Nico Rosberg names F1 world champion who had a similar disappointing exit to Daniel Ricciardo

Follow us on Google Discover

It’s crazy to think that Nico Rosberg retired from Formula 1 nearly a decade ago, after claiming his one and only world championship crown.

Retiring at the top of your game is something that some athletes can only dream of, and the German had the pleasure of acting it out in real life after receiving help from Michael Schumacher to secure glory.

Since then, he has gone on to enjoy a new career as a pundit and stayed away from stepping back into any form of cockpit entirely.

It appears that he enjoys his family life, and has no regrets about his decision to retire to this day, nearly eight years on from the 2016 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix.

Sebastian Vettel goodbye ‘really not worthy’ of a champion

After the Singapore Grand Prix, a lot of focus has been on Daniel Ricciardo and whether he will return after the upcoming four-week break.

His farewell from the sport seems as if it’s going to end up not quite the way he might have planned, without any proper finality to his last race.

It’s something that Rosberg pointed out on the Sky Sports F1 podcast was also the case with four-time champion Sebastian Vettel, who he believes deserved a better send-off.

READ MORE: What Red Bull did at the Singapore Grand Prix that ‘upset’ Daniel Ricciardo’s camp

“Sebastian Vettel also, the way his career ended also I think is just not really worthy. It’s something that moment carries me for the rest of my life,” he said.

“It is powerful and important for me to get it right. In hindsight, I know it sucked at the time for many people because everybody was enjoying the battle with Lewis, but also for myself and my family it was the right decision.”

Could Vettel return for a better goodbye in the future?

There were rumours in the Formula 1 paddock earlier in the season that Vettel might return with Mercedes or Audi for 2025.

They didn’t materialise though, and the German has continued to enjoy retirement – while also dipping his toes into the World Endurance Championship with Porsche.

He drove the Porsche 963 in a test which suggested he may be eyeing a Le Mans berth in the future, but nothing has been confirmed yet.

READ MORE: Nico Rosberg explains how he thinks Christian Horner is now putting ‘pressure’ on Toto Wolff

It’s pretty likely that he won’t return to the sport next year, and if it doesn’t happen by 2026, it’s safe to say that the four-time champion is likely gone for good.

If by some miracle he does return though, one final shot at glory may be all that he needs to receive the farewell that Rosberg believes he was always worthy of.