Nico Rosberg has admitted he made his chicane cutting mistake because of the pressure he was under to up his pace to remain ahead of team-mate Lewis Hamilton.
The Briton was charging after Rosberg and closing in at an average of two tenths a lap. As Hamilton closed to within seven tenths, Rosberg locked a wheel and took the escape route at the first chicane which handed the lead to Hamilton.
Rosberg admitted he was disappointed with the error – one he actually made twice during the race.
“Lewis was just quick coming from behind so I needed to up my pace and as a result just made a mistake,” he explained. “It was very bad and that lost me the lead in the end, so I’m very disappointed from that point of view.
“Monza is one of the most difficult tracks for braking because of the low downforce and the highest speed of the year. It isn’t excuse, it is what it is. It is one of the challenges here and unfortunately I just got it wrong two times in the race.”
The result closes the gap between the pair to just 22 points with six races remaining. Rosberg isn’t too downbeat though as he still holds a substantial advantage.
“For me, of course I’m disappointed now right afterwards but it’s still second place and a lot of points so it’s not a complete disaster. I have to look at reality. There is worse than that, I only lost seven points to Lewis.”
