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Nico Rosberg 'Shocks' Motorsports World, Retires From F1 Following Maiden Title

Newly crowned F1 champion Nico Rosberg has decided to retire from the sport, leaving his Mercedes team scrambling to find a replacement. Rosberg shocked the motorsports world on Friday when he made the announcement, less than a week after securing his maiden F1 title. The son of '82 world champion Keke Rosberg made the announcement through a statement on his official Facebook account. “I have climbed my mountain, I am on the peak, so this feels right,” Rosberg said. “When I won the race in Suzuka, from the moment when the destiny of the title was in my own hands, the big pressure started and I began to think about ending my racing career if I became World Champion. On Sunday morning in Abu Dhabi, I knew that it could be my last race and that feeling cleared my head before the start.” Rosberg is the first driver since four-time F1 champion Alain Prost in ’93 to retire from the sport after claiming the world championship title. Rosberg acknowledged in his statement that the timing of his decision puts the Mercedes F1 team in a “tough situation.” Most drivers have already signed new contracts for the ’17 season, making it difficult for the team to fill the vacant seat. Rosberg ends his 10-year F1 career with 23 race wins in 206 grand prix starts for Williams and Mercedes. Mercedes Motorsport Head Toto Wolff said that the news of Rosberg’s retirement took him by surprise. New regulations in ’17 could threaten Mercedes’ on-track dominance, which makes the task of securing a top driver even more urgent. Names such as Jenson Button and Felipe Massa, who both also retired from the sport at the end of the season, have been circulated as potential candidates for the open seat. Other candidates include Williams driver Valtteri Bottas, along with Ferrari’s Sebastian Vettel and McLaren’s Fernando Alonso. However, it is more likely that Mercedes will offer the seat to a young driver who is already part of the Mercedes motorsport program, such as Pascal Wehrlein or Esteban Ocon. A decision is expected by the of the this year.

LEAVING MONEY ON THE TABLE? Rosberg’s decision to retire from the sport also threatens his sponsorship appeal. The 31-year-old German had a sponsorship deal with jeweler Thomas Sabo from ’10-15, but shied away from other endorsement deals. Rosberg’s sponsorship activities were largely reduced to Mercedes' 23 official team partners. As a result, Rosberg’s estimated sponsorship income of $1M annually was four times less than that of former teammate Lewis Hamilton, according to Forbes’s most recent list of the world’s highest paid athletes. Rosberg’s world championship victory was expected to boost his sponsorship income, which now remains doubtful (HJ Mai, SBD Global).

THE END OF A RIVALRY
: In London, Harry Slavin wrote Hamilton "has revealed he was not surprised" by Rosberg's decision to retire from Formula One, but "admits he will miss the intense rivalry" with his former Mercedes teammate. Hamilton: "This is the first time he's won (a title) in 18 years, hence why it was not a surprise that he decided to stop. He's also got a family to focus on, and wants more children, and Formula One takes so much of your time. Will I miss the rivalry? Of course." The British driver "also added that he too may be walking away from the sport in the near future." When asked about his own future, Hamilton said that "he does not have any immediate plans to stop." But he added, "Who knows, maybe my end is coming soon" (DAILY MAIL, 12/2). The BBC reported Mercedes non-exec Chair Niki Lauda wants to "give a Christmas present" to a driver after Rosberg's retirement. Lauda: "It is a huge loss because we had the quickest driver set-up over the last three years. I need a driver for the first test in February when the new car is ready. ... This is a big problem for us to find a replacement." The former three-time world champion added, "We have the best car to offer but at the moment no driver. The other drivers, or the majority certainly, have 1 December contracts for next year so really we have to do good research, who is there, what and when and then we will take a decision, but it will take a while" (BBC, 12/4).

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