Championship leader Nico Rosberg hopes to improve his form in Japan and stand on the top step of the podium in Suzuka.
“Suzuka is the next opportunity and I’d love to stand on top of the podium there.” said Rosberg. “It’s one of the truly great, classic race tracks, where all the legends have won, so it would be an honour to add my name to that list.”
Rosberg benefited from Lewis Hamilton’s engine failure, allowing him to extend the gap at the top of the Championship to 23 points. Five races remain in the season but Rosberg says he has not thought about the Championship.
“Of course, the result in Malaysia went in my favour in the title battle. That’s a fact and I cannot pretend otherwise. But I haven’t been thinking about the points situation all season and I’m not going to start now. I’m here to win races and that’s the aim every time.”
With only a week separating Malaysia and Japan, Rosberg will have to adjust to the different demands that Suzuka brings.
“I think I’ve shown this season that I’ve learned a lot from the past two years, so I’m confident I can get on top of this challenge. Hopefully it will be a great weekend and a good close battle for those awesome Japanese fans.”
Malaysia was disappointing for Mercedes but Rosberg was able to battle his way through the field, to secure an impressive podium finish.
“Sunday was not great for us, unfortunately. My race was almost over before it even began and I feel for Lewis, as I’ve been there myself and it sucks big time to have all those points taken away from you just like that.”
