Nico Rosberg believes Lewis Hamilton cannot retire from the "horrible situation" at Ferrari, as it would be a "loss of face" for the seven-time F1 drivers' champion.
The German feels his "suffering" former Mercedes team-mate must carry on, despite persistent calls for him to walk away after 19 seasons.
Next year is the final campaign of his initial Ferrari contract, and it is unknown whether he will sign or be offered a new deal.
The growing expectation is that if the Italian team cannot perform well at the start of the new regulations era, Hamilton may decide to retire after two decades.
The 40-year-old endured a torrid first season with the Maranello-based squad. He failed to score a podium finish, for the first time in his F1 career, and was consistently frustrated or crestfallen when speaking to media.
He recently implored the Scuderia to act upon his notes for improvement, something Rosberg described as "new" from the British driver.
"There were no notes back in the day," the 2016 F1 drivers' champion remarked on Sky Sports F1. "But I think things were also going a lot smoother.
"He's obviously the greatest of all time. We all, I think, agree on that, but it's really not a worthy ending to his career here."
Rosberg highlighted how difficult Hamilton's first season with the Prancing Horse had been, but explained why he could not walk away at this stage.
"At the moment, it's really a horrible situation to be in. It causes him, certainly, a lot of suffering, and he's just really stuck," the 23-time grand prix winner added.
"Because retiring now... he can't retire now. Who are they going to replace him with?
"That's a bit of a loss of face also, because taking on this big project and then 12 months in, just because it's difficult, just retiring — that doesn't work.
"And keeping on going, time is also not on this side. And it's not gonna get easier, so that's also really not an option. It's very difficult."
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