Lewis Hamilton's Monaco Grand Prix victory felt like a turning point, Nico Rosberg still lacks that ruthless edge

Rosberg duly obliged when Mercedes asked him to let Hamilton through, but would the three-time world champion do the same?

Nico Rosberg allowed Lewis Hamilton to pass him when Mercedes asked him to move over (Getty)

Monaco has been kind to Nico Rosberg. The German has won there three times, he calls the Principality home along with many other Formula 1 cohorts and even when it’s all gone wrong as it did when he crashed coming out of the tunnel, he walked away unscathed after missing the terrifying barrier on the exit of the chicane that has sent the likes of Jenson Button and Sergio Perez to the Hospital Center Princesse Grace not far from the track.

Yet this year’s grand prix may be the undoing of his latest championship assault that, until this season, has always been overshadowed by Lewis Hamilton’s exploits in the sister Mercedes.

While Hamilton was left to celebrate a rather incredible victory with Justin Bieber, Rosberg was left to scratch his head and wonder what on earth had happened. He went into the race weekend with a 43-point lead over Hamilton, having won four of the five races so far this season, and qualified ahead of his arch rival to ensure that even if he was unable to do anything about the Red Bull of Daniel Ricciardo head of him, he would extend his lead providing he could keep Hamilton behind – something easily done when in Monaco.

And then it rained on Rosberg’s parade. Literally.

Rosberg’s lack of pace was obvious from the moment the safety car pulled in and the field went racing at the start of the eighth lap. Ricciardo bolted, maintained the gap through the first of four virtual safety car periods, and immediately stretched the lead further to 13 seconds by the 15th lap.

Mercedes knew they had problems, Rosberg knew he had problems and, most importantly, Hamilton knew he didn’t have any. That’s why when the call came from above for Rosberg to let his faster team-mate through, he duly obliged.

Now Rosberg should be commended for listening to the team orders. A glance down the pit lane demonstrated the uglier side of when the call comes on the radio, as the two Saubers of Felipe Nasr and Marcus Ericsson retired after coming together when Nasr refused to let his team-mate through and resulted in the Swede charging up the inside to take them both out of the grand prix.

In that one swift moment though where Hamilton flew past Rosberg on the run up the hill to Massenet, did Rosberg mentally concede the drivers’ championship for a third consecutive year?

To be a Formula 1 world champion, you need a ruthless edge as well as bucket-loads of talent behind the wheel. Hamilton has displayed this on many occasions, like Michael Schumacher and Ayrton Senna and many before him. But Rosberg, who saw his 43-point lead chopped down to 24 and less than a grand prix victory is worth, is yet to show he has that side of him to counteract the nice guy persona he exudes in the paddock.

Nico Rosberg held up Lewis Hamilton from the start after suffering a brake issue (Getty)

Rosberg is friendly, he’s approachable and on his day he can be unbeatable. But this is where Hamilton comes into a league of his own. Hamilton can win races on his off days too. When he was released by Rosberg, Hamilton closed the gap to Ricciardo slightly, but it was not enough to worry the Australian a great deal. All Red Bull needed to do was match Hamilton’s strategy and ensure a smooth race proceeded for Ricciardo. They failed on both counts and Hamilton won.

Take the 2014 Hungarian Grand Prix as another example. Hamilton was given the order to let Rosberg through given they were on different strategies, though Hamilton was fully aware that they were still racing each other. His reply? "I'm not slowing down for Nico. If he gets close enough to overtake, he can overtake me."

It’s this ruthless edge that has made Hamilton a three-time world champion, and led him to leave McLaren – the team that had built his career – to join Mercedes in the hunt for more success. McLaren have not won a title since Hamilton’s success in 2008.

Rosberg has come on leaps and bounds this season, as displayed by his brilliant start to the season that was as close to perfection as is possible, and it seems last season’s emphatic loss to Hamilton spurred him on to win the final three grand prixs of the year and carry the momentum on into 2016. But Sunday’s race showed he still has plenty to learn before he can realise his dream of emulating his 1982 world championship-winning father Keke. If the same happens again later this season, Rosberg owes himself to listen to the voice inside his head rather than the one in his ears.

A glance at Hamilton’s celebrations on the podium showed this win meant something to him, too. This is a man who is used to winning grand prixs, with Monaco representing the 44th time he has stood on the top step of the rostrum in his trophy-laden career. However, Hamilton hadn’t won on the streets of Monte Carlo since 2008, and given his motor racing hero in Senna triumphed a record six times there, it was obvious that this one meant something to Hamilton.

Rosberg still lacks the ruthless edge that Hamilton regularly displays (Getty)

He was congratulated by his team upon his arrival on the finish straight, yet once he removed his helmet he couldn’t help himself from sprinting back to the Mercedes mechanics and leaping on top of them – scenes reminiscent of his debut year in 2007 rather than that of his tenth year in the sport. This felt like a turning point, not just for Rosberg but for Hamilton too. After five races blighted with trouble both inside and out of his Mercedes, Hamilton remembers what it feels like to win, and with Canada up next – scene of his maiden victory in Formula 1 – don’t put it past him to be back on top by the time he returns to Silverstone for the British Grand Prix in July.