Keke Rosberg

The buccaneering Finn became a firm favourite in the mid-eighties after he
had taken a surprise World Championship win in a season clouded by tragedy.
His subsequent exuberant performances, stabbing the turbo-powered Williams
around the world's circuits with frightening commitment, did much to supply
the entertainment factor that was often missing from the sport.

Born in Sweden of Finnish parentage, Keijo Rosberg was three times his
country's karting champion before moving with equal success into the
rough-and-tumble world of Formula Vee and Super Vee, taking the Castrol GTX
title in the latter category in 1975. He found a seat in the Toj Formula 2
team in 1976, but apart from a fourth place at Rouen this was not a
successful alliance. By the end of the year Keke had linked up with Fred
Opert, who satisfied the Finn's insatiable appetite for racing in 1977 by
running him first in New Zealand, where he took the Stuyvesant title, and
then in the European Formula 2 championship and the Labatt's Atlantic series
in North America.

There was no let-up the following year when Rosberg undertook a mind-numbing
schedule which totalled some forty races. In addition to repeating the
previous season's marathon stint for Opert, Keke moved into Formula 1 and
scored a shock win in a rain-drenched International Trophy race for the new
Theodore team. Although this result was something of a fluke, there was no
doubting the Finn's stunning car control, and his name was noted down as one
to watch by Formula 1 team managers. In World Championship races, of course,
it was a different story, as he struggled to make an impression in three
different makes of car.

Resigned to a season of Can-Am in 1979, Rosberg was often quicker but,
tellingly, also more erratic than champion Jacky Ickx, but a route back into
Grand Prix racing was to re-open after James Hunt's sudden retirement. His
half-season in a difficult car failed to provide any satisfactory results,
but he was back in the frame to stay. When Wolf amalgamated with Fittipaldi
for 1980 Keke was part of the package, and on his maiden outing at Buenos
Aires he scored his first championship points. However, the team lacked the
technical and financial resources to make a real impact and Rosberg was
forced to make up the numbers until the end of 1981 when it closed its
doors.

The cards suddenly began to fall for the Finn when he took over the Williams
seat vacated by Alan Jones at the start of 1982. Within two races the team's
other star driver, Carlos Reutemann, had also walked away from Grand Prix
racing and suddenly Keke was leading the team. Showing incredible maturity
for one not familiar with racing at the sharp end of the grid, Rosberg made
the odd mistake but maximised every potential points-scoring opportunity and
took a splendidly thought-out win in the Swiss GP at Dijon. By the end of
the year he had overhauled the unfortunate Didier Pironi's points total and
claimed a fairytale World Championship triumph. The following year saw Keke
hampered by a lack of turbo power, but this didn't prevent him taking a
classic win, driving on slicks throughout, on a damp track at Monaco. He
took the Cosworth car into battle with great ferocity elsewhere, never
admitting defeat when many others would have been content merely to cruise
round. When he finally got a turbo engine himself, Keke was to be frustrated
by the poor handling of the Williams chassis, but nevertheless he scored
perhaps the best win of his career in searing heat in Dallas in 1984 when
most of his rivals failed to avoid a meeting with the concrete walls.
Rosberg's relationship with Williams was never completely harmonious and he
wanted away at the end of the season but, forced to see out his contract, he
got on with the job without further complaint. Initially at least, he was
unhappy with the arrival of Nigel Mansell for 1985 but soon established a
rapport with his new team-mate. Having agreed a lucrative deal with McLaren,
Rosberg signed off from Williams with a sparkling win in Adelaide to start
the final short chapter of his Grand Prix career, but the partnership was to
be something of disappointment for both sides, with Keke rather taken aback
by his inability to come to terms with the talents of Alain Prost.

Rosberg quit without regrets, but stayed closely involved with the sport,
making a return to the wheel in the World Sports Car Championship with
Peugeot in 1991. With Dalmas, he took wins at both Magny Cours and Mexico,
before switching to the German touring car championship the following year
to race a Mercedes. Apart from his role in guiding young Finnish talent (the
careers of both Mika Häkkinen and JJ Lehto were under his shrewd
managership), Keke formed his own DTM team, initially running
works-supported Opels before switching to Mercedes. Rosberg also supported a
Formula 3 team in the German championship that proved the perfect platform
to develop the career of his son Nico. Indeed, under Keke's discreet
stewardship, the young Rosberg has graduated to Formula1 with Williams and
is currently seen as one of the sports hottest talents.