Rosberg targets big Texas win and F1 title
AUSTIN: Nico Rosberg, pictured, has been working towards this moment for the last 10 years. In the next two races over seven days, he could become Germany’s third Formula One world champion after Michael Schumacher and Sebastian Vettel.
The driver born in Wiesbaden, the son of Finland’s 1982 F1 world champion Keke Rosberg, has a 33-point lead over teammate Lewis Hamilton in the drivers’ championship going into Sunday’s US Grand Prix in Austin, Texas.
With the Mexican GP the following Sunday, the Mercedes driver could take a giant, and perhaps decisive step, towards his first world championship title.
Austin, though, is a happy hunting ground for world champion Hamilton, who last season wrapped up his third drivers’ title at the Circuit of the Americas and has won three of the four races staged there.
“Last year this race obviously didn’t work out so great for me, so I’m looking forward to getting back out there and doing my best to get it right this time,” Rosberg said this week.
Last year’s race saw Hamilton nudge Rosberg off on the first turn; the German then ran wide while leading late in the race, allowing his teammate to pass to take the chequered flag. After the race an angry Rosberg threw a cap back at Hamilton.
This time 31-year-old Rosberg has matters in his own hands to wear the winning Stetson hat in Texas and the sombrero donned by the victor in Mexico.
If Rosberg wins both races and Hamilton finishes one of the races lower than second, the title is his. Even if Hamilton wins the last four races, Rosberg only needs to finish second on each occasion to be sure of the title.
Hamilton will need to raise his game if he is to have any chance of a successful title defence. Rosberg has won five of the last six races, and since his defeat last year in Austin has won 12 of 20 races.
“We’ve got four races left to make the most of it and that’s exactly what I plan to do,” Hamilton said.
“It’s just about hitting every race weekend as hard as I can, going all out for every win and seeing what happens from there. I’ll be holding nothing back out there.”
Meanwhile the US team Haas, which has garnered 28 points in its first F1 season, is looking forward to a first home race. – dpa