Nico Rosberg ‘locked himself in a hotel room’ after Lewis Hamilton rivalry boiled over

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Lewis Hamilton’s former team-mate Nico Rosberg has opened up about his partnership alongside the seven-time world champion, admitting he once “locked himself in a hotel’ after some ‘painful’ experiences at Mercedes.

Rosberg and Hamilton had a heated partnership at the Silver Arrows, yet despite the rivalry, the German remains the only driver to have ever beaten the Briton to the title whilst racing for the British-based German team.

But it took a few years of asking with Hamilton consistently outperforming Rosberg since his arrival to the team in 2013, snatching both the 2014 and 2015 titles for Mercedes before Rosberg managed to steal back a title in 2016.

But that season was the beginning of the end for the pair, as Rosberg promptly retired as soon as he clinched the title for Mercedes, yet it’s a rivalry that went down as one of the best in Formula One.

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Yet Rosberg explains being alongside one of the sport’s greats was a challenging time in his career.

“At the time it was like, ‘He’s probably too nice to be world champion against the ruthless Lewis,” Rosberg explained in an interview with Times Magazine. “And while it was frustrating to be asked about it, again and again – ‘Are you too nice?

“Do you think you need to get your elbows out a bit more?’

“I lost to Lewis three years in a row. And it was so painful, the last time.

“I locked myself in a hotel room. And I reminded myself that this is an opportunity to push, push, push like hell. It just enhanced my motivation, my focus.”

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As their rivalry intensified, Rosberg also admitted there was a clear divide among their fans, who would often make it clear which driver they backed.

“There were the two camps: the Nico camp and the Hamilton fans,” added Rosberg.

“And all the Hamilton fans were against me, of course,” he says. He describes how, at one race, he walked past a stand of fans and was jeered by a group of young girls.

“There were these four-year-old girls right in front of me with their dads, and they were booing me and giving me the thumbs down.

“Their dads had told them I was bad and that they needed to boo me.”

Despite pushing Hamilton throughout his career, Rosberg felt there has been a general belief the German lacked the skills to beat the Briton at Mercedes.

But the 36-year-old explained Hamilton had nothing to do with his decision to walk away from F1.

“I wanted to avoid going out as a has-been or someone who is not wanted anymore,” he added. “I mean, there was $100m on the table that I gave up on. I longed for a different kind of life. You don’t have flexibility when you’re racing. It was the best decision for my family – I didn’t think about the money for one second.”

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