Does Nico Rosberg's 6-Race Win Streak Prove He Can Beat Lewis Hamilton in 2016?

It almost seems to be turning into a routine for Nico Rosberg—another race, another win. The Mercedes driver won his sixth straight Formula One race on Sunday at the Chinese Grand Prix, extending his lead in the championship to 36 points over his team-mate, Lewis Hamilton.

And what to make of Hamilton, who has not stood on the top step of the podium since last October, at the U.S. Grand Prix? His results this season are trending in the wrong direction, as he finished second in Australia, third in Bahrain and now seventh in China.

Are Hamilton's recent results merely part of the normal ebbs and flows of grand prix racing, or has some complacency crept in after back-to-back championships? Or perhaps it is all just bad luck.

Steve Etherington/Getty Images

From the beginning of the 2014 season to Hamilton's title-clinching race in Austin, Texas, last year, the Brit won 21 of 35 grands prix. Rosberg won eight.

Hamilton followed Rosberg home at the final three races of 2015, but those could almost be written off as meaningless, given the championship was already decided.

"I didn't do what I had to do to win the championship because I already had won the championship," Hamilton explained to the official F1 website. "If you fight for the championship you have to bring that extra five or ten percent—after I had bagged the title I didn't need that anymore. I used my energy elsewhere."

This year, Hamilton qualified on pole at the first two races, but poor starts compromised him both times. In Australia, Rosberg pushed him wide at the first corner, demonstrating the tenacity and self-confidence that were usually Hamilton's calling cards when the team-mates went wheel-to-wheel over the last two years.

In Bahrain, Valtteri Bottas slammed into Hamilton at the start, but had the Brit gotten off the line as quickly as Rosberg, he would not have been anywhere near Bottas.

Finally, Hamilton's weekend in China was just one disaster after another: a penalty for changing his gearbox, problems with his energy recovery system and more damage at the start.

There are excuses for each of those six grands prix where Rosberg has come out on top, but eventually excuses do not matter anymore—only results. And right now, the results table is showing Rosberg far out in front.

Although not quite as far as Hamilton feared. When told his gap to Rosberg was 36 points, he responded, "That's not as bad as I thought," according to Autosport's Ian Parkes. "I feel pretty good right now.

"I thought it was 50 points, so I was like...wow!"

Such is Hamilton's talent that it would not really qualify as a surprise if he came back and won the next six races. But what if Rosberg has found a proverbial extra gear, and poor starts and car problems or not, he is simply the faster driver this year?

Continuing the same pre-season interview with the official F1 website, Hamilton said: "My sole focus is again on winning the title—but Nico also has grown, so I have to accept that he is exceptionally fast and so I also have to lift my bar again. I don't know how—but that is my goal."

I don't know how.

Is it possible that Hamilton has reached the limits of his performance after two of the most dominant seasons in F1 history? Meanwhile, Rosberg—surely the hungrier of the two men—is continuing to improve, able to get just that little bit extra out of his starts and translating it into better race performances.

Rosberg is enjoying a run of success, with those six consecutive wins, that even Hamilton has not managed in his storied career. Yet he knows that this early in the season, those wins do not really mean anything...not if they don't result in a title.

"

NR "But it’s a very long year ahead and there’s a lot of points still on the table, so I’m not losing my focus" pic.twitter.com/jmtRkcIamZ

— MERCEDES AMG F1 (@MercedesAMGF1) April 17, 2016"

"Of course, I'm happy with the way it's gone, and I'm feeling good and the car's there, but I don't want to say more than that. Let's see," Rosberg said in the post-race press conference in China. "Of course, Lewis is not many points behind...and he's as focused and motivated as ever."

Rosberg knows how quickly a lead in the championship can disappear. In 2014, he was 29 points clear of Hamilton with just seven races remaining. Hamilton won the next five races en route to his first title with Mercedes.

The longer Rosberg's streak continues, though, the more his confidence will grow. By the time Hamilton clinched the title last year, Rosberg often looked and sounded defeated. Those final three races rejuvenated him, and he has carried that renewed momentum into 2016.

Hamilton might still come out on top, but he can no longer be considered the clear favourite he was before the season started. In fact, Rosberg is now the bookmakers' favourite, according to Oddschecker.

Hamilton should still receive the benefit of the doubt befitting a three-time champion, but after Sunday's race in Shanghai, his path to the title is looking more like it did in 2008 than in 2015.

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