Nico Rosberg was the first to spot Lewis Hamilton weakness that’s still hurting him at Ferrari

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Nico Rosberg was the first person to spot a weakness in Lewis Hamilton that is still hurting him at Ferrari. 

Back in 2016, childhood friends Rosberg and Hamilton became arch-rivals as they battled to become the Formula 1 world champion.

After a dramatic and tense fight, Rosberg came out on top, beating Hamilton to the title by just five points.

Following the season, Rosberg announced his retirement from F1, while Hamilton went on to win four more world championships.

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Nico Rosberg spotted ‘weakness’ in Lewis Hamilton during 2016 F1 title fight

In Sky Sports reporter Rachel Brookes’ new book, ‘F1 Racing Drive’, Rosberg explained how he was able to ‘exploit’ Hamilton’s weakness.

The German stated that if Hamilton endured a tough weekend, he could lose motivation and come across as very negative.

Brookes wrote: “F1 drivers are not above manipulating the press to suit their needs. In Nico’s case, he used the media to get into Lewis’ head in 2016.

“Explaining that while you try to perfect every area of your performance, you can also look for areas where you can expose your competition.

“He went on to say, become aware of the weaknesses of your rival, Lewis has the weakness that when he has a bad race or makes a mistake, he goes into a loss of motivation.

“Gives the impression of giving up, and you have a chance then, if you can manage to keep him there, it can endure for one, two or even three weekends.”

READ MORE: Lewis Hamilton’s retirement stance surfaces amid theory the Ferrari driver could quit at Silverstone

Is Lewis Hamilton’s ‘weakness’ still on show at Ferrari?

While Rosberg managed to spot Hamilton’s weakness back in 2016, it appears that the same issue could still be haunting the Brit.

During his tough debut season with Ferrari, Hamilton often cut a downbeat figure after a disappointing session.

After qualifying 12th for the Hungarian Grand Prix, Hamilton branded himself as ‘absolutely useless’ and suggested that Ferrari ‘need to change driver’.

The seven-time world champion’s mood did not change as the season went on and his struggles continued.

In November, during the Las Vegas Grand Prix weekend, Hamilton labelled his performance as ‘terrible’ and claimed that no matter what he tries to do, it just ‘keeps getting worse’.

Eventually, Hamilton finished sixth in 2025, 86 points behind teammate Charles Leclerc.

In 2026, things are looking rosier for Hamilton as the SF-26 is proving to be a much more comfortable car to handle, and the 41-year-old has finally secured his first podium for Ferrari, which came at the Chinese Grand Prix.

But after a tough weekend in Miami, Hamilton stated that he will be taking on a new approach, as his current preparations are ‘not helping’.

Next week, the 2026 F1 season will resume with the Canadian Grand Prix, a place where Hamilton has previously done well at.

It will be a critical race for the Brit as he looks to show the world that he is still more than capable of competing at the top of the sport.