Rosberg: Mercedes "seriously off the pace" before qualifying
Nico Rosberg has expressed his relief at taking pole position for the Belgian Grand Prix, with the usually dominant Mercedes team having been "seriously off the pace" in practice.
Photo by: XPB Images
Rosberg was a strong favourite for pole after engine issues ruled teammate Lewis Hamilton out of contention, but the German was still made to fight for it, seeing off Max Verstappen and Kimi Raikkonen by a tenth and a half in Q3.
"We had a difficult weekend up to now, especially this morning [in FP3] - we were seriously off the pace on one lap," said Rosberg.
"So, not so easy coming into qualifying, but we got the job done in the end. We made quite a few changes to the car into qualifying and it came together, felt good, so I am pleased about that one."
Elaborating on the team's struggles prior to qualifying, Rosberg said: "We just weren't quick, it is hot and Pirelli pressures are high this weekend so [it's a] different world out there.
"We had to change things and adapt. Even this morning in FP3 we were quite a bit off the pace still."
The German, who is still chasing his first victory at Spa-Francorchamps, insisted that he will not expect a straightforward romp to victory in tomorrow's race.
"It is going to be a very challenging race, tyres are extremely difficult out there this weekend," he said.
"I think we will see a bit of everything, and with Max on supersoft and Kimi on soft, there will be a whole load of things going on - so definitely won't be an easy one."
Be part of Motorsport community
Join the conversationShare Or Save This Story
WTCR's April opener cancelled due to coronavirus
Australian GP issues update on nine F1 paddock coronavirus tests
The harsh realities of being an F1 outcast
Rosberg and Vettel F1 comebacks not an option for Mercedes
How the 'fastest woman in the world' has been defying the odds in Extreme E
How Rosberg helped Hamilton match Fangio
Hamilton needs talk with Wolff to prepare Ferrari F1 move
F1 Chinese GP: How to watch, ESPN Formula 1 TV times in USA
The F1 breakthroughs Mercedes made in Japan – and what's next
Porsche lodges appeal over da Costa's Misano Formula E disqualification
Ricky Taylor looking for redemption at Long Beach
How Senna’s early Pacific GP exit raised his Benetton suspicions
What could have been: When Villeneuve’s shock return thwarted an F1 rookie
What's been going wrong for Leclerc in F1's tiny margins qualifying game
What the Chinese GP's highlights reveal about its first F1 race for five years
The secrets of F1 turbocharging explained
Why Alpine’s rigorous training camp yields telling insights into its juniors
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
Top Comments