Nico Rosberg has revealed the go-karting ‘technique’ that Michael Schumacher was still using in F1 when he returned to the grid with Mercedes in 2010.

After retiring from Formula 1 just one year after securing his seventh world title in 2005, Michael Schumacher stunned the world by announcing his return to the grid ahead of the 2010 season.

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Schumacher won the 2004 F1 title in round 14/18 at Spa

However, it was clear that the German F1 legend was not the same driver as he was four years prior, with a combination of Mercedes’ midfield-calibre pace and his own rustiness contributing to results that were a far cry from what we saw during Schumacher’s heyday.

Still, he was the same charismatic, unwaveringly determined world champion, with Nico Rosberg now revealing just how brilliant Schumacher was at Mercedes despite his lack of a race win for the Silver Arrows.

Nico Rosberg on Michael Schumacher’s return to F1 with Mercedes in 2010

In a recent interview with German newspaper Der Spiegel, Rosberg was asked a multitude of questions regarding Schumacher’s stint at Mercedes, with the first pertaining to how much F1’s rule changes hindered his return to the sport.

“For Michael, it was of course a disadvantage that test driving was so restricted,” Rosberg replied. “One of his strengths – optimising everything through painstaking attention to detail during test sessions – was thus taken away from him.

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“It was also clear that he was struggling a bit to adapt from Grand Prix to Grand Prix, from situation to situation. He wasn’t as consistent as he used to be. But then there were weekends again when he was as brilliant as in the old days.”

Then asked to recall some examples of his brilliance at the Brackley-based outfit, the 2016 world champion said: “There are plenty. I remember