Former World Champion Nico Rosberg has said that he has never considered a return to Formula 1, but admitted that he could be tempted by a one-day test.
The former Mercedes AMG Petronas Motorsport driver, who retired immediately after pipping his team mate and childhood friend Lewis Hamilton to the 2016 world title, told F1’s Tom Clarkson that he has ‘moved on’ from racing but still watches the action from home every Sunday.
The 33-year-old has not raced at any level since 2016’s title decider. Yet, despite briefly testing next season’s Formula E car in Berlin, Rosberg has no future plans to return.
“If Toto [Wolff] rang and said: ‘Do you want to have a day driving the new cars?’, I would think about it,” he told F1’s Tom Clarkson.
“It would be awesome fun to experience those cars because they are so fast. I am not sitting here hoping that that will happen, though. I have moved on.”
Rumours in the summer linked Rosberg with a move to Formula E, a series that the German has been a vocal supporter and partner of since its creation in 2014.
“Physically it would not work,” he said.
“I drove a Formula E car recently and my forearms were tired after four laps, because I hold the steering wheel so tight and my body is not used to it anymore – so physically it is not possible.
“Also, the cars today are so fast so it would take me a lot of training to get back.
Nico Rosberg standing track-side at a Formula E weekend. Credit: Formula E
“In terms of speed: Over one lap I think I could catch up quickly. It is a scary thought actually. I have never been away from the very top of the sport ever since I was nine years-old.
“It is a scary thought that maybe one day I will just be as good anymore. I have moved on.”
