The Bahrain Grand Prix holds fond memories for Mercedes star Nico Rosberg.

It was March 12, 2006 and the track temperature was 40 degrees-Celsius. The air was 23 degrees-Celsius. But in the cockpit, Rosberg found himself in a boiling cooker for the next 90 minutes. 

But despite this, he drove his Williams FW28 to finish 7th from 12th on the grid, setting the fastest lap of the race 15 laps from the end of the grand prix. It was a spectacular achievement and the 27-year-old has gone on to prove he is one of the most reliable Formula 1 drivers on the grid. 

With two retirements and a 4th place this season, Nico Rosberg is hoping his luck will change this weekend after a disastrous Chinese Grand Prix, where his teammate Lewis Hamilton drove from pole position to finish 3rd. 

“I’ll be really happy to get back in the car again on Friday after a tough weekend in Shanghai,” Rosberg explained aftering retiring due to a suspension problem on the Far Eastern circuit. “The first three races haven’t quite worked out as we had hoped on my side but the positive is that we have a car that we can really work with. 

“So I’m looking forward to getting on with this weekend and the circuit at Sakhir is one that I like very much. It’s going to be very tough on the rear tyres and our biggest challenge will be to make the most out of the situation. 

“We’re better prepared than we were last year and we have shown that the car is much stronger so I really hope that we can achieve a great result in Bahrain.”