The only child of Finnish1982 Formula One World ChampionKeke Rosberg and his German wife, he was born inWiesbaden but was raised primarily inMonaco. Rosberg began competitivekart racing at the age of six and achieved early success, winning regional and national French championships, before moving to European-based series and world championships. At the age of 16, he progressed to car racing, winning nine races to claim the2002 Formula BMW ADAC Championship with VIVA Racing. He subsequently moved to the higher-tierFormula 3 Euro Series withTeam Rosberg in2003 and2004 before winning the inauguralGP2 Series championship withART Grand Prix in2005.
Rosberg first drove in Formula One withWilliams from2006 to2009 and achieved twopodium finishes for the team in2008. For2010, he moved to Mercedes, partnering fellow German and seven-time World Drivers' ChampionMichael Schumacher. Rosberg took his first career win at the2012 Chinese Grand Prix. He was the teammate of former karting friend,Lewis Hamilton, from2013 to 2016, twice finishing runner-up to his teammate, and in his final season defeating Hamilton to win the 2016 title. He and his fatherKeke are the second father-son pairing, afterGraham andDamon Hill, that have both won World Drivers' Championships.
Rosberg announced his retirement from motor racing five days after clinching the title, citing wanting to spend more time with his family and not wanting his driving ability to atrophy as the main factors behind his decision. Overall, he started 206 Grands Prix, achieving 23 wins, 30pole positions, 20 fastest laps and 57 podium finishes. In retirement, Rosberg moved intodriver management, television punditry, and became aneco-entrepreneur. He was awarded theLaureus World Sports Award for Breakthrough of the Year and was inducted into theFIA Hall of Fame in 2017.
The principality ofMonaco, where Rosberg was raised
Rosberg was born on 27 June 1985 at theRed Cross Hospital inWiesbaden,West Germany,[1][2] the only child of Germaninterpreter Gesine "Sina" (née Gleitsmann-Dengel)[3] and Finnish racing driverKeke Rosberg, who won the1982Formula One World Championship.[1][4] Because his father is Finnish and his mother is German, Rosberg is a citizen of both countries,[1] competing with a Finnish racing license until after his first season in theFormula 3 Euro Series.[5] He switched to a German license as he felt it was easier to obtain major sponsorship agreements with nationality of a larger country.[1]
Rosberg was raised in the Wiesbaden district ofNordenstadt in the first four weeks of his life,[2][6] before living between the principality ofMonaco and the Spanish island ofIbiza.[7] He was educated at the International School of Nice and theInternational School of Monaco.[1][8] Rosberg was encouraged to pursue ventures in academia and sports.[9] He was taught five languages: English, French, German, Italian and Spanish, but not Finnish or Swedish, as his father considered those other languages more important for Nico's life and career.[10][11] Rosberg enjoyed studying mathematics and science, and passed all of his examinations except history.[12] He graduated with an averagegrade of 1.2 in 2002.[13]
Rosberg married interior designer Vivian Sibold at a civil ceremony in Monaco on 11 July 2014.[14] They have two children,[15] and run acreamery shop in Ibiza.[14] He is a fan of the German football clubBayern Munich,[16] played for the Monaco national tennis team,[17] and formerly competed intriathlon events; these skills allowed him to save a five-year-old child from drowning in Monaco.[18]
At the age of four, Rosberg had his first driving experience when his father took him to ago-kart track in Ibiza for a holiday. He steered aJeep, and his father controlled its speed with the accelerator and the brake pedals. Rosberg began competitive racing at the age of six and decided to aim for a career in Formula One motor racing after he observed his father competing in theDeutsche Tourenwagen Meisterschaft in 1995.[15][19] His parents, who did not discourage their son's career choice, consented on the condition that he maintained good grades at school. Rosberg's competitive mindset, and his early achievements in go-karting helped him to improve his driving ability and to convince his father to manage him.[11]
In 1996, Rosberg won the Côte d'Azur Mini-Kart Regional Championship,[15] and the Trophee Jérôme Bernard and the Trophee de France in 1997.[20] Aged 12, he was the youngest champion of a French national karting series.[21] Rosberg finished second in the French Manufacturers' Trophy and the Côte d'Azur Regional Championship in the same year.[22] He progressed to the European karting championships for 1998 after moving from France to Italy so he could enter international events.[23] Competing in the 100 Junior category in aCRG kart, Rosberg finished fifth at the 28° Torneo Industrie, seventh in the Trofeo Andrea Margutti,[23][24] and crashed out in the 1998CIK-FIA Green Helmet Trophy.[25] In 1999, he was runner-up in the Italian Junior Karting Championship[20] and was fourth in the ICA Junior CIK-FIA European Championship, again driving a CRG.[24]
