Belgian Grand Prix: Nico Rosberg sarcastically brands Mercedes team-mate Lewis Hamilton a ‘safety freak’

NICO ROSBERG reignited his bitter war with Lewis Hamilton by labelling him “a safety freak”.

The Mercedes duo will resume their F 1 title tussle this weekend at the Belgian GP with Hamilton leading by 19 points.

class="wp-caption alignnone"

class="wp-caption alignnone"

And Rosberg, 31, is still smarting after Hamilton accused his team-mate of breaching safety rules in Budapest last month.

Rosberg sniped: “I think it’s interesting to see how he’s become such a safety freak all of a sudden.

“That right after a double-yellow flag, he decides to go to the people in charge and discuss it… he’s not known for being such a safety freak.”

Rosberg was riled after Hamilton had a private chat with F 1 race chief Charlie Whiting in Hungary after his rival took a controversial pole.

Hamilton aborted his flying lap after double yellow flags were waved to warn of Fernando Alonso’s spun McLaren.

But Rosberg set a better time after proving he slowed down enough, in accordance with the rules.

And the German admits their relationship is frosty.

He said: “It’s up and down. It’s difficult with so much at stake. I just want to beat him.”

Hamilton faces starting the second half of the season on the back foot.

class="wp-caption alignnone"

Mercedes confirmed it is “likely” he will suffer a grid penalty in Sunday’s showdown for using too many engine parts.

The team will know for certain today but the call to use extra parts the Brit needs could see him start LAST on the grid.

The world champion’s early-season engine failures meant Hamilton, 31, used up more components than planned.