Lewis Hamilton loses a bit of motivation here and there: Nico Rosberg

When it comes to beating Lewis Hamilton over a season in the same car, trust Nico Rosberg to drop a few valuable pearls of wisdom. As Max Verstappen looks to end Hamilton's domination of the drivers' championship, Rosberg commented on his own experience of going up against the mighty Brit and beating him in the same car five years ago.

Speaking to Squaremile, Rosberg outlined what worked for him in 2016:

“...As is the case with any human, there are also some weaknesses. First of all, it’s important to be at your absolute 110% for the whole season, because anything less you’re just not going to have a chance against him. And it’s also important to be consistent over the whole season, to not have any big, bad races, and deliver at every moment.”

“And then Lewis also has these periods where he loses a bit of motivation – he has these dips in form – and there it’s important to maximize those moments to keep him down for a bit longer. If all these ingredients come together you stand a chance, and that’s what happened in 2016.”

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Lewis Hamilton was put off by the Suzuka pole: Rosberg

When asked to single out a defining moment of the 2016 season, Rosberg picked the pole position he achieved at the Japanese Grand Prix.

Inferring it has to be something similar that Max Verstappen needs to do to beat Lewis Hamilton this season, Rosberg said:

“I think Lewis was really put off by that pole position and then he lost his way a bit that weekend. He messed up the start on Sunday and went back to eighth place and only finished third, while I had quite an easy win. That really gave me the championship lead, and ultimately that proved decisive.”

As the F1 circus heads to the Circuit of the Americas for the U.S. Grand Prix this weekend, just six points separate Verstappen and Hamilton with six races to go in the 2021 season.