Nico Rosberg has achieved more than most drivers have in his Formula One career. During his last few years with Mercedes, we saw him push seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton for the title. In 2016, after a fierce title battle, Rosberg won his first Championship and shocked the entire F1 community by announcing his retirement just 3 days later.
However, his father, Keke Rosberg, who also won a world championship in 1982, was not aware of his son’s impending retirement after the 2016 season. Keke seems to think that his son could have achieved more than he did in Formula One.
Keke Rosberg was not told about Nico Rosberg’s retirement
Following the 2016 season, Nico Rosberg sent shockwaves through the Formula One paddock, announcing his retirement just three days after beating the then-three-time world champion, Lewis Hamilton, to the title. He did not, however, inform his father about his retirement before making the announcement.
In a recent interview with Apu, Keke Rosberg revealed that he was not told about his son’s retirement until after it had been made public, ‘He didn’t say anything,’ Keke revealed. ‘Nico sent a text to his mother and said to tell his father later. It felt like a big fist to the diaphragm.’ Keke also added.
FINAL STATS: NICO ROSBERG
Seasons: 11
Starts: 206
Wins: 23
Podiums: 57
Pole positions: 30
Fastest laps: 20
World titles: 1#F1FastFact pic.twitter.com/mWSp3V6aPJ— Formula 1 (@F1) December 2, 2016
Keke seemed to later understand his son’s decision, saying, “Nico knew that if he started discussing it with me, then of course his father’s opinion might be quite weighty, which he didn’t want to listen to. That decision was difficult enough anyway,” indicating Keke may have had a differing view on retiring, believing his Son had more to give in Formula One.
Rosberg was the only man to beat for Hamilton
During his time at Mercedes, Nico Rosberg had only two teammates, Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton, both of whom now hold seven world championships each. When Rosberg was teammates with Schumacher, Mercedes was not a competitive team and were overshadowed by Red Bull’s dominance with Sebastian Vettel.
But when Lewis Hamilton joined the squad in 2013, things started to change. In 2014 and 2015, Nico Rosberg finished runner-up twice to Lewis Hamilton, in seasons that took the championship fight right down to the wire in Abu Dhabi on both occasions, something which his replacement after retirement, Valtteri Bottas, was unable to do in all five seasons as Lewis’ teammate.
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It was in 2016 that Rosberg got his reward, in another season that was taken to the wire in Abu Dhabi, but saw Nico Rosberg reign supreme and claim his only world championship. Hamilton has since gone on to win a further 4 world titles with Mercedes and cemented his legacy as one of the best of all time, further showing the skill of Rosberg to be able to fight Hamilton for so long.
