Nico Rosberg has conceded he faces a difficult challenge to overhaul Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton in today’s Italian Grand Prix.
Rosberg, already 28 points behind Hamilton in the championship, will start only fourth on the grid after he was forced to defer to an old engine in qualifying.
The 30-year-old encountered a problem with his new-specification Mercedes power unit in final practice and, with it, his chances of reducing the deficit to Hamilton, who claimed his 11th pole from 12 races in Monza, were severely hampered.
Rosberg will also start behind Kimi Raikkonen and Sebastian Vettel, who collectively turned in Ferrari’s best qualifying result of the season in their own backyard.
“Ferrari for sure but Lewis will be more difficult,” said Rosberg when quizzed on his realistic prospects for Sunday’s race.
“I was only seven hundredths of a second away from Ferrari and I think that in the race they will not have the same modes as they did in qualifying, so I will definitely have a good chance.
“The engine is six races old so it has done a lot of mileage and engines degrade over time. It has definitely compromised my weekend and my race as well. My laps felt good and you can see that I lost a lot of time on the straights, so that makes it difficult.”
Rosberg will need luck on his side if he stands any chance of preventing Hamilton from becoming the first British driver to successfully defend his title.
But fortune was firmly against the German on Saturday, with Hamilton encountering no such problems with his new engine.
“It’s not great because I need to start closing the gap in terms of points,” Rosberg, who became a father for the first time this week, said.
“It’s not a good position to be in because my pace is also compromised tomorrow. Today was not great but it’s Saturday and it is Sunday that counts. So as long as I have the luck tomorrow then it will be fine.”
Vicki Hodges will be here from midday to bring you build up and live coverage