Rosberg: Unexplainable Vettel in a dark moment

Nico Rosberg thinks Sebastian Vettel is currently in a “dark moment” of his Formula 1 career, as he witnessed young team-mate Charles Leclerc winning the Italian Grand Prix while he crawled to 13th.

After initially allowing Nico Hulkenberg to pass him early on at Monza, Vettel recovered to return to the group including the top three where he would attempt to split the two Mercedes drivers.

However, after a 360-degree spin he hastily attempted to return to the track in an unsafe manner, driving straight into the path of Lance Stroll who was forced to quickly dodge his Ferrari.

Vettel was given a 10-second stop/go penalty for the incident, from which he never really recovered.

It has been over a year since he won a race, and Sunday’s win for Leclerc put the Monegasque driver ahead of him in the 2019 championship rankings.

Former world champion Rosberg is at a loss to try and explain Vettel’s downward turn.

“Vettel is unexplainable for me, I can't explain it,” the former Mercedes driver told Sky Sports.

“He is a four-time world champion, he is one of the best guys out there and to make a mistake like that, on your own, just spinning the car like that in a corner is so strange.

“This must be so dark, this moment for him. His team-mate just became a Ferrari legend and taken the number one status in the team from him.”

Rosberg does believe, however, that the four-time world champion has the mental strength to bounce back from his rotten run of results.

“Vettel is one of those guys that has a lot of self-confidence,” he insisted.

“That's going to help him through this. And F1 is so short-lived, all it takes is one really powerful race so we shouldn't write him off because he can come back very quick.”

Related

More F1 news

Latest F1 news

Thought F1 was bad? INDYCAR drivers rage over crazy rules: 'If INDYCAR f*** up again, I'm penalised?'

• 1 hour ago

Daniel Ricciardo on life in the F1 paddock: 'That was not normal'

• 2 hours ago

Aston Martin 2026 flop ‘the biggest blunder in F1 history’ claims top Fernando Alonso insider

• 3 hours ago

Lewis Hamilton ditches Ferrari F1 simulator after setup fury

• Yesterday 20:27

F1 star slams McLaren strategy: 'They just drain rival teams'

• Yesterday 19:44

Max Verstappen produces sensational lap to warm up for iconic Nurburgring showdown

• Yesterday 18:55