NICO ROSBERG is on a mission to prove he is faster than his 2008 Formula 1 World Champion teammate Lewis Hamilton and today proved he is more than a match for the Briton.

Setting the leading time of 1:36.717, four hundredths of a second quicker than the former McLaren driver, he went on to finish fourth fastest in the second session, with a time of 1:35.819, nearly half a second slower than Felipe Massa – who topped Practice 2, yet over six hundredths of a second faster than Lewis Hamilton.

“We’ve been able to run our program and the car feels really good,” explained Rosberg, who won the Chinese Grand Prix last season. “I think the day proved that we should be pretty competitive here. The morning session went swimmingly, there was a little hiccup in the afternoon, but overall a promising start into the weekend.

“This track holds a sweet memory for me, as it was where I won my first F1 race, so maybe this gives me a bit of extra boost here as of course I would like to repeat that.”

If he continues his spectacular performance, Nico Rosberg has the potential to finally beat Lewis Hamilton in the same car.

Looking back at last year’s win in China, 27-year-old Rosberg said it was ‘quite an emotional moment’ in his career. “It took me quite a while to get there so there were a lot of pent-up feelings that finally had an outlet,” he said, laughing joyfully. “Winning the first race for this Mercedes team - that was awesome. To share the moment with the whole team - that was overwhelming. Winning is just about the limit!”

But after the controversy in Malaysia, Nico Rosberg has continued to prove he is a true gentleman and has put the past behind him, focussing on one of his favourite Formula 1 tracks.

“I like the track,” he said. “I’ve done well here in the past. I have no idea why. It’s not so that if you do well once at a track, it means that you will always do well there. There is always adaptation in the game - the cars are different, the tyres are completely different - so there are so many factors that matter.

“And thank goodness it is that way because imagine the other way around: if you do bad on a track and it would mean that you do bad there forever! So what really matters is to get through your program on Friday, deliver an excellent qualifying and push on Sunday. And that is exactly my plan. From the feeling today I do indeed expect a good race and a good result.”

Nico believes a podium finish ‘should be within reach’ but only if the soft tyres do not degrade too quickly. During the practice session, after half a lap, his tyres ‘completely disintegrated’.

“I predict a sizzling race!”