After securing his first Formula One World Championship crown last Sunday, a drained Nico Rosberg spoke in hushed tones — about his monumental accomplishment — to the world’s press.
Relief was ostensibly the predominant feeling for the 31-year-old German, who pipped his Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton to the title by five points after finishing second to the Briton in the Formula One Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.
After eloquently and patiently fielding myriad questions, he and his wife Vivian walked out arm in arm into a maelstrom of flash-bulbs and fawning fans in the Yas Marina Circuit paddock.
And then, the usually calm and composed Rosberg finally allowed himself to let go.
Rushing headlong into a sea of friends, he was tossed into the air and then spent several minutes joining the largely Italian gathering in incessantly chanting ‘campione del mondo’ (champion of the world) as if he was possessed.
This was what it meant to have fulfilled a childhood dream, which began when he started karting at the age of six.
This was what it meant to have emulated his father, Keke, the 1982 F1 world champion; the pair are only the second father-and-son duo to have achieved the feat after Britain’s Graham and Damon Hill.
And finally, this was what it meant to have taken the title from the three-time champion Hamilton, with whom he has had a frosty relationship since they joined Mercedes in 2013.
The Briton — a boyhood friend of Rosberg when they competed in karting in their early teens — is demonstrably the superior driver, winning back-to-back titles in 2014 and 2015. He also finished 2016 with victory in the final four Grands Prix for a total tally of 10 wins to Rosberg’s nine.
Refusal to obey Mercedes
His success in Sunday’s Abu Dhabi GP was his 53rd race win — only the seven-time champion Michael Schumacher has achieved more (91).
But it was shrouded in controversy when Hamilton drove deliberately slow in an attempt to get rivals to overtake Rosberg. His tactics and refusal to obey Mercedes team orders to speed up — Hamilton needed to win and for Rosberg to finish lower than third to claim the world title — have been condemned by some of the F1 fraternity.
And before last weekend’s title decider, Hamilton, rather ungraciously said: “If he is labelled the world champion, it doesn’t necessarily mean that is the way it is labelled in my heart.”
But even Bernie Ecclestone, the sport’s supremo, believes Hamilton is a worthier champion. Last year, the outspoken 86-year-old told Rosberg to his face that: “You are bad for my business.” Ecclestone was alluding to the fact that, aside from his supreme talent, Hamilton epitomises the showbusiness dimension he craves to attract fans and sponsors.
He inveterately parties as hard as he drives, mingling with Hollywood A-listers and other luminaries. Ahead of the Abu Dhabi GP, he spoke of his close friendship with women’s tennis legend Serena Williams, while rumoured girlfriend — the British singer and actress Rita Ora – watched the race in the Mercedes garage.
While Hamilton revels in fame, Rosberg’s ideal evening involves him watching an ‘educational documentary’ with his wife, their yellow Labrador, Bailey, at their side.
Innately talented driver
And while Hamilton grew up in an end-of-terrace house on a tough council house and used to watch drug dealers from his window, Rosberg’s life was one of privilege. He was brought up in Monaco, attended a prestigious international school there and now speaks five languages. He has known Vivian, an interior designer, since his teenage years. The pair has a one-year old daughter — Alaia. Vivian and him make smoothies or ‘healthy’ pancakes when they are at home in Monaco or Ibiza. They pick vegetables from their bio-garden.
Rosberg enjoys a bike ride to the beach for lunch and adores his classic car — a light-blue Mercedes 280SL Pagoda.
In essence, Rosberg resolutely likes to do things his own way, irrespective of the fact that Hamilton may be the more renowned and innately talented driver.
And while his family life is quiet and relaxed compared to Hamilton’s more frenzied lifestyle, the 31-year-old is a ferocious trainer and is constantly seeking ways to boost his fitness. These include underwater training, which he explained thus to Forbes magazine earlier this year: “When I am racing, my breathing is different to under normal circumstances. In fast corners, for example, or if I have to brake hard, I stop breathing and sometimes I feel like I’m not getting enough oxygen. So I thought this kind of training could help me cope in these situations.”
But sport is as much psychological as it is physical and Rosberg has displayed supreme mental fortitude to recover from crushing title defeats to Hamilton in 2014 and 2015.
“I’ve really learned to focus hard,” he said last Sunday. “It takes a lot of sacrifice also to stay so focused during a whole year.”
Rosberg may not be the most gifted driver ever, but his unswerving dedication to his craft in the face of Hamilton’s imposing aura means he unreservedly deserves to revel in being ‘campione del mondo’.
