Rosberg couldn't have been champion without us - Lauda

40

Mercedes F1 non-executive chairman Niki Lauda has said that Nico Rosberg would not have been able to become world champion without the team.

"Nico has improved so much because of the team and the car," Lauda told German publication Sports Bild this week.

"We have won three constructors' titles and Hamilton before won two drivers' world championships," Lauda explained. "With the Silver Arrow, Nico had the car and potential in his hands.

"You have to see it as a combination of Rosberg and Mercedes. Rosberg alone would not be World Champion - it is the car, team and Rosberg together."

Although Rosberg's announcement that he was retiring just five days after clinching the 2016 title, Lauda said that the team wouldn't miss him when the new season gets underway.

Lauda's blood pressure back down to normal

"Not at all. When he's gone, he's gone," said Lauda. "We had to come to terms with it and we did. We are now looking to the future and do not mourn Rosberg at all."

The team has since managed to prise Valtteri Bottas away from Williams to take over Rosberg's race seat at Mercedes. While some have suggested the Finn is a 'stop-gap' in lieu of Sebastian Vettel and Fernando Alonso becoming available in 2018, Lauda believes that might be unnecessary and insists that their new signing could prove every bit as good as his predecessor - if not better.

"Replacing Rosberg was not easy, but the combination of speed and experience spoke for Bottas," said the three-time world champion. "I believe Bottas is at least as good as Rosberg.

"He now has the opportunity to drive the best Formula One car in the world. This always gives a racing driver a boost and also boosts his own personal performance."

GALLERY: F1 drivers' wives and girlfriends

Keep up to date with all the F1 news via Facebook and Twitter

Andrew Lewin

Andrew first became a fan of Formula 1 during the time when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill were stepping into the limelight after the era of Alain Prost, Nigel Mansell and Aryton Senna. He's been addicted ever since, and has been writing about the sport now for nearly a quarter of a century for a number of online news sites. He's also written professionally about GP2 (now Formula 2), GP3, IndyCar, World Rally Championship, MotoGP and NASCAR. In his other professional life, Andrew is a freelance writer, social media consultant, web developer/programmer, and digital specialist in the fields of accessibility, usability, IA, online communities and public sector procurement. He worked for many years in magazine production at Bauer Media, and for over a decade he was part of the digital media team at the UK government's communications department. Born and raised in Essex, Andrew currently lives and works in south-west London.