Discover the complete story of 2016 Formula 1 World Champion Nico Rosberg, from his intense rivalry with Lewis Hamilton, his remarkable career achievements, to insights into his current net worth and life after racing.

Nico Rosberg became Formula 1’s 33rd driver to win a world championship in 2016 after winning 23 races in his career. Here is everything you need to know about him.

Son of the Finnish 1982 world champion Keke Rosberg, he was born in Germany and holds dual nationality, but chose to represent the former while racing.

His father funded his karting career, and at the age of 12, he became the youngest champion of a French national karting series in 1997.

Rosberg progressed to the European Karting Championships in the late 90s and early 2000s, with him coming runner-up in 2000 to none other than Lewis Hamilton.

When did Nico Rosberg’s rivalry start with Lewis Hamilton?

In 2000, Rosberg Snr managed to arrange for his son to race for the McLaren Mercedes kart team in the 2000 Formula A championship.

This is where his rivalry with Hamilton began, as the pair ended up in the same team. After ending the year at the top of the championship table, Hamilton finished ahead of Rosberg.

Rosberg would go on to make it to F1 first with Williams, but not before he raced against Hamilton in junior single seaters.

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Nico Rosberg makes the step up to single seaters

Rosberg made the step up to single seaters in 2002 when he raced in the Formula BMW championship. He dominated the series, winning nine of the 17 races and scoring 264 points overall.

He would later graduate to Formula Three Euroseries, finishing eighth in 2003 and in 2004 he would take four wins and end the season in fourth overall after a battle with Hamilton, who made his debut in the category.

Things would come to a head between Rosberg and Hamilton the same year at the Macau Grand Prix, with Rosberg crashing out of the race and taking Hamilton with him at Lisboa corner.

Rosberg moved to GP2 in 2005, where he battled with former F1 driver Heikki Kovalainen for the championship. With three races to go, Rosberg took the lead of the championship and hung on to win by 15 points with five wins in total.

His title success in GP2 led to a drive with Williams in 2006, the very same team his father won the world championship with in 1982.

Nico Rosberg’s early years in F1 with Williams

Rosberg’s debut year in F1 was slightly muted in 2006, but there were flashes of speed, notably in the Bahrain Grand Prix when he set the fastest lap.

In 2007, he was partnered alongside the experienced Alex Wurz whom he consistently outqualified and finished ninth in the championship.

Rosberg would later be chased by McLaren over the winter break for his signature in 2008 as a replacement for Fernando Alonso, who left the team after one season, but he chose to stay at Williams in anticipation of the regulation change for 2009.

The 2008 season started strong as it featured Rosberg’s first podium in Australia, a feat he would manage to achieve at the controversial Singapore GP later in the year.

The 2009 season would prove to be a disappointment for Williams, with regular points finishes but no podiums for Rosberg. He would later sign for Mercedes for the 2010 season alongside the return of Michael Schumacher.

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Nico Rosberg’s early years with Mercedes

Rosberg would outpace Schumacher consistently throughout the 2010 season, but the Mercedes W01 proved to be a difficult car to drive for the German.

The team ended the year with no victories or podiums, with the same in 2011 when those who perfected the blown diffusers, such as McLaren and Red Bull, were on top.

This would all change in 2012 when the regulations were tweaked to ban the blown diffusers and Pirelli’s tyres were more consistent. Mercedes started strongly, with Rosberg taking his first victory at the 2012 Chinese Grand Prix.

He followed it up with second place in Monaco, although the team’s performances were often marred by bad luck. Schumacher would take the final podium of his F1 career in Valencia, while Rosberg finished the year ninth overall.

Things would change in 2013 when Schumacher retired and Hamilton made the switch, with Toto Wolff also replacing Ross Brawn as team principal. Rosberg would go on to win two races at the Monaco and British Grands Prix, the former coming 30 years after his father won in 1983.

The return of the Rosberg versus Hamilton saga at Mercedes

The 2014 season would be the start of the titanic battle for titles between Hamilton and Rosberg, after Mercedes had emerged as the team to beat for the start of the hybrid era.

Rosberg rose to the challenge, taking five Grand Prix victories and more poles than Hamilton who is known for being one of F1’s best qualifiers. He would ultimately fall short of the title after Hamilton won more races, while the pair had their fair share of controversies.

Rosberg had won his second Monaco Grand Prix after he ran down the escape road at Casino during qualifying and prevented Hamilton from improving, then the pair would later collide during the opening laps of the Belgian Grand Prix, forcing Hamilton to finish outside of the top three while Rosberg collected 18 points.

The 2015 season started poorly for Rosberg, with Hamilton building up a healthy championship lead in the opening rounds. Rosberg only managed three wins: Spain, Monaco and Austria.

After losing out in Russia and Italy, the final blow would come at the US Grand Prix when Hamilton took the lead and won when Rosberg slid off track on a damp section in the wet conditions. The season ended strongly for Rosberg, with him taking victory in Abu Dhabi.

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Nico Rosberg wins first and only F1 title in 2016

Rosberg’s coming of age would be in the 2016 season when he continued his winning streak from 2015 and extended it into the first four races of the year.

Hamilton was plagued by poor starts and reliability, but things would become worse when the pair collided on the opening lap of the Spanish Grand Prix. Both were knocked out on the spot after Hamilton attempted an overtake on the inside of Rosberg, while Max Verstappen went on to take his first win at Red Bull.

The 21-race season, F1’s longest ever at that stage, enabled Hamilton to slowly chip away at Rosberg’s points advantage. The German struggled at the Monaco and British Grands Prix, enabling Hamilton to take a 19-point lead at the summer break.

Rosberg returned reinvigorated and won races in Belgium, Italy Singapore, and Japan. At the Malaysian GP, he was tipped into a spin at the start by Sebastian Vettel but fought back to fourth place.

The race would prove to be pivotal for Hamilton’s chances after he retired with an engine failure. Despite winning all the remaining four races of the season, Rosberg held on and won the title by just five points.

Why did Nico Rosberg retire from Formula 1?

Almost immediately after he achieved his dream and clinched the world championship, Rosberg announced his retirement at the FIA Prize Giving Gala in Paris just five days later.

He retired from F1 on the spot, citing “hard work, the pain, the sacrifices” along the way and having reached his “peak” he felt it was the right time to leave so he could focus on his family.

Rosberg went out in the highest possible manner in F1, winning the world championship and bowing out having beaten one of its most formidable opponents.

How old is Nico Rosberg? Where was he born?

At the time of writing, Nico Rosberg is 39 years old. He was born in Wiesbaden, West Germany on 27th June 1985.

Nico Rosberg’s net worth

Nico Rosberg’s net worth is estimated to be at just over $20 million (£16 million) according to The Guardian. In retirement, Rosberg pursued other business ventures, including sustainability and TV punditry.