Nico Rosberg’s verdict on 2022 - it’s bad news for Lewis Hamilton

Hamilton suffered the worst season of his career, finishing sixth in the F1 standings and watching Max Verstappen rack up another title.

Now, ex-Mercedes teammate and 2016 champion Rosberg has delivered his verdict on the best drivers of the season…

6. Fernando Alonso

Rosberg said: “He was so unlucky. His car broke down so many times. He had some special drives, especially for his age.”

5. Lando Norris

Rosberg said: “Daniel Ricciardo is a great driver but Lando has been beating him so much in the past two years. 

“Lando did an incredible job. He beat Daniel fair and square."

4. Lewis Hamilton

Rosberg said: “He was very unlucky, super unlucky. So many things were bad luck. If not for that, he would have been on a par with George or even in front. 

“In the latter part of the season, he showed that he’s still at his very best. He was fighting for race wins. Next year, if the car is good, he can challenge for the championship.”

3. Charles Leclerc

Rosberg said: “He put up a great fight for the championship at the beginning. The team let him down a lot, and he made a couple of mistakes. He deserved P3.”

2. George Russell

Rosberg said: “They got the car so wrong at the beginning of the season but he finished in the top five of almost every race. To beat Hamilton over the course of a whole year? George was always fast.

“Lewis has special days where he is untouchable but, even then, George is right behind him.”

“This isn’t to say that Lewis didn’t have a good season. He was unlucky.”

1. Max Verstappen

Rosberg said: “Incredible, the level he is at. So fast, so consistent, so confident. He always came through, winning 15 races out of 2022, which is incredible.

“He doesn’t have the best percentage - that still goes to Michael Schumacher who won 13 out of 18.

“Almost sure, Verstappen will be a top five driver of all time with the likes of Ayrton Senna, Hamilton, Schumacher and Juan Manuel Fangio.”