The first lap of the 2023 Qatar Grand Prix was a shady affair. It took back every Mercedes fan to a very fateful day in 2016. Lewis Hamilton and his then-teammate, Nico Rosberg, had collided in a heated battle for the lead at the 2016 Spanish Grand Prix. Unfortunately for Toto Wolff, fate seems to have gone a similar route once again. The Mercedes duo lined up in P2 and P3 alongside Max Verstappen on Pole. Fitted with soft compound tires and positioned on the cleaner side of the track, Hamilton was looking ready to pounce on his teammate. Russell had concerns about Hamilton having a better starting position for the race. And when the lights went out at the Lusail circuit, George Russell‘s nightmare came true.

While focusing on Max Verstappen into turn one, Russell did not see Lewis Hamilton sling-shotting around his outside. He was devastated when the pair collided. The Mercedes bearing the number 44 found a shallow grave in the gravel trap. Russell could miraculously conduct damage control and end up in fourth. Hamilton has had his fair share of competent teammates throughout his career. But none have been as fierce as Nico Rosberg and Fernando Alonso. Until George Russell came around.

Ex-Ferrari boss and Rosberg on Hamilton excuse

Even though Nico Rosberg blamed Hamilton for the incident, he thinks one fact could favor Hamilton’s side at the team’s debrief. He commented on the fact that Hamilton was almost level with Verstappen when he collided with his teammate. “That’s a small argument that he will be able to bring to the team in an internal discussion,” Rosberg believes Hamilton could bring up the conversation that the team perhaps should have asked Russell to stay behind Verstappen as Hamilton had the cleaner line with softer tires.

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Ex-Ferrari boss Peter Windsor shared similar sentiments on his YouTube channel when analyzing the 2023 Qatar Grand Prix. “This was not George’s fault, which I suppose is my way of saying it’s Lewis’s fault.” The award-winning journalist’s thoughts reflected that of Rosberg. Even though he is known to be a supporter of Hamilton, he could not fault the young gun for the veteran’s mistake.

“It comes back, right back to the choice of George Russell as the other driver in the Mercedes.” He also shares the sentiment that the pressure accompanying a driver such as George Russell, who possesses a strong desire to triumph and dominate in Formula 1, is not conducive to Hamilton’s performance.

Bigger Person Lewis Hamilton Reveals Reason for First Lap Chaos With George Russell

Is Lewis Hamilton cracking under pressure?

The young Brit is piling the pressure on his veteran teammate. Matching or outright beating the seven-time World Champion on numerous occasions in 2023. Their qualifying performances are almost level, with George Russell losing out by 1 round. On the other hand, Lewis had better luck and performance during the earlier races. And subsequently trumps Russell by quite a margin. However, Russell seems to be in form lately, ready to win at any cost.

Nico Rosberg is no stranger to close calls with Lewis Hamilton. The 2016 World Champion was quoted by Crash.net in an interview with Sky Sports F1. “This is going to be interesting to analyze obviously, Lewis has the soft tires so he just tries to go around the outside but it’s three people going into turn one.” Rosberg acknowledged that Hamilton had the right idea to try to go for an early overtake around the outside. The soft tires would be faster than the mediums. They would also be immensely useful if he could utilize them early on.

“It was 100% Lewis’ error there, it’s a slight misjudgment, it’s not a big misjudgment, (he) doesn’t leave quite enough space for George there, so it’s all on Lewis.” The former Mercedes champion was straight to the point, blaming Hamilton for the incident completely. Rosberg’s verdict seems to be echoed by his teammate from 2016, “He already admitted to (it) and kind of took responsibility for it.” Nico Rosberg certainly has the opinion that Russell had no hand to play in the clash. Hamilton decided to risk a move into the first turn. A miscalculation of mere inches proved very costly to him. While Russell got away with minor damage.

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With tensions rising at the Mercedes’ garage. It remains a matter of time before the British duo collides once again. Who will succumb to the intense rivalry in the closing stages of the 2023 season? It will be interesting to see if it is George Russell or Lewis Hamilton.