Nico Rosberg implies Lewis Hamilton is making excuses for poor Spa performance

Nico Rosberg Questions Whether Lewis Hamilton Is Using Ferrari Struggles at Spa as an Excuse

Few people in the Formula 1 paddock know Lewis Hamilton as well as Nico Rosberg, and the 2016 World Champion appeared unconvinced by some of the explanations his former teammate has offered following a difficult Sprint Qualifying session at the 2025 Belgian Grand Prix.

The history between Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg runs deep, tracing back to their early years in karting when they were close friends and competitive teammates. However, their relationship deteriorated rapidly during their time together at Mercedes, where the intense battle for supremacy within the dominant team turned a friendship into one of Formula 1’s most heated rivalries. After losing the World Championship to Hamilton in both 2014 and 2015, Rosberg gave everything in the 2016 season to beat him—succeeding but retiring just days after securing his one and only title. Hamilton went on to dominate the sport, winning four consecutive championships between 2017 and 2020.

In the years that followed, Mercedes’ performance gradually declined, prompting Lewis Hamilton to make the bold switch to Scuderia Ferrari for the 2025 Formula 1 season. However, the transition to Maranello has not yielded the results the seven-time World Champion had hoped for. After the first 12 rounds of the season, Hamilton has yet to reach the podium — a career-first in such a long stretch — and his form has raised questions as Ferrari continues to develop its SF-25 challenger.

Lewis Hamilton entered round 13 of the 2025 season, the Belgian Grand Prix, with only 103 points — marking his lowest points tally at this stage of a season since the introduction of the modern scoring system in 2010. Matters worsened on Saturday when he failed to score in the Sprint Race at Spa-Francorchamps after a spin during SQ1 left him 18th on the grid.

The costly error occurred at the Bus Stop Chicane during his final flying lap in Sprint Qualifying. Hamilton lost the rear end of his Ferrari under braking — an outcome that surprised many, especially considering that the Italian team had introduced a new rear suspension upgrade at Spa in hopes of improving performance. Ferrari subsequently launched an investigation into the incident, as no clear mechanical or procedural error was initially detected.

The Briton later attributed his spin to a new component fitted to his SF-25 — one that he said his teammate Charles Leclerc had already tested earlier in the season. According to Lewis Hamilton, the part in question had previously been used on Leclerc’s car during the Canadian Grand Prix weekend, where the Monegasque driver crashed in Free Practice 1 after locking up his front-right tyre into Turn 3.

Nico Rosberg, however, voiced his skepticism about Hamilton’s explanation while appearing on Sky Sports F1. He suggested that Hamilton’s remarks could be interpreted as a driver’s attempt to justify a costly mistake. Rosberg pointed out that in situations like this, it is not uncommon for drivers to offer what may sound like technical justifications or references to team issues — comments that could also serve as subtle excuses.

Nico Rosberg indicated that Hamilton might be linking his error at Spa to Leclerc’s earlier incident in Montreal in an attempt to deflect personal responsibility. He remarked that sometimes drivers “like to throw in a couple of excuses,” and speculated that Hamilton might be implying: “Charles had the issue before, and now I’ve experienced the same problem.”

While Hamilton has not elaborated on the precise nature of the new component, he maintained after the Sprint at Spa that this was his first time running the part, which Leclerc has already been using for several races. He stated that during his first session using it, the car felt noticeably different under braking. Hamilton noted that despite braking at the same point as he had during free practice, a slight increase in pedal pressure caused the rear tyres to lock — ultimately resulting in his spin.

However, the comparison between Hamilton’s spin and Charles Leclerc’s crash is not a perfect match. Leclerc’s incident in Montreal involved a front-right lock-up, while Hamilton’s error at Spa was a result of rear axle instability. This key difference raises further doubts about whether the two events can be genuinely linked, as Hamilton suggested.

Despite the introduction of new upgrades and ongoing efforts from Ferrari to adapt the SF-25 to both drivers’ preferences, the lack of consistent results continues to frustrate Hamilton’s maiden campaign in red. The British driver is still seeking answers, but critics such as Rosberg seem less convinced that his explanations fully account for the challenges he’s faced.

With Ferrari still searching for performance gains and with unpredictable weather conditions looming at Spa, Hamilton’s prospects remain uncertain. Whether or not his claims about the new component hold merit, what remains clear is that pressure continues to mount — both internally and externally — as the Scuderia aims to return to the front of the Formula 1 grid.