Nico Rosberg revealed in a recent interview, that although he is in touch with Mercedes boss Toto Wolff, he has no real friends at the team he won his 2016 Formula 1 world title with.
Lewis Hamilton versus Rosberg was a bitter rivalry that developed at Mercedes, turning teenage pals into sworn enemies as they dueled for supremacy at the German team. While Hamilton won two F1 titles during their time together, in 2014 and 2015, Rosberg was World Champion the following year.
It was also Nico’s lasy after claiming the title in Abu Dhabi, he quit the sport a few days later, citing not having it in him to go up against Hamilton again; the 37-year-old Briton still remains the man to beat,
Now six years since they were teammates, Rosberg revealed in an interview with La Gazzetta dello Sport: “Hamilton? He remains one of the strongest, age doesn’t affect him. He and Mercedes have accomplished something remarkable to be competitive again quickly. I’m sure they’ll be Red Bull ‘s main rivals next year, especially towards the middle of the season.”
Rosberg was candid when he revealed he is in touch with his former Mercedes boss but no others from his winning team: “I see Toto Wolff every now and then. I hear him on the phone. I should say I don’t have any real friends.
“That’s because the most important part of my career has been in an unusual situation with the whole team having to keep a neutral attitude between Lewis and I. It was a strange environment, knowing that the main rivalry was inside the garage.
“There was team spirit without overreacting and so it became difficult to approach. It must be easier for Verstappen who is considered by all to be the number one in the team I guess, because of that, there’s a lighter mood at Red Bull,” ventured Rosberg.
The German scored 57 podiums in his 206 Grand Prix starts, celebrating as a winner 23 times for Mercedes, his father Keke Rosberg was 1982 F1 World Champion.
Rosberg, a popular pundit on Sky F1 and various German channels, was absent from the paddock for 2022 as F1 adopted a ‘no vaccination, no entry’ ban on media, team personnel, drivers, organisers, and officials.
However, with the FIA relaxing measures against Corona and vaccination certificates no longer required, Nico is likely to make a return to the paddock behind the microphone again.
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