Rosberg's father asked CRG executive Dino Chiesa in late 1999 to establish a separate karting team for his son and fellow driverLewis Hamilton for a period of two to three years. Rosberg raced for TeamMBM.com (Mercedes-BenzMcLaren) for the 2000 season.[b][23] He was runner-up in theEuropean KF1 Championship and finished ninth in the Formula A World Cup.[20][24] In 2001, Rosberg was tenth in the South Garda Winter Cup and sixteenth in the Formula Super A World Championship.[24] He concluded his karting career with a third-place finish in the latter series at a race inKerpen.[22]
At the age of 16, Rosberg progressed to car racing, competing in three races for the 2001 Formula BMW Junior Cup Iberia finishing in 18th in the Drivers' Championship with 38 points.[27] For his first full season of car racing, he drove forVIVA Racing in the2002 Formula BMW ADAC Championship,[28] winning the drivers' title with nine victories from twenty races and amassing 264 points.[19][27] For winning the title, Rosberg drove aWilliams FW24 at a test session at theCircuit de Catalunya on 3 December.[29] At the time, he became the youngest person ever to drive aFormula One car.[30]
He remained with Team Rosberg for the2004 Formula 3 Euro Series.[28] Before that, Rosberg won two rounds of the Spanish Formula 3 Winter Series at theCircuito de Albacete as preparation.[36] He won the season's first two races at theHockenheimring and his campaign faltered through incidents and accidents: he took one other victory at theNürburgring and three podium finishes.[28] Rosberg finished fourth in the Drivers' Championship with 70 points[28] and was sixth at theMasters of Formula 3.[37] He later crashed from the lead of theMacau Grand Prix in November and was second at theBahrain Superprix a month later.[37]
In April 2005, Rosberg was signed by Williams as its second test driver.[47] He and fellow driverNelson Piquet Jr. were analysed extensively before Rosberg was selected.[48] He worked with Williams's test and reserve driverAntônio Pizzonia and continued to focus on the GP2 Series.[47][49] After race driverNick Heidfeld was injured in a bicycle accident in September, Rosberg was shortlisted by Williams as his potential replacement for the final two races, theJapanese Grand Prix and theChinese Grand Prix.[50] The team opted for Pizzonia because they did not want to risk delaying Rosberg's career by one to two years if he had a poor performance.[51]
Bernie Ecclestone, Formula One's commercial rights owner, said to Williams team principal and founderFrank Williams he thought it would be advantageous to sign Rosberg as part of a campaign to bring energetic drivers to the sport.[52] Williams told Rosberg in October 2005 that he was assured of a role on the team as either a racer or test driver for2006 afterBritish American Racing'sJenson Button was released from a contract with the team.[53]Autosport reported Rosberg signed a contract that month to race for Williams in 2006 allowing the team to provide him with as much car acclimatisation as possible.[54] The following month, Rosberg signed a five-year contract with Williams, being selected by Frank Williams for his driving ability, his knowledge of Formula One technology, and for articulately communicating data to engineers.[55] He was told of the news by his father in advance.[56]
Rosberg was paid £500,000 by Williams and was the first son of a former world champion in Formula One sinceDamon Hill in1999.[40][57] To prepare for the season, he achieved the highest score ever in Williams's Engineering Aptitude Test, which tests a new driver's knowledge of car mechanics and engineering aspects of Formula One,[c][19][38] and ceased reading the news to avoid becoming angered by negative publicity.[58] He was assignedrace engineer Tony Ross.[7] At the season-openingBahrain Grand Prix, Rosberg scored his first careerpoints with a seventh-place finish[28] and set the race'sfastest lap, becoming at the time the youngest fastest lap setter in history, aged 20 years, 8 months and 13 days.[d][30] One week later, at theMalaysian Grand Prix, he achieved a season-best start of third before his engine failed after seven laps.[60] He scored points once more during the season with a seventh at theEuropean Grand Prix[28] as he made driver errors from inexperience and drove an unreliable car.[61] Rosberg was outpaced by his teammateMark Webber,[28] with whom he had a good relationship.[9] He finished with 4 points for 17th in theWorld Drivers' Championship (WDC).[28]
