I will just drive the same as I always drive."
Hamilton, who secured his maiden drivers world championship with McLaren in 2008, added that he felt his previous championship showdowns had given him extra wisdom "I don t remember much from 2008, but it was a great season," said Hamilton. "This is different. I m much older and hopefully wiser.
"I ve learnt a lot on the way. It s different racing your team-mate compared to someone from another team." "Hamilton has been in last race title deciders in 2007, 2008 and 2010, triumphing once.” "He added that he was pleased still to be "there for the fight" after qualifying second behind Rosberg in the final seconds of at the Yas Marina circuit.
"Qualifying is an area that I will definitely try and improve next year," he added. "With it being the last race, we re all feeling pressure, but I don t think there was any impact on today."
Hamilton will not sleep well
Mercedes non-executive chairman Niki Lauda, a three-time world champion, said: "Lewis will not sleep well tonight, he will think about it. “But tomorrow is the race. Tomorrow, they both come in neutral. It s going to be a two- or three-stop race and anything can happen." "It s a pretty intense weekend," said Rosberg, who was Hamilton s team-mate as a teenager in their karting days when they were close friends. "I m not sure how well I ll sleep, but I m sure I ll get the hours that I need.
"It s still a race I want to win. I have to go for that to have a chance. It s going to be exciting and I m sure it will be a good battle with Lewis -- as always. "Anything can happen in racing." Rosberg added that he still believes Hamilton could be vulnerable to pressure. "Of course, pressure is one of the hopes I have," said the 29-year-old German son of 1982 champion and original flying Finn Keke Rosberg.
Rosberg ended a run of five Hamilton wins at the previous race in Brazil after Hamilton made an error under pressure in pursuit on worn tyres. If Lewis feels the pressure and makes a mistake as a result, like today, and a bit like Brazil, that is the opportunity I am looking for. "I pushed flat out all the time to keep the level extremely high, that is what I do, and I ll try to go for the win and keep the pressure on."
"Rosberg has converted only three of his pole positions into victories this season and admitted that beating Hamilton to pole was not too significant. "Of course, qualifying was my strength this year, but that is only half of it," he said.
"Sunday is what counts and that is where I have looked to improve recently, like Interlagos, where I made the step -- and that is what I need to do tomorrow."
