Nico Rosberg explains why Lewis Hamilton taking '100% fault' at Qatar was a big win for George Russell

Former F1 driver Nico Rosberg feels Lewis Hamilton taking 100 percent blame for the Qatar GP crash was a big positive for George Russell.

The two Mercedes drivers collided with each other on the first lap of the main race at the first corner. It caused Hamilton to retire from the race and ruined Russell's race as well. However, the latter recovered quite a few positions to finish fourth.

Hamilton's former teammate Rosberg explained how it was good for Russell that his compatriot apologized and admitted his mistake as Russell himself is not doing too well in the 2023 F1 season, compared to the seven-time world champion.

Furthermore, Rosberg explained how, when he was racing alongside Hamilton, the latter rarely made mistakes when he was forced to admit his fault.

"It was a good one in Qatar for George because Lewis actually admitted [he was wrong]. So that was a big win for George in that sense, also internally, which is very rare because, in my time, Lewis never had 100 per cent fault, so he never actually had to admit in that way," he told Sky Sports.

Lastly, Nico Rosberg simply stated how an interesting dynamic is brewing at Mercedes between Lewis Hamilton and George Russell.

"So it's very, very rare for Lewis to be at 100 per cent fault at that, it usually never happens. It's to be watched. It's an interesting battle and dynamic opening out there," he added.

---

Lewis Hamilton and George Russell have been taking out time and helping Mercedes from their home

Mercedes technical officer James Allison recently revealed how Lewis Hamilton and George Russell have been taking out time during their holidays to work with the team and improve this year's and next year's cars.

Allison initially explained how teams get to meet drivers on race weekends, but during that, they are more focused on the on-track performance.

"The race weekends, you get your greatest access to the drivers because you're with each other for many hours. But it's also a very fractious environment to interact because the pressure of doing well at the circuit means that it's just slightly less objective than if you're doing it back at home," he told Motorsport.com.

Alisson went on to add how both Mercedes drivers have been making time while at home to discuss how the team could improve their cars.

"The drivers have been good enough to put aside time for us in a slightly cooler environment of home. That has proved useful; it's proved helpful for ranking the problems they have, for seeing the opportunities and just making sure that the things that we are working on are well aligned with what they're describing," he added.

Lewis Hamilton, George Russell, and Mercedes are as hungry as ever to bounce back in 2024 and take on the fight to Red Bull and Max Verstappen.