Rosberg vs Hamilton

Lore & Background

Some journalists have contrasted the drivers' upbringings. Rosberg, an only child, was born in Germany but brought up in Monaco and is the son of the wealthy former Formula One world champion, Keke Rosberg, whereas Hamilton was raised on a council estate in Stevenage, and his father had to work multiple jobs to fund his son's junior racing. Hamilton began karting in 1993, when he was eight, at the Rye House Kart Circuit, and quickly began winning races and Cadet class championships.

Rosberg started out in 1991 at the age of six. The pair were first teammates in 2000, still in karting. They raced for Mercedes Benz McLaren in Formula A, where Hamilton became European champion, with Rosberg not far behind. Robert Kubica, who raced with them before Formula One, recalled how they were competitive both on and off the track, saying: 'They would even have races to eat pizza, always eating two at a time.'

The pair's old karting boss, Dino Chiesa, admitted Hamilton was the faster driver whereas Rosberg was always more analytical. This led some to believe that Rosberg would achieve greater success in Formula One, the highest level of open-wheel racing, due to the intellectual capacity required to manage brakes, energy harvesting, tyre management, and moderate fuel usage. Hamilton's tyre management has frequently allowed him to push on for longer, often enabling optimum race strategies, and his fuel usage has regularly been better than almost anyone on the grid; Sky Sport's Mark Hughes commented: 'Rosberg has a more scientific methodology, looks to fine-tune more specifically than Hamilton who typically tends just to find a balance he can work with, then adapt his driving around it.'

Formula One pundit and commentator Will Buxton compared the character and driving styles of the pair, labelling Hamilton as the faster driver with more natural ability, but with an intellect to match Rosberg's. In 2017, Buxton wrote: 'Man to man against Rosberg, I can’t recall a single race this year where in the same machinery Hamilton’s fuel usage has been higher. He has made his tyres last. He has had to fight from the back of the field time and again (think Germany, think Hungary) and yet he hasn’t overworked his tires, he hasn’t used too much fuel. He has learned how to drive these new cars, and to extract the most from them using the least ...

Reader's Guide

Team-mates in Formula One (2013–2016)

2013 season: Childhood friends reunited In September 2012, it was announced after much speculation that Hamilton would be leaving McLaren to join Mercedes for the season, partnering Rosberg after signing a three-year contract with the team. The move was met with surprise by pundits and the public, with some describing the move to Mercedes, a team with no recent history of success, as a gamble. Mercedes finished as runners-up to Red Bull in the Constructors' Championship with 360 points.

Hamilton, who scored a win in Hungary, four third places and five pole positions finished fourth in the drivers' standings with 189 points. Rosberg, despite winning two races in Monaco and Britain, finished sixth with 171 points. He achieved four podium finishes in total and three pole positions. The first sign of tensions between the pair was at the 2013 Malaysian Grand Prix, where Mercedes implemented team orders, telling Rosberg to hold station behind Hamilton in fourth place.

Hamilton questioned the radio call and after the race admitted Rosberg had deserved the final spot on the podium. The incident passed without controversy, drowned out in the subsequent days by the 'Multi-21' saga at Red Bull.

2014 season: Hamilton wins the first title battle After pre-season testing in Jerez, Mercedes were widely considered favourites for , appearing to have reacted well to changes to regulations mandating the use of turbo-hybrid engines. Mercedes' anticipated pace was realised at the season opener in Australia, and also in Malaysia where Rosberg and Hamilton took dominant victories respectively, finishing far ahead of any other teams (polesitter Hamilton retired in Australia due to engine failure).

Their first intense battle for victory happened at the 2014 Bahrain Grand Prix as both drivers engaged in a close duel for the win. A late safety car seemingly swung the favour to second-place Rosberg, who had the benefit of being on a faster tyre, but after the restart Hamilton held firm in a close wheel-to-wheel encounter which passed without the pair making contact. In parc ferme after the race the pair engaged in a mock fight. It later emerged that Rosberg had used engine modes banned by Mercedes to give himself a power advantage over Hamilton in the closing laps.

Did You Know?

• Hamilton and Rosberg first raced together as teammates in karting in 2000 for the Mercedes-Benz McLaren junior kart team.
• Hamilton won the World Championship twice during their time as teammates (2014 and 2015), while Rosberg won once (2016).