Why a renewed Lewis Hamilton-Nico Rosberg feud is great news for Mercedes

[HAMILTON WINS IN CHINA TO EXTEND LEAD]

During the Chinese Grand Prix, Rosberg, sitting in second, complained over the radio to his team that race leader Hamilton wasn't driving fast enough, meaning he was stuck in the dirty air behind him.

He brought up the complaint again after the race.

“My race was compromised. It's a scenario we went through in detail before the race,” said Rosberg, accusing his team-mate of putting him in a “risky” position by backing him into Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel in third.

Hamilton dismissed the charge in the post-race press conference, saying he was protecting his tyres, and adding a blasé “It's not my job to look after Nico's race.”

So far, so standard, so 2014.

This time, though, instead of crisis talks Mercedes seem to be taking advantage of the simmering rivalry between the two.

That's what they did in China – instead of telling Hamilton that Rosberg wanted to drive in cleaner air, they simply told him that if he didn't start lapping faster and extend his lead, then his team-mate would get the first pit stop shortly. If Rosberg had pitted then as Hamilton continued to lap at his consistent pace, he'd have likely closed the gap on fresher tyres and been more likely to get the win.

Hamilton wasn't going to let that happen – so he picked up the pace and lopped nearly a second off his previous fastest lap time as he stretched out his advantage and happily cruised to the win without any real pressure from Rosberg.

It was a veiled implication rather than anything explicit – but it did the trick.

They can tell us as much as they like that the pair are pals again after their bickering last season; it's obvious to everyone that there are tensions there that won't be resolved any time soon. Last season Hamilton said that the arguments between the two made it feel “like school”, without any teachers stepping in to discipline them. There were a few empty threats issued, but everyone knew that nothing would actually be done.

Now? Well, Hamilton and Rosberg won't be visiting each other's houses for tea, and Mercedes aren't going to be able to make them play more nicely together. So this latest strategy looks intriguing. And as long as the pair aren't trying to push each other off the track, it makes absolute sense for the team to make the most of this latest F1 feud.