For2007, Rosberg was partnered by the more experiencedAlexander Wurz.[62] He and his father mutually agreed to stop working with each other,[63] and began working with a sports psychologist.[64][65] Rosberg's performances improved greatly from 2006 due to Williams restructuring itself and employing more experienced and capable personnel,[66] making hisFW29 car reliable and more efficient with the installation of a less complex seamless transmission.[67] He had more confidence in setting up the car to his liking, extracting additional speed and balance consistently.[66] Rosberg also gained experience in controlling his emotions without losing speed,[61] frequently qualified ahead of Wurz and took points seven times with a season-best of fourth at the season-endingBrazilian Grand Prix.[28] Rosberg scored 20 points for ninth in the WDC.[67]
His performances throughout the season enhanced his reputation, and he was linked to several teams for2008.[21][67] McLaren offered Frank Williams "majestic proportions" to sign Rosberg to replace the outgoing two-time world championFernando Alonso, but Williams immediately rejected the offer. Rosberg's contract was extended to the end of2009 on the basis of where Williams finished in theConstructors' Championship. Rosberg later told Williams of his desire to remain with them on the condition he would receive a competitive car.[e][68][69]
The 2008 season was the first in which Rosberg was the more experienced driver on his team, being partnered by Williams test driverKazuki Nakajima.[67] He began the season by finishing third at theAustralian Grand Prix, the first podium finish of his career.[41] Afterwards, his campaign faltered because theFW30 car lacked outright performance and Williams did not develop the car fast enough for it to be competitive.[70] Rosberg was occasionally outperformed by Nakajima, and driver errors lost him chances to score more points;[71] he was able to adapt to a ban ontraction control from Formula One.[72] He improved the best result of his career with a second at the inauguralSingapore Grand Prix 14 races later, and finished 13th in the WDC with 17 points.[28]
Rosberg was again partnered with Nakajima for the 2009 season.[73] He lost five percent of his body weight to compensate for the introduction of thekinetic energy recovery systems increasing the car's minimum weight limit to 605 kg (1,334 lb).[74] Rosberg had an improved season: theWilliams FW31 was one of three cars to have an early speed advantage because it featured adouble diffuser system and Rosberg led the first 15 laps of the Malaysian Grand Prix,[75] however, the team could not sustain the car's pace of development. He finished 16 of 17 rounds; the exception was theBrazilian Grand Prix.[39] Rosberg was consistent in finishing in the points-paying positions, achieving a season-best result of fourth at theGerman Grand Prix and the followingHungarian Grand Prix. He scored 34.5 points for seventh in the WDC.[28]
In mid-to-late 2009,Mercedes-Benz vice-president of motorsportNorbert Haug discussed with Rosberg the possibility of driving for the manufacturer in2010 pending its acquisition ofBrawn GP.[76] Rosberg also talked to McLaren and Williams about potential employment; he was skeptical because Williams was mulling over whetherRenault or Cosworth should be the team's engine supplier.[77] On 29 October, he confirmed his departure from Williams at the conclusion of the season[78] and was officially released from his contract with the team on 1 January 2010.[79] One week later Mercedes purchased 75 percent of Brawn GP and entered Formula One under its own name, employing Rosberg to drive for the team.[30] He was partnered with the seven-time world championMichael Schumacher[80] and was assigned carNo. 4 after Schumacher requested No. 3 for superstitious reasons.[81]
Rosberg was mentored by Mercedes team principalRoss Brawn[82] and was apprehensive when Schumacher joined the team, given the history of Brawn and Schumacher's relationship atFerrari.[83] He was concerned that Schumacher would dominate the team, and in early strategy meetings, found that his own strategy was being discussed with Schumacher more than with him. He felt that Schumacher was constantly acting to cause him minor stress or to assert dominance.[84]
Rosberg finished in third place at theMalaysian Grand Prix, theChinese Grand Prix, and theBritish Grand Prix.[28] He scored championship points in all but four rounds; he generally finished higher than he qualified and did so against his teammate Schumacher fifteen times to four that season.[28][39] He was better able than Schumacher to cope with a terminalundersteer affecting theMGP W01's handling due to Mercedes forgoing much development work on the car because of Brawn GP's title focus the previous year. The car was five-tenths of a second slower on most circuits.[80] Rosberg was seventh in the WDC with 142 points.[28] His performances during the season enhanced his reputation as a consistent and fast driver.[39]
