Nico Rosberg and Danica Patrick had a disagreement live on air just prior to qualifying for the Canadian GP on Saturday. Both former race car drivers, who are appearing as analysts for the event on Sky Sports, seemed to have differing opinions about the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.
Danica Patrick claimed that the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve is not a very challenging track. She also shared her feeling that the Montreal circuit does not require an extremely complicated approach from the drivers. Former F1 world champion Nico Rosberg did not see eye to eye with her on this. Disagreeing with the former IndyCar driver’s analysis, Rosberg said:
“I have to disagree ever so slightly there, Danica. Montreal is one of the hardest tracks of the year, because there’s so many bumps and at every kerb you have to hit it so perfectly.” [via PlanetF1]
He continued by stressing the track’s technical demands:
“It’s a real driver’s track, which is why Lewis Hamilton has won all his records here, and even Max Verstappen has won all the last races, because the driver can really shine here.”
The difference between the pair’s analysis was stark. Patrick claimed that Canada was not complicated at all, while Rosberg labeled it as one of the hardest tracks on the whole F1 calendar. So who is in the right here? Is Danica Patrick wrong in her analysis, or did Nico Rosberg overreact?
Danica Patrick or Nico Rosberg, who is in the right?
Nico Rosberg started 206 races in his F1 career, out of which he won 23. The German also won the 2016 world championship, with Lewis Hamilton as his teammate. It is safe to say that Rosberg knows what he is talking about when it comes to F1.
Danica Patrick has also had a stellar racing career. She has broken multiple records during her time in IndyCar and NASCAR. She is the first ever woman to win an IndyCar race, and finish on the podium at the Indy 500. But the American has never raced in F1.
She has, however, raced at the Circuit Gilles Villeneuve multiple times during her time in NASCAR, but this was in completely different machinery to F1. Hence, Rosberg’s opinion about the difficulty of the Montreal track, holds more weight than Patrick’s.
Many drivers over the years, including Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen, have also highlighted the difficulties of the Montreal track. F1 drivers have often recognized the track to be tougher than usual, and one where the penalty of making a mistake is huge.
To her credit, Patrick accepted the pushback from Rosberg and clarified her point, saying:
“For sure, there’s a huge penalty for not being precise, and that’s hitting the wall, so I definitely agree there.”
Fans often praise Rosberg for his analysis being informative but raw. His comments were also direct but not hostile, though they clearly dismissed Patrick’s assessment. Hence Rosberg’s disagreement cannot be branded as an overreaction either.
