Rosberg has finally a competitive car

Keke Rosberg, born on December 6, 1948, is a Finnish former racing driver who, after excelling in Formula Super Vee and Formula 2, raced in Formula One from 1978 to 1986 for the Theodore, ATS, Wolf, Fittipaldi, Williams, and McLaren teams. Rosberg won the World Drivers’ Championship in 1982 with Williams and won a total of five Grands Prix.

Despite a difficult 1981 season with Fittipaldi, Keke Rosberg was recruited by Williams to replace the retiring Alan Jones. The Finn, finally behind the wheel of a competitive car, was able to showcase his full potential, scoring points regularly and achieving his first career victory at the Swiss Grand Prix held at the Dijon-Prenois circuit (picture below).

It was a tragic season with the disappearance of Gilles Villeneuve at Zolder and of young Riccardo Paletti in Montreal, and the accident that abruptly ended Didier Pironi’s career at Hockenheim.

It was also a season in which no driver won more than two races, and it was therefore Rosberg who took the crown at the wheel of his Williams FW08 powered by the Cosworth DFY V8 against the super powerful, but unreliable turbo engine that equipped the Renault and Ferrari teams.