Nico Rosberg, 2016 world champion, spoke about the pressure felt when you are the son of a world champion and following in his father’s footsteps, believing in particular that in his case, “you can practically only lose”.
At the heart of an exhausting internal struggle against Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes, Nico Rosberg achieved the feat of imitating his father by also being titled in F1 in 2016. Such a success which pushed him to immediately withdraw from the queen discipline.
The ex-Mercedes driver returned to the pressure that surrounded him before this title as the son of a world champion, pointing out in particular the constant comparisons made with his father, crowned in 1982.
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Rosberg : “Very intimidating to follow the same path”
“We are only the second father and son to both be world champions [après Graham et Damon Hill]which I am obviously very proud of,” started a smiling Nico Rosberg during the TUM Speaker Series.
“He was my source of inspiration. But of course he was also the best in the world at the sport. So maybe some of you who have successful parents can relate too.”
“It’s also very intimidating to follow the same path because you’re always going to be measured against the best in the world, which is the very, very high level.”
“Throughout my career, everyone always compared me: ‘Hey, is he as good as his dad?’ Or: ‘no, I don’t think he’ll be number one in the world’.”
“And you can pretty much only lose. It added a lot of pressure at first, but I think it helped prepare me for the challenges that awaited me later in my career.”
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Rosberg : “People expected me to match or surpass his achievements”
“Growing up as Keke Rosberg’s son wasn’t just about following in his footsteps – it came with incessant tracking and comparison,” continued on the subject Nico Rosberg, speaking on his LinkedIn account.
“The pressure was real. People expected me to match or surpass his achievements. But instead of letting this pressure overwhelm me, I used it as fuel to go further.”
“She forced me to work harder, focus more and, most importantly, find my own way.”
Keke Rosberg mistook her son for a “fou” in 2016
Nico Rosberg also returned to the moment when he decided to end his career just after winning the 2016 title. The German driver with 23 victories in F1 thus shared his father’s incomprehension at that moment.
“When I retired from Formula 1 after winning the world championship in 2016, it was not about moving away from success, but towards something new.”
“Many, including my father, didn’t understand at first – he even said to me, ‘You’re crazy!’.”
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