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Hamilton and Rosberg truce won't last in 2015 - Wolff

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Mercedes boss Toto Wolff says it is only normal that Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg resume a fierce rivalry when the 2015 season gets underway in March.

Hamilton came out on top in a bitter battle between the Mercedes team-mates this year, but the pair appeared to end the season on good terms as Rosberg publicly congratulated his rival in Abu Dhabi. Wolff said the intra-team rivalry would cool off over the winter, but is expecting for it to get just as heated next year when the racing resumes.

"It will reset a little bit over the winter and at the beginning of the season before it gets competitive," he said. "I think it is very clear that if your team-mate - the one in the same car - is your biggest enemy then it gets tense. I have no doubt that we will have similar situations and challenges between the two next year again. Anything else wouldn't be normal.

"It's just that we must maintain it on the current level of professionalism and respect. You saw after the race [in Abu Dhabi] that they respect each other, and with all the emotions that come with a bad day in the office and a good day in the office. I think it's perfectly acceptable."

This season the relationship hit its peak at the Belgian Grand Prix when Rosberg crashed into Hamilton while attempting to pass his team-mate for the lead. After sitting his drivers down and issuing a clear warning, Wolff said he was happy with his dirvers' conduct until the end of the year.

"For me that was the decisive weekend of the year. Everything we discussed and wrote down was theory and after that weekend we needed to make sure that this is not getting out of control for the team.

"What we did is consider the options and I think coming out of Spa, after our two drivers hit each other, we took seven victories in a row and five one-twos which is satisfying. It seems that what we did was okay."

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