“It is a bit more difficult internally at the moment. But it has happened in
the past as well in our sport.”
Hamilton has said that the pair are “colleagues” and “not friends”, while
Rosberg took a different tack. After the race the tension was almost
unbearable in the post-race press conference, as Rosberg said he could not
imagine Hamilton making comments describing his “different hunger” on
account of the German’s privileged upbringing.
Bosses at Mercedes will speak to the pair before the next race in Montreal,
and have also banned both drivers from manually adjusting their engine
settings to gain an advantage in the cockpit. The decision came after it
emerged Hamilton used such a tactic in Spain, as did Rosberg in Bahrain.
The rift has enlivened a season in which Mercedes have been utterly dominant,
winning every single race and scoring five consecutive one-two finishes. The
team are confident they can handle the friction, but rivals in Formula One
are not so sure.
Eric Boullier, McLaren’s racing director, said the Brackley-based team face an
“impossible” task controlling the pair.
“It is impossible at this early stage of the season, so good luck to them,”
said Boullier.
“It is very early in the season so I don’t know what they have been doing. But
it is going to be tough for them going through the rest of the season.”
Rosberg’s win in Monte Carlo gave him a four point championship lead.