F1 Legend

Keke Rosberg

Finnish

  • Solna, Sweden Place of Birth
  • 6 December 1948 Date of Birth
  • 1978 South African Grand Prix F1 Debut
  • McLaren Current/Last Team

Keke Rosberg is a Finnish former racing driver best known for his Formula 1 career, during which he became the 1982 Drivers’ Champion with the Williams team.

NationalityFinnish
BornKeijo Erik Rosberg
6 December 1948
Solna, Sweden

Born in Sweden and raised in Finland, Rosberg began his racing career in karting, eventually advancing to Formula Vee in 1972. After securing the Finnish Championship in 1973, he progressed to Formula Super Vee, where he won the German Championship in 1975. Rosberg then moved to the European Formula Two series, competing between 1976 and 1979. At 29, he made his Formula One debut with Theodore Racing at the 1978 South African Grand Prix. Although he struggled to score points during the rest of the 1978 season with both Theodore and ATS, Rosberg achieved a win in the non-championship BRDC International Trophy in only his second Formula One race.

In 1979, Rosberg replaced the retiring James Hunt at Wolf Racing, though his season ended without a classified finish. He joined Fittipaldi Automotive in 1980 alongside Emerson Fittipaldi, where he earned his first Championship points finish and podium on his debut with the team.

Rosberg’s biggest career move came in 1982 when he signed with Williams. Despite securing only one race victory that season at the 1982 Swiss Grand Prix, his consistent podium finishes were enough to help him win the 1982 Drivers’ Championship, making him the first Finnish driver to claim the title. Rosberg’s title defence in 1983 was hindered by Williams’ struggles adapting to the turbo era, though he did win the 1983 Monaco Grand Prix and the final non-championship Race of Champions. He secured more victories for Williams in subsequent years, winning the 1984 Dallas Grand Prix in and the Detroit and Australian Grands Prix in 1985. In 1986, Rosberg moved to McLaren to partner with Alain Prost, but despite competitive drives, he was unable to secure a win that season and retired from Formula 1 at the end of the year.

After Formula One, Rosberg continued to compete in other racing series, winning multiple races in the World Sportscar Championship with Peugeot (1990-1991) and in the Deutsche Tourenwagen Meisterschaft (DTM) from 1992 to 1995.

Post-retirement, Rosberg moved into driver management, guiding the careers of notable drivers such as JJ Lehto and Mika Hakkinen. He also managed and coached his son, Nico Rosberg, from his early karting days to his eventual 2016 Drivers’ Championship. That win made Nico and his father Keke the second father-son duo to win the World Drivers’ Championships, following Graham Hill and Damon Hill.

Keke Rosberg Formula One World Championship career

F1 Career1978–1986
TeamsTheodore, ATS, Wolf, Fittipaldi, Williams, McLaren
EnginesFord, Honda, TAG
Entries128 (114 starts)
Championships1 (1982)
Wins5
Podiums17
Career points159.5
Pole positions5
Fastest laps3
First entry1978 South African Grand Prix
First win1982 Swiss Grand Prix
Last win1985 Australian Grand Prix
Last entry1986 Australian Grand Prix

Keke Rosberg Teammates

10 TeammatesInvolvementFirst YearLast Year
Jochen Mass31978
Emerson Fittipaldi141980
Chico Serra151981
Carlos Reutemann21982
Mario Andretti11982
Derek Daly121982
Jacques Laffite3119831984
Jonathan Palmer11983
Nigel Mansell161985
Alain Prost161986

Race Wins

Race wins

Win NumberGrand Prix
11982 Swiss Grand Prix
21983 Monaco Grand Prix
31984 Dallas Grand Prix
41985 Detroit Grand Prix
51985 Australian Grand Prix

Complete Formula One results

YearEntrantChassisEngine12345678910111213141516WDCPoints
1978Theodore Racing Hong KongTheodore TR1Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8ARGBRARSA RetUSW DNPQMON DNPQBEL DNQESP DNPQNC0
ATS Racing TeamATS HS1Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8SWE 15FRA 16GBR Ret
Theodore Racing Hong KongWolf WR3Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8GER 10AUT NC
Wolf WR4Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8NED RetITA DNPQ
ATS Racing TeamATS D1Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8USA RetCAN NC
1979Olympus Cameras Wolf RacingWolf WR8Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8ARGBRARSAUSWESPBELMONFRA 9GER RetITA RetUSA RetNC0
Wolf WR7Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8GBR Ret
Wolf WR9Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8AUT RetNED RetCAN DNQ
1980Skol Fittipaldi TeamFittipaldi F7Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8ARG 3BRA 9RSA RetUSW RetBEL 7MON DNQFRA RetGBR DNQ10th6
Fittipaldi F8Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8GER RetAUT 16NED DNQITA 5CAN 9USA 10
1981Fittipaldi AutomotiveFittipaldi F8CFord Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8USW RetBRA 9ARG RetSMR RetBEL RetMON DNQESP 12FRA RetGBR RetGER DNQAUTNED DNQITA DNQCAN DNQCPL 10NC0
1982TAG Williams TeamWilliams FW07CFord Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8RSA 5BRA DSQUSW 2SMR1st44
Williams FW08Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8BEL 2MON RetDET 4CAN RetNED 3GBR RetFRA 5GER 3AUT 2SUI 1ITA 8CPL 5
1983TAG Williams TeamWilliams FW08CFord Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8BRA DSQUSW RetFRA 5SMR 4MON 1BEL 5DET 2CAN 4GBR 11GER 10AUT 8NED RetITA 11EUR Ret5th27
Williams FW09Honda RA163E 1.5 V6 tRSA 5
1984Williams Grand Prix EngineeringWilliams FW09Honda RA163E 1.5 V6 tBRA 2RSA RetBEL 4 †SMR RetFRA 6MON 4 ‡CAN RetDET RetDAL 18th20.5
Williams FW09BHonda RA164E 1.5 V6 tGBR RetGER RetAUT RetNED 8 †ITA RetEUR RetPOR Ret
1985Canon Williams TeamWilliams FW10Honda RA164E 1.5 V6 tBRA RetPOR RetSMR RetMON 8CAN 43rd40
Williams FW10Honda RA165E 1.5 V6 tDET 1FRA 2GBR RetGER 12 †AUT RetNED RetITA RetBEL 4EUR 3RSA 2AUS 1
1986Marlboro McLaren InternationalMcLaren MP4/2CTAG TTE PO1 1.5 V6 tBRA RetESP 4SMR 5 †MON 2BEL RetCAN 4DET RetFRA 4GBR RetGER 5 †HUN RetAUT 9 †ITA 4POR RetMEX RetAUS Ret6th22

Sources:

  1. Keke Rosberg. Wikipedia.com

Teammates

Driver Nationality Current/Last Team F1 Debut Status
German March 1973 British Grand Prix Retired
Brazilian Fittipaldi 1970 British Grand Prix F1 Legend
Argentine Williams 1972 Argentine Grand Prix Died
American Ferrari 1968 United States Grand Prix F1 Legend
French Williams 1974 German Grand Prix Retired
British McLaren 1980 Austrian Grand Prix F1 Legend
French Williams 1980 Argentine Grand Prix F1 Legend

Teams

Team Nationality Debut Season Status
Theodore Hong Kong 1977 Historic
ATS German 1977 Historic
Wolf Canadian 1977 Historic
Fittipaldi Brazilian 1975 Historic
Williams British 1978 Current
McLaren British 1966 Current