Nico Rosberg may have an F1 World Champion father but he has reached the top because of his own talent.
Nico Rosberg is currently competing in his third season of Formula 1 with Williams- Toyota. Despite his experience Rosberg is still only 23 years old and has time on his side to fulfil his ambition of becoming Formula 1 World Champion. His father, Keke, was World Champion in 1982, also driving for Williams.
There can be no doubt that Rosberg enjoyed a privileged upbringing, spending his formative years in the exclusive principality of Monte Carlo. His sporting ability became obvious at an early age. Although he started karting at age 11 for a while it was uncertain whether his future lay in motor racing or tennis, as he displayed considerable talent in both.
During those early years of racing Rosberg competed under both Finnish and German flags as he held dual nationality. A successful career in karting was followed by a step up to the German Formula BMW ADAC series in 2002. During an astonishing debut season in the single-seater class Rosberg took five poles and nine wins to secure the title. It was also in 2002 that he sampled Formula 1 power for the first time, during a test drive for Williams.
Progressing to the Formula 3 Euroseries in 2003 Rosberg managed one win and eighth overall in the championship. He bettered this the following year when he scored three wins and fourth overall at season’s end.
2005 was the first year of the GP2 series, introduced to replace Formula 3000. Rosberg secured a drive with the ART Grand prix team and duly won the inaugural title, scoring four poles and five wins en route. In May he signed with Williams as a test driver. Then, late in the year, he was promoted to a race seat for 2006, alongside Mark Webber.
Rosberg made an instant impression on his Grand Prix debut in Bahrain. He finished seventh and became the youngest driver in history to set a fastest lap. It would be the highlight of the year as only one other points finish followed during a frustrating season.
A change to Toyota power for 2007 brought with it a change of luck for Rosberg. He demonstrated his one lap pace by qualifying ten times in the top ten. His best finish of the season was fourth in the season-ending Brazilian Grand Prix and he ended the year with 20 World Championship points.
At the first race of 2008 Rosberg celebrated his first ever podium finish in Formula 1, as he finished the Australian Grand Prix third. At present he lies ninth in the World Championship but the Williams-Toyota has looked fast and he will be hopeful of a large points haul as the season progresses.
Despite his father’s wealth of experience Keke Rosberg has adopted a hands-off approach to his son’s career. Interviewed in the May 2008 issue of F1 Racing magazine he explained:
“The only thing I really said to him was when he started: if you stay as you are then the world is yours; but if you change, like so many drivers and become something you’re not, it would be a real shame.”
Nico Rosberg has shown no signs of changing so far. Young, talented and driving for one of the sport’s top teams, he looks like having a long and successful future in Formula 1.
