Nico Rosberg believed Lewis Hamilton was just too quick during qualifying for the Italian Grand Prix on Saturday after being forced to settle for second on the grid.
The Mercedes AMG PETRONAS driver believes he has had a positive weekend so far, but fell 0.478 seconds shy of pole position as team-mate Hamilton drove superbly, and Rosberg believes he was in no position to challenge in qualifying.
“I’ve had a good weekend so far, but Lewis produced some really good laps,” reflected Rosberg. “I couldn’t match him today.”
Despite the drop off in comparison to his team-mate on Saturday, Rosberg believes he will be stronger during Sunday’s race at the Autodromo Nazionale Monza, and is going to give it everything in order to attempt to close the gap in the championship battle with Hamilton.
“My race pace was really good in practice on Friday, so I’m very positive for tomorrow,” said Rosberg. “It’s a long race and you never know what can happen, I will give it everything.
“It’s clear our car is the quickest around the Monza track and I anticipate a great duel with Lewis again. The atmosphere is great and it would mean a lot to me if I were to win here.”
