Nico Rosberg believes that Lewis Hamilton's split from his long-time trainer Angela Cullen could "make things even worse" for the seven-time World Champion. The 2023 F1 season has not started smoothly for Mercedes, with the team continuing to struggle to match their rivals on track. Hamilton confirmed that he was parting ways with Cullen – who he has worked with for seven years – over the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix weekend, while Toto Wolff later stated that Hamilton had been the one to end the working relationship . The seven-time World Champion has said that he remains "super close" with Cullen and that she remains one of his "closest friends". With this in mind, Rosberg thinks that Hamilton may find it difficult to get used to not having Cullen around.
Rosberg: Trainer split not ideal for Hamilton
"I think that probably makes things even worse because even though the split apparently was amicable, Angela was a real friend I think also to him," Rosberg told Sky Sports F1 . "And it's with your trainer that [you spend] most of the time during a race weekend. "You end up also going to dinner in a very small, tight group with maybe a family member and a trainer and that's it – and for Lewis not to have her as well, I'm sure it's going to be not ideal, not so nice. "I think probably that's another challenge and difficulty that he has to deal with and get used to."
Hill 'surprised' by Hamilton and Cullen parting ways
Former F1 driver Damon Hill admits that he was surprised to see Hamilton and Cullen part ways, with Hamilton having previously praised the trainer for having a positive impact on him. "I think most of us were very surprised by that," Hill added. "Because he did make quite a lot of emphasis on how useful she had been and how good she'd been for him to get his mind in the right place, so [it was] a bit of a surprise to see them splitting up."
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