I, too, was very disappointed with Nico’s reaction.
He said he was a bit miffed with Lewis’s “ungentlemanly” behaviour at T1 (i.e trying to get in front – what an outrage in a motor race, of all things!). However, whatever had happened earlier, he lost the race. He was leading with about seven laps to go and made an error which cost him the race along with his ultra-slim chance of the title. I can understand his disappointment at finally being ruled out of the championship race but in reality he was effectively all but ruled out following his early DNF in Sochi two weeks ago.
By contrast Sebastian Vettel was congratulatory and warm hearted following Lewis’s victory. I was pleased to see him encouraging and supporting Lewis in the immediate aftermath of the race when Lewis really was “tired and emotional” (in the literal sense, not the often used colloquial interpretation!). Seb came across as a true sportsman – competitive to the end but magnanimous in ultimate defeat .
For two seasons Nico has been second best to Lewis at Mercedes. They’ve both had their fair share of luck (good and bad) over those two years, but Lewis has prevailed principally, I think, because he is the better driver. It was very disappointing to see Nico behaving so petulantly and sulking instead of congratulating his team mate and opponent on a fine championship win. It hasn’t done him any favours at all.
BTW – for those who are “bored” with F1, if you look on your TV’s remote you will find a number of buttons. One switches the whole thing off. Others enable you to change the programme shown on the TV set. You can use these to tune in to “Songs of Praise” or repeats of the “Antiques Roadshow”.