Nico Rosberg shares Lewis Hamilton’s view as he suggests the team he would ‘consider’ making F1 comeback with

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Nico Rosberg retired from Formula 1 shortly after winning the 2016 world championship.

Rosberg followed in his father Keke Rosberg’s footsteps by racing with Williams – whom he made his debut with in 2006. After spending four years with the Grove-based outfit, he made the switch to Mercedes.

Partnering with seven-time champion Michael Schumacher on his comeback to F1, the German joined the Silver Arrows after they took over from defending champions Brawn GP. At the time, they were not a title-winning outfit with podiums proving hard to come by.

Rosberg secured his and the team’s first win in 2012 at the Chinese Grand Prix. After Schumacher retired for good at the end of the season, the German would be partnered by close friend Lewis Hamilton for 2013.

Mercedes made a stride forward that year as they finished second in the Constructors’ Championship. But the turn of the turbo hybrid era brought incredible success to the Brackley-based team – and with it, a fierce rivalry between their drivers.

Coined ‘The Silver War’. Hamilton and Rosberg clashed numerous times on track as they battled for championships during the team’s dominance. While the former won the battle in 2014 and 2015, the latter got his moment of glory in 2016.

Nico Rosberg would consider F1 comeback with Ferrari besides Mercedes

Team principal Toto Wolff will ‘never understand’ how Hamilton and Rosberg fell out and how toxic the environment got within the team. In many ways, it was good the German retired from F1 when he did.

Rosberg had a lightning start to 2016, winning the opening four races. After the two Mercedes crashed into each other in Barcelona, Hamilton sought to defend his title by winning six of the next seven races.

But the German’s three-race win streak that followed and Hamilton’s damaging retirement in Malaysia all but handed the title to Rosberg. He won the championship at the final race of the season in Abu Dhabi by just five points over his teammate.

Aged just 31 at the time, the German called time on his F1 career. Rosberg said he was tired of forcing Hamilton into mistakes, with one title being enough for him.

READ MORE: Nico Rosberg explains why being Lewis Hamilton’s Mercedes teammate was ‘incredibly difficult’

Many have wondered if Rosberg could return to F1 and fight for another championship down the line. Nine years on from his retirement and the German has shown no signs of stepping back into the cockpit.

But when previously asked the question by Sky Sports F1, the 39-year-old said if he was to return, the ‘best fit’ would still be Mercedes. However, he would also consider Ferrari as the ‘only other’ option besides the Silver Arrows.

“Well, the best fit would still be Mercedes. But the only other one that I would consider would be Ferrari then”, he said.

“Because I speak Italian and I get on best with the Italians. I really love Italy, so that would be the only other one”.

What Nico Rosberg has said about Lewis Hamilton’s move to Ferrari

Rosberg’s comments about Ferrari are interesting now that his ex-teammate and arch-rival Hamilton has moved to the Maranello outfit to finish his career.

The seven-time champion has completed his first week with the team and ran his first test in a Ferrari F1 car on Wednesday at the team’s Fiorano Circuit.

Hamilton will be up against Charles Leclerc in 2025 in what will be a tough test for the 40-year-old, especially given his struggles with Mercedes last season. But Rosberg says Hamilton will be so motivated by his ‘deep love’ for the sport and the exciting new challenge of racing in red.

F1 fans have already noticed Hamilton’s excitement about his move to Maranello as he greeted his new team members with a beaming smile.

The Brit will be eyeing his record eighth championship in 2025. Tom Coronel has told Hamilton to ‘disappear’ from F1 if he achieves that goal with Ferrari.