Rosberg remained with Mercedes for2011 and was again joined by Schumacher.[82] He had a mixed season: he led theChinese Grand Prix and theBelgian Grand Prix, but theMGP W02 wore thePirelli tyres quickly, making the car noncompetitive.[28] Rosberg was able to maintain a consistent performance in every qualifying session and began higher than his teammate Schumacher sixteen times to three.[85] He finished no higher than fifth in the season's 19 rounds and was seventh in the WDC with 89 points.[30]
The press linked Rosberg to replace the poor performingFelipe Massa at Ferrari for2012.[86] In November 2011, he signed a contract extension to remain at Mercedes until after2013. An important factor in Rosberg's decision was the Mercedes team undergoing a technical restructure, which saw the appointments ofBob Bell as technical director andGeoff Willis as head of technology in mid-2011.[87] Other reasons included his belief Mercedes would be able to improve their performance and challenge for race victories.[88]
Three-time world championNiki Lauda began to advise Rosberg.[89] At theChinese Grand Prix, the season's third round, he took the first pole position of his career and his maiden career victory.[90] He then challengedRed Bull's Mark Webber for the victory at theMonaco Grand Prix three races later before he settled for a second-place finish.[91] Rosberg had accumulated more championship points than any other driver in the season's previous four races and emerged as an unlikely contender for the WDC.[92] Notwithstanding this, he achieved one further top-five finish during the season.[28] However, he struggled to generate temperature into the rear tires on theMercedes F1 W03 regardless of the climatic conditions, and the car was suited to circuits with slow-speed corners.[93] He was ninth in the WDC with 93 points.[30]
Before the 2013 season, Rosberg was joined at Mercedes by the 2008 world champion Lewis Hamilton, who replaced the retired Michael Schumacher.[94] He was granted equal status by Mercedes and received no preferential treatment alongside Hamilton.[95] During the pre-season period, Rosberg visited the Mercedes factory inBrackley, England, displaying a fascination with theF1 W04's technological development and assisting the team in the car's development.[26]
Rosberg challenged his teammate Hamilton during the season qualifying higher eight times and finishing more often.[96] At theMalaysian Grand Prix, the season's second race, a minor controversy came about when Mercedes invokedteam orders on him to stay behind Hamilton.[97] Unhappy with the decision,[28] Rosberg led every lap from pole position to win theMonaco Grand Prix and became the first son of a world champion to win the event.[98] He then won theBritish Grand Prix for his third career victory after Red Bull driverSebastian Vettel suffered a brokengearbox.[99] Thereafter, Rosberg earned points in nine of the season's ten final rounds with consecutive podium finishes—[100] second at theIndian Grand Prix and third at theAbu Dhabi Grand Prix. He finished sixth in the WDC with 171 points and three pole positions. Rosberg's results over the season earned him additional respect within the Formula One community.[28]
Rosberg continued to drive for Mercedes in2014 with Lewis Hamilton again as his teammate.[101] He was regarded as a favourite for the WDC because of the team's development of theF1 W05 Hybrid car and adaptation to the technical regulations mandating the use ofturbo-hybrid engines in pre-season testing at the Bahrain International Circuit and the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.[82][102] Rosberg won theAustralian Grand Prix to take the lead of the WDC and finished second in the next four races but Hamilton's four straight victories lost Rosberg the championship lead. Rosberg won theMonaco Grand Prix for the second year in succession to regain the points lead after qualifying on pole position in contentious circumstances.[101] Victories inAustria,Germany,[28] followed by contact with Hamilton inBelgium made it appear he would win the championship,[28] until a short circuit on his car inSingapore nullified his points lead.[103] Rosberg took four consecutive podium finishes and won theBrazilian Grand Prix to ensure the championship would be decided at the season-endingAbu Dhabi Grand Prix.[101] To win the title, he needed to win the race with Hamilton third or lower.[104] Hamilton was already ahead of Rosberg on track and leading the race when an energy recovery system failure meant Rosberg scored no points for second in the WDC with 317 points.[101]
Having signed a contract worth a reported €55 million with Mercedes that was due to expire at the conclusion of2016, Rosberg continued to drive for the team in2015.[f][106] During the off-season he sought to correct a body deficiency, which caused him to hold his breath againstg-forces in high-speed corners, since he did not want to limit the flow of oxygen to his brain and muscles.[g][107] After four top-three podium finishes in the first four races,[100] he won inSpain,Monaco andAustria,[108] which came as his overall performance lowered from focusing more on the race than on qualifying; Vettel threatened Rosberg's hold on second overall.[108] Retirements inItaly andRussia and two errors on a wet track at theUnited States Grand Prix stopped him from taking the championship,[109] but wins in the final three races inMexico,Brazil andAbu Dhabi and six consecutive pole positions placed him runner-up overall with 322 points.[100]
Before the 2016 season, Rosberg stopped reading the news and studied sleep with a jet-lag doctor as he focused on his family and winning the next event.[110] He altered his racing gloves to improve his starts,[111] removed paint from his helmet to make it 80 g (2.8 oz) lighter that slightly improved his performance,[112][113] employed a mental trainer to increase his aggression, and spent his spare time go-karting to maintain his ability.[114] Rosberg eschewedFacebook for five months, studied philosophy, meditated to stay concentrated, and received detailed technical input from Mercedes's mechanics at its headquarters in Brackley, England.[115] He worked with his sports psychologist for up to eight hours per week with two hours of mental discipline every two days.[64] Rosberg said he was confident of driving a competitive car and wanted to maintain his form by beating Hamilton more regularly.[116]
He carried over his form from the 2015 season, winning the first four races to lead Hamilton by 43 championship points although Hamilton suffered reliability issues in two of those first four races. Rosberg and Hamilton made high-speed contact at theSpanish Grand Prix after which Hamilton took the championship lead from Rosberg over the next eight races after sub-par results from the former.[117] During the mid-season interval, Mercedesnon-executive chairmanNiki Lauda paid a special visit to Rosberg's home inIbiza, to help Rosberg regain his confidence and to bounce back.[118][119] Rosberg changed his diet to remove sugars from his body and abstained from alcohol.[115] Rosberg mulled over how to further improve his performance; to avoid the strain of starting a diet,[120] he refrained from cycling, losing 1 kg (2.2 lb) of muscle in both his legs.[121] He went on to win inBelgium,Singapore andJapan, and achieved three-second-place finishes in a row to enter the season-endingAbu Dhabi Grand Prix leading Hamilton by 12 points.[117]
To win the championship, Rosberg needed to finish no worse than third, even if Hamilton won.[122] He won the WDC by five points with a second-place finish after withstanding Hamilton's attempts to back him into the chasing pack and encourage drivers to pass Rosberg to claim the title for himself. Rosberg became the second son of a former world champion to win the title since Damon Hill replicated his fatherGraham Hill in1996.[123] He published a limited-edition book entitledFinally about the 2016 season on 24 December 2016.[124] Overall, Rosberg competed in 206 races: he won 23, achieved 30 pole positions, gained 57 podium finishes, and scored 1594.5 championship points.[125]
Retirement from racing and subsequent ventures (2016–present)
Rosberg holding the 2016 Formula One World Drivers' Championship trophy
Rosberg, who had signed a two-year contract extension with Mercedes to2018 in mid-2016,[126] began to contemplate retirement from motor racing when he considered the possibility of a championship win after the 2016 Japanese Grand Prix.[117] He discussed it twice with his wife Vivian before the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix,[115] and decided to commit to retiring before the race commenced.[121] Afterwards, Rosberg told Vivian and manager Georg Noite that he would retire before telephoning the Mercedes team principalToto Wolff about it.[115] He did not tell Wolff in person because he was apprehensive about Wolff's reaction.[127] At an FIA Prize Giving Ceremony inVienna on 2 December 2016, five days after winning the championship, he made public his decision to retire.[128] Rosberg said he had reached the "pinnacle" of his career;[128] he did not want his driving skills to atrophy,[129] and wished to spend more time with his young family.[128] He was the first reigning champion to retire from Formula One sinceAlain Prost in1993.[128] Williams driverValtteri Bottas replaced Rosberg at Mercedes.[90]
In retirement, Rosberg's love of engineering and innovation saw him become aneco-entrepreneur,[130] by investing in positive change to the environment and society.[131] He used his celebrity status to advance the industry,[129] beginning with a fact-finding visit toSilicon Valley,[130] where he tested and observed the construction of electric and self-driving vehicles.[132] In July 2017, he visited the headquarters of the all-electricFormula E racing series,[133] and became fascinated in thee-mobility movement.[134] Rosberg became a long-term investor and shareholder in Formula E in early 2018.[134] Focusing primarily on Europe,[135] Rosberg has invested in multiple start-up technology and e-mobility companies.[112][136] He had the idea to launch the annual Greentech Festival trade fair,[131] which he did with the entrepreneurs Sven Krüger and Marco Voigt in February 2019 to showcase sustainable technologies from around the world in Berlin.[112][137] He replacedFrank Thelen as an investor on the German television programmeDie Höhle der Löwen (The Lions' Cave) in late 2019.[138] In 2022, Rosberg launched the non-profit organisation Rosberg Philanthropies that focuses on environmental protection and supporting children.[139]
In October 2017, Rosberg joined Team Rosberg as an adviser for itsADAC GT Masters sports car championship team in2018.[140] He also joined the management team of the racing driverRobert Kubica that September. Rosberg assisted in Kubica's desire to return to Formula One after a severe 2011 rally accident left the latter with partial movement in his right arm.[141] He reduced his involvement with Kubica in April 2018 to focus on his business career.[142] Since the 2018 season, Rosberg has analysed select Formula One races forSky Sports F1 in the United Kingdom,RTL in Germany, andSky Italia in Italy.[143] He impressed viewers for conveying digestible information to them.[11] That same year, Rosberg co-founded the Rosberg Young Drivers Academy with karting mentor Dino Chiesa to scout and support young go-kart drivers.[144] In April 2019, Rosberg declined an offer from the Head ofAudi Motorsport Dieter Gass to drive anRS5 DTM as awild-card entrant in theDeutsche Tourenwagen Masters (DTM) because he did not feel fit enough to return to racing.[145]
In late 2020, he established Rosberg X Racing (RXR) formed on parts of the structure ofhis father's DTM team to compete in theall-electric SUVoff-road racing seriesExtreme E from the 2021 season on.[65][146] He entered the series because of its promised racing action and wanted to help combat some of climate change's effects collectively.[147] RXR won theinaugural Extreme E constructors' title with driversJohan Kristoffersson andMolly Taylor as drivers' champions.[148] The team narrowly missed out on retaining the constructors' title in2022 by two points to Lewis Hamilton'sTeam X44.[149] In December 2024, Rosberg announced that RXR would cease operations in Extreme E as the racing series will be replaced as Extreme H for 2025.[150]
Rosberg has aYouTube vlogging channel,[135] and hosts the podcast "Beyond Victory" in which he discusses human performance and development with his guests.[151]
Journalists describe Rosberg as articulate,[28] one who speaks with "Germanic precision" and has "more than a hint of canny PR-iness, distributing praise with diligent equality and seasoning his narrative with caveats when required."[26] He has avoided appearing to be courageous to impress others,[152] and some saw him as detrimental to Formula One's goal to attract new fans due to a perceived lack of personality and his commitment to fitness.[153] Nicknamed "Britney" after the singerBritney Spears by his colleagues at Williams for sporting blonde hair,[16][152] Rosberg is shy in private,[1] reserved, quiet,[9] and has a dry and sarcastic wit, which has occasionally "played out with a deft finesse."[42] He has been called charming,[7] shrewd,[42] intelligent, focused, and photogenic.[154] Rosberg prefers to be challenged for structuring,[113] and is an avid reader of books that further his knowledge.[155] His wealthy and cosmopolitan Monegasque upbringing,[9] coupled with hispolyglotism led him to describe himself as an "International German."[7]
Throughout his career, Rosberg had a strong work ethic, talking to engineers and mechanics, and approached each circuit with the care of a cartographer.[6] Formula One pundits regarded Rosberg as "among the most promising emergent stars of what some already call 'the Lewis generation'."[41] The media and fans compared him initially to the 1982 world champion, his father Keke.[9] That comparison lessened as his career progressed; he refused to discuss the comparison with the press and the difficulty in attempting to achieve as much success as his father was rarely mentioned.[156] When Rosberg was Michael Schumacher's teammate at Mercedes, he was highly cautious about what he said to the off-track press, fearing that they could misinterpret his words.[157]
Rosberg had a scientific and technical driving style;[112][158] he sought to fine-tune his car in specific detail and adapted his driving ability around the changes, especially over a single lap.[159] He shared his father's preference of oversteer over understeer and lacked a flamboyant driving technique.[155] Rosberg's qualifying preparations would be compromised in the event that he leaned towards a race setup; he analysed the situation and attempted to optimise his driving style to win races.[160] He occasionally used more of the circuit, using his car's ride over a bumpy track to ask the car to take as much as possible. Rosberg was sometimes unable to cope with the stress of extra complications, causing him to overdrive in the process, but was adept at managing technical issues on his car.[158]Will Buxton, a motorsport commentator and pundit, described him as "quick from the outset" and a driver who "was so impressive; seemingly effortlessly rapid and blessed with a precision that was metronomic."[42]
For the 2014 season, the FIA created a new sporting regulation to allow a driver to select a unique car number for use throughout their Formula One career.[161] Rosberg selected number six because it was his wife and father's lucky number.[162] He also changed the colour of his helmet after eight years from yellow to dark grey. The overall design included chrome, someBuddhist influence, clean lines, and personal symbols; it was designed by Jens Munser.[h][162][164]
Creative Artists Agency (CAA), through its sports division CAA Sports, represents Rosberg's commercial ventures.[165] From 2010 to 2015, he was associated with the jewellery and watch brandThomas Sabo, and the luxury travel accessory maker Tumi.[166] Rosberg signed numerous endorsement contracts; some of the companies with which he has done business are the watchmakersRolex,International Watch Company andOris,[126][167][168] the tyre makerContinental Tire,[169] the luxury fashion houseHugo Boss, the toy car companyHot Wheels, the railway companyDeutsche Bahn, the media broadcastersSky Sports and RTL,[167] energy companyEnBW and logistics providerJungheinrich.[170] As a result of Rosberg's endorsement money and Mercedes salary, he was listed as one of the world's highest-paid athletes byForbes in 2016.[166]
Rosberg is an ambassador for Mercedes-Benz,[134]Laureus,[171] the investment bankUBS, the Tribute to Bambi Foundation,[172] and the electric car manufacturerSchaeffler Group.[137] He is part of the alcohol brewing companyHeineken's anti-drink-drive campaign,[173] including appearing with his father in an advertisement forzero-alcohol beer in 2020.[174] Rosberg accumulated €160,900 for the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation as part of a campaign called #DriveForGood in which €100 was donated for every kilometre he led in a Formula One race from the2015 Chinese Grand Prix to the season-ending 2015 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.[171]
In 2012, Rosberg teamed with the children's aid organisation Ein Herz für Kinder (German: A Heart for Children) and has raised capital for the charity through various events.[175] Rosberg has worked for theViva con Agua de Sankt Pauli charity,[48] which supplies water and basic sanitation to individuals in developing countries.[176] In response to themurder of George Floyd, in June 2020, Rosberg donated €10,000 to theNAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund to aid its efforts in educating the public on racism and ending segregation.[177] He invested money into projects involving reforestation in Germany and the promotion of South American sustainable agro-forestry.[112]
On 5 June 2011, Rosberg received theLorenzo Bandini Trophy, which honours a recipient "for their dedication to motor racing, spirit of competition and achievements".[178] At the 2014 Brazilian Grand Prix, he won the inaugural FIA Pole Trophy for winning more pole positions than any other driver during the 2014 season with 11.[28] Rosberg won theDHL Fastest Lap Award because he recorded seven fastest laps, more than any other driver during the 2016 season.[179]
† Driver failed to finish the race but was classified since he had completed more than 90% of the race distance. ‡ Half points awarded because less than 75% of race distance was completed.
^Rosberg's father was not enthusiastic about his son being teammates withLewis Hamilton because the latter had outperformed him in karting and the Formula 3 Euro Series.[67]
^The leakedPanama Papers revealed that the contract was constructed with the law firmMossack Fonseca administered company to restrict "liability law" risks and allow Rosberg to operate internationally. Neither Daimler nor Rosberg committed malice.[105]
^Association football's world governing bodyFIFA asked Rosberg's manager Georg Nolte to ask his client to change the design of his helmet to celebrateGermany winning the2014 FIFA World Cup due to a copyright violation.[163]
^A total of four poles achieved during qualifying, and one pole as a result of the reverse grid in the sprint race.[125]
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