Nico Rosberg became a household name in F1 for his time spent as Lewis Hamilton’s teammate. But he wasn’t the first seven-time World Champion Rosberg had teamed up with. Before Hamilton, Michael Schumacher drove by his side at Mercedes, having come out of retirement in 2010 to help the Silver Arrows find its feet in F1.
Rosberg was Schumacher’s partner at Brackley for three seasons and in that time, he was amazed by his work ethic. An “almost billionaire,” as Rosberg described Schumacher, the German’s day-to-day work inspired him.
“He’s been out of the sport for two years, had a happy life, came back and just the work ethic when he came back was phenomenal,” said Rosberg to Forbes.
Rosberg was in awe of Schumacher‘s ability to get into the details to try and build relations within the team. “The way he was preparing himself physically, the warrior attitude he brought every day was phenomenal.”
#OnThisDay in 2010, Michael @schumacher and @nico_rosberg hit the track in Bahrain as @MercedesBenz returned to @F1 as a works team after 55 years. What a journey it’s been! #TBT pic.twitter.com/Nx3ZTnarVc
— Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team (@MercedesAMGF1) March 14, 2019
Mercedes in the early 2010s was far from the dominant force we know today. Yet, Schumacher, accustomed to driving for championship-winning teams during his peak, chose to support Mercedes and became a key, patient figure in their foundational years.
Rosberg too, admitted to seeing progress in himself because of how Schumacher behaved. Surely, it played a role in his future successes (2016 title win over Hamilton).
Schumacher’s second F1 stint didn’t match the legendary heights of his Ferrari and Benetton days, where he claimed five and two world titles, respectively. However, he laid the foundation for Mercedes to become future World Champions.
Schumacher gets the credit for Mercedes’ reign
Schumacher left in 2012, with Hamilton coming in to replace him and that marked the beginning of something very special. For the next eight years, Mercedes would unleash an era of dominance previously unseen in F1, winning eight consecutive World Championships.
In 2019, Toto Wolff called Schumacher the founding father of Mercedes’ success.
“He played a crucial role when we re-joined F1 and was one of the people who laid the foundation for our future success. We’re extremely grateful for everything he did for us,” the Mercedes Team Principal said on Schumacher’s 50th birthday.
Schumacher has remained out of the public eye while Mercedes went on their winning spree. Following his skiing accident in 2013, which caused brain damage, his family chose to maintain his privacy. On Gina Schumacher’s anniversary, it was reported that the former F1 legend made a public appearance after 11 years. However, media wasn’t allowed and the guest’s devices weren’t allowed inside the venue. Thus, his attendance remained away from the global gaze.
