Nico Rosberg admits 'error of judgement' in Lewis Hamilton clash

Nico Rosberg has publicly apologised to Lewis Hamilton, his Mercedes team and Formula 1 fans for his part in the collision with his team-mate at the Belgian Grand Prix

Following a crunch meeting at Mercedes' Brackley factory on Friday between the two drivers and team bosses Paddy Lowe and Toto Wolff to discuss what happened at Spa-Francorchamps, Rosberg admitted to an "error of judgement" in the accident.

Although initially adamant that the clash was nothing more than a racing incident, Rosberg revealed on Friday that his feelings on what happened had changed over the past week - and especially in the meeting on Friday.

Posting on his official Facebook page, Rosberg said: "In the days since the Belgian Grand Prix in Spa, I have spent a lot of time thinking about what happened during the race and discussing it with the team.

"I have already expressed my regret about the incident but, after meeting with Toto, Paddy and Lewis today, I wish to go a step further and describe it as an error of judgement on my part.

"The number one rule for us as team-mates is that we must not collide, but that is exactly what happened.

"For that error of judgement, I apologise to Lewis and the team. I also want to say sorry to the fans who were deprived of our battle for the lead in Belgium."

Mercedes has made it clear to both drivers that it will not tolerate repeat incidents in the future - and Rosberg himself said he hoped the rest of the season would be without controversy.

"Lewis and I have been given clear instructions about how we race each other," he added.

"As drivers, we have a clear responsibility to the team, the fans of the sport, our partners and Mercedes-Benz to deliver clean racing. We take that responsibility very seriously.

"I look forward to concluding the season with hard, fair competition on and off track right up to the final lap of the season in Abu Dhabi."