Rosberg will be a ‘more formidable’ opponent in 2016 – Hill

Nico Rosberg will give Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton a much tougher time this year according to 1996 world champion Damon Hill.

Hill believes Rosberg's second-consecutive defeat to Hamilton will spark something inside the German, making him a "more formidable" opponent in 2016 – something Hill believes we saw at the end of last season when Rosberg took six-consecutive pole positions and won the final three races.

"I think he is a little bit more formidable now," Hill told Sky Sports. "I think after the Austin defeat (when Hamilton clinched the title), that day when he lost the championship and Lewis infamously tossed the cap and he tossed it straight back, there was a moment where Nico said 'okay, I am not going to take this anymore' and he did go ahead and win all the remaining races."

If Rosberg were to finally beat Hamilton and secure his first championship victory, he would become only the second son of a former F1 champion to do so – only Graham and Damon Hill have achieved such a feat – and Hill believes Rosberg could be the next member of that exclusive club.

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"He can go on ahead and become the other world champion's son to become a world champion himself," he added. "He probably knows time is running out and when you get all those ingredients together you maybe get a little bit of a hardening of the determination. Maybe he will be more determined this year and harder to beat."