No-one left to blame this time. As his hold on this title slipped further still, so too did Lewis Hamilton’s grasp on reality after a weekend of self-destruction rarely seen in Formula One by a three-time world champion.
The last seven days have been vintage Hamilton against the world. Among the echo chamber of his own devoted fan base online, where he is worshipped like a deity, he may have won, but in every other sense he lost.
He was diminished among those who admire him enormously as a sportsman, and usually find it in their wit to gloss over some of his more colourful public behaviour – this correspondent included - he left Mercedes fearing their lead driver is in meltdown at one of the most critical junctures in his career, and most importantly of all of course, he lost.
And Nico Rosberg won. Now the German holds all the cards in a championship which with four races remaining is beyond Hamilton’s control. With a 33-point lead, all Rosberg needs to do is finish runner-up three times and take third in the other. Luck will have to turn Hamilton’s way to win a fourth title this year.
The bare facts from Suzuka, perhaps the most challenging circuit in the sport, are these: Rosberg topped every practice session, took pole position, and dominantly won the race from there.
Meanwhile Hamilton qualified second, slipped disastrously at the start to eighth through yet another mistake off the line – his fifth of the year - before he recovered well to finish third behind Max Verstappen.
Misfortune has plagued Hamilton this season, most glaringly in Malaysia a week ago when his engine blew up while leading the race, but that should not distract from his own imperfect performances. The extra few per cent which ensured in the last two years that Rosberg was left trailing has gone missing.
Even more worrying are signs the apparent psychological fortitude he built in recent years can crumble so spectacularly under the pressure of a relentless Rosberg. He is 31 years old, has three championships under his belt and has been in the sport for nearly a decade.
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