Rosberg content despite not scoring

The German came from 13th on the grid to finish 10th after some close racing with Fernando Alonso in the closing stages before the Renault spun and allowed him to re-pass.

"Even though it's not great to go home without any points, it was a good race," said Rosberg.

"It was a bit difficult at the beginning as I had a technical problem at the start which cost me a place. From then on I was pretty comfortable, and I was able to push hard when I had free track- the car felt good, but then with the safety car the order was mixed up quite a bit.

"Regardless, it was great to race here in front of the German fans, and the atmosphere was amazing."

Although Rosberg has not scored points since Istanbul in May, he remains optimistic that his luck is on the verge of turning.

"We now have a few races ahead of us where I am sure we can do well and our performance will improve," he said.

Rosberg's teammate Kazuki Nakajima had a spin early on and could only finish 15th.

"It was a difficult race for us today with something happening in every stint," he said.

"First of all I lost a bit of time early on and I was stuck in the traffic for a long time. It would have also helped if the safety car had stayed out a bit longer so I could have made my stop.

"Then finally, in the last stint, I picked up some debris under the car which was causing bad understeer and I lost a place. Eventually, whatever it was under the car came free and the balance returned but by then it was too late."