Rosberg: In Bahrain I was in I don’t care mode

Nico Rosberg says he has changed tack after complaining about teammate Lewis Hamilton’s driving in the recent Chinese Grand Prix, as he went into an aggressive I don’t care mode.

The German had accused his Mercedes teammate of driving too slowly and compromising his strategy whilst leading the Shanghai race.

But a week later in Bahrain, Rosberg appeared to have changed tack by driving a notably aggressive race, including a daring move on Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel.

“It was very close, but I took a chance,” said the 29-year-old, who also overtook Vettel in the championship standings after Bahrain and now stands 27 points behind only Hamilton.

Rosberg was referring to when he passed Vettel at the first corner, despite the fact that the sister silver car driven by Hamilton was not far ahead of the battle.

“I was not sure if Lewis was really far enough ahead of me, but this time I didn’t care,” Rosberg told Auto Bild.

Rosberg’s more aggressive driving in Bahrain was hailed by Mercedes chiefs, amid the wider perception that he is the ‘thinker’ in the team versus Hamilton’s killer instinct.

And, referring to his championship fight with Hamilton and his lauded racing in Bahrain, Rosberg insists: “Nothing is lost yet. Perhaps I just need to think less in the future.”