Lewis Hamilton: Former F1 ace Nico Rosberg makes worrying prediction for Mercedes star That is according to Hamilton's former team-mate Nico Rosberg, against whom he scrapped for the World Drivers' Championship title in 2014, 2015 and 2016. is the man to beat going into the new F1 campaign with starts with March's Australian Grand Prix at Melbourne's Albert Park circuit. Toto Wolff and co. will be eager for the Brit and team-mate Valtteri Bottas to extend Mercedes' stint of superiority by claiming another title double this year.
That prospective achievement would make it six years since any of Mercedes' rivals had managed to come out on top in the drivers' or constructors' standings. Mercedes are having to comply with 's new regulations surrounding aerodynamics, weight of cars and fuel consumption. However, , who beat Hamilton to the drivers' title in 2016 before retiring, has made a worrying prediction based on those alterations.
And he believes the likes of Ferrari or Red Bull could capitalise on them to end Mercedes' years of glory. "This year, everything resets to zero because of the rule changes," Rosberg told German new agency DPA. "Perhaps Mercedes will no longer be the dominant force. I'm really looking forward to seeing that." Rosberg is not the only person who thinks F1's new regulations might have an impact on Mercedes. Team principal Wolff has also identified the changes as a threat to Hamilton's chances of cementing his legacy in F1. "It's a super challenge we have against some great teams," Wolff said.
"I hope we have done a good enough job. We are taking every team seriously. "With the shake-up in regulations, you can't predict. It might be the same as last year, with three teams running away and fighting it out between them, or some team which is not on the radar but has found a loophole. Let's see." Regardless of the supposed challenge to Mercedes' invincibility, Hamilton has plenty of reason to be confident ahead of the trip to Melbourne. The 34-year-old has twice come out on top at the Australian Grand Prix, in 2008 and 2015.
NEXT NEWS:Fernando Alonso: Will former F1 champion make McLaren return? Latest update.Alonso is officially retired from F1 having left the sport last November, at the end of what was another testing campaign with McLaren. He is now pursuing his goal of become only the second man after Graham Hill to secure motorsport's Triple Crown of race victories. , though, set tongues wagging last weekend when he revealed he had been back at McLaren's F1 headquarters in Woking.
That visit, coupled with the comments of McLaren chief Zak Brown at the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, led to speculation he could return to help his old team in testing. However, it has now been reported that sources close to the situation indicate that will not be the case. Spanish newspaper claim Alonso will not be donning a McLaren race suit at Barcelona's Circuit de Catalunya next week. And that means it will be up to Carlos Sainz and Lando Norris to get behind the wheel and test their new car out.
Spanish fans had been hoping to catch a glimpse of two-time champion Alonso on a potential return to his homeland. The will, though, get to see him in Barcelona after the second week of pre-season testing starts on February 26. Alonso will only test the new car then if something goes drastically wrong during the first week of trials. The decision for the 37-year-old to take a backseat role was reportedly made during his trip to the UK earlier this month.
And the fact it has been deemed he is not needed is a good sign as it suggests everything has gone well for McLaren in terms of development and in the simulator. On Thursday, McLaren unveiled the MCL35 car which Sainz and Norris will be racing in this season. Norris is eager to get going in what will be his debut campaign at motorsport's top level. "It's been my dream to get Formula 1 since I was a kid," Norris said.
"The MCL34 looks great and now I just want to drive it." Sainz and Norris will get the 2019 F1 season underway at the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne on March 17. Meanwhile, F1 expert Tony Jardine reckons Alonso will be ruing his decision to walk away from the sport last year. "It will always, always be in his mind because he'll be looking at Formula 1, and he's still at the top of his game, that's the sad thing, and he'll be thinking: 'I could have beaten him, I could have beaten him'," Jardine exclusively told Express Sport, when asked if Alonso will regret retiring.
"But he just needed a decent car, but wrong place, wrong time, wrong managerial decisions. "Those decisions go back to when he's in a plumb drive at McLaren. "He throws his toys out of the pram in 2007 because he thinks Hamilton is getting the better treatment and he decides to leave. "That's him and his manager, [Flavio] Briatore, and he goes back to Renault. "Renault were already on a downward slope, so he spent two years in the back water then. What a curious, stupid decision.
"Okay, gets into Ferrari, nearly, nearly [wins] but all those years of being the bridesmaid are very frustrating. "He showed his incredible talent because the Ferrari wasn't a great car but yeah, he could win with it. "And he is lost to Formula 1. It's sad that we don't still have him and he's just going to be a journeyman doing a bit of sports cars, Indy 500, whatever he fancies."
NEXT NEWS:F1 news: Kimi Raikkonen makes Valentino Rossi vow after Ferrari to Alfa Romeo move.Raikkonen is back where his F1 career started ahead of the 2019 season having rejoined Sauber, now racing as Alfa Romeo, from Ferrari. And he will be eager to make his mark over the course of the year, despite having a significantly weaker car than before at his disposal.
does have experience on his side though, with the new campaign set to be his 17th at motorsport's top level. The 39-year-old has now pointed to MotoGP great Rossi as an example of what he can achieve as a veteran racer. "I do not feel old, in fact on a mental level I feel younger than before," Raikkonen said. "I think when you look at Valentino, he also seems to enjoy what he does at 40. "We will continue to do our best and fight against the younger guys." Alfa Romeo, when still racing as Sauber, finished a lowly eighth in the constructors' standings in 2018.
Raikkonen, though, has revealed they are optimistic ahead of the season-opening. "I have found people with desire and enthusiasm, and a team with so much potential," Raikkonen said. "There is a lot of work to do to improve things but we hope to start well." Raikkonen has twice come out on top at Melbourne's Albert Park circuit, in 2007 and 2013. The first of those victories set the ball rolling for his World Drivers' Championship title win at Ferrari. Charles Leclerc, the man who has replaced Raikkonen at Ferrari, will be hoping to experience the same level of success.
2016 F1 champion Nico Rosberg believes Leclerc represents a totally different prospect for Sebastian Vettel than Raikkonen did. "Of course the pressure on [Vettel and Ferrari] is very big," Rosberg said. "They have now had two chances and last year in particular they didn't use them. "I am sure we will have a lot of fun, because [Leclerc] is really on the gas. "He is on a different level to Kimi, who was clearly number two. "Leclerc goes straight to number one and it will to exciting to see how Sebastian deals with it.".
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