Rosberg turned down return to F1: 'Don't have those muscles anymore'

Nico Rosberg won the world championship with Mercedes in 2016, after which he immediately decided to leave Formula 1. The German still had the chance to return once more in 2020, but eventually decided not to do so. In retrospect, he sees this as the right decision.

His former teammate Lewis Hamilton had a positive COVID-19 test just before the Sakhir Grand Prix, which prevented the Brit from competing in the race weekend. Mercedes then went looking for a replacement and ended up with Rosberg, who considered the proposal. However, his conclusion was that it was not a good idea.

Rosberg said in an interview with Antenne Bayern that he has been considering the possibility. "I thought about it," he states during the interview, after which he came to the conclusion that it was physically impossible. "I certainly don't have a chance to race more than three laps. My arms would stop working and my neck would fall between my legs. I don't have those muscles anymore."

Therefore, Mercedes decided to look further and eventually ended up with George Russell. The Brit made such an impression at the time that the German racing team decided to appoint him as the successor to Valtteri Bottas in 2021.