Rosberg says crash penalties justified

(GMM) Nico Rosberg has acknowledged that his penalty for crashing in the pitlane during Sunday's Canadian grand prix was deserved.

The German, who drives for Williams, ran into Lewis Hamilton at Montreal, after the McLaren driver failed to spot the red pitlane traffic light and careened into the duly stationary Ferrari of Kimi Raikkonen.

Both Rosberg, 22, and Briton Hamilton will be punished with a ten position demotion on the Magny Cours grid, and Hamilton on Tuesday is quoted as deriding his penalty as "harsh" and the closure of the pitlane "silly".

According to the French language La Presse newspaper, Rosberg said: "I think I deserve the penalty, the same as Hamilton.

"He didn't stop, and neither did I, so we deserve the same fate.

"I saw the red lights too late, so it is natural that there is a penalty. I made a mistake," Rosberg added.

It is true, however, that while Hamilton failed to see both the red light and the stationary cars of Raikkonen and Robert Kubica, Rosberg's mistake was slightly different.

Rosberg agrees: "Of course, if Hamilton had slowed, I would have been able to better understand what was going on. But he kept going, and then suddenly … (hit Raikkonen's Ferrari)."

To another publication, Rosberg insists that stationary cars at the end of a pitlane is not a normal phenomenon.

"In my whole career I have never watched the lights at the pit exit," he is quoted as admitting to motorline.cc.

Rosberg also said the penalty effectively destroys his chances for the French grand prix.

"I can almost forget about Magny Cours," he insisted, "because I will be starting probably in 18th or 19th place."