• Bahrain Grand Prix

Performance too biased towards qualifying - Rosberg

ESPN Staff
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Nico Rosberg came under pressure from behind right from the start © Getty Images
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Nico Rosberg admitted his quest for pole position came at the expense of race pace at the Bahrain Grand Prix .

Rosberg started on pole position but a four-stop strategy saw him drop to ninth by the chequered flag. Rosberg said rear tyre degradation had been the main issue and that Mercedes now had to work to make the car stronger over a race distance.

"It was a tough day in the office, and as nice as it was to start on pole that is not the way to do it," he said. "We focused on qualifying and not enough on the race. We were really struggling and I felt it straight away from the beginning onwards, it was not nice.

"It's just using the rear tyres too much, that's what I'm doing. I think the basis of the car is okay we just need to change the performance from qualifying to the race and I think we're there."

He said it had been a horrible feeling dropping down the order in the opening stints.

"I was going backwards and that realisation is not nice. I was out there and looking forward to a stunning race at the front so it's not nice."

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