Lewis Hamilton has congratulated old friend Nico Rosberg on beating him to the 2016 world title, saying his Mercedes teammate "did everything a champion needed to do".
Hamilton lost out to Rosberg by just five points after the German finished one place behind him in Abu Dhabi. The end of the race was controversial, as Hamilton backed Rosberg into the chasing cars of Sebastian Vettel and Max Verstappen in attempt to push him off the podium finish he needed for the championship, disobeying a Mercedes team order to speed up in the process.
However, Hamilton reasoned it was the only chance he had of beating Rosberg to the title and congratulated his old friend in parc ferme and on the podium. On Wednesday, Hamilton rolled back the years by posting an old photo of himself and Rosberg in their karting days, saying: "we said we'd be champions back then, now we both are!"
Though Hamilton made a point after the race in Abu Dhabi of referencing the engine problems that plagued his season, the Facebook message congratulated his old friend and said his title was "well deserved."
Mercedes boss Toto Wolff has since conceded that poor reliability on the No. 44 car cost Hamilton the title, but added that it should not take away from the fact Rosberg deserved his maiden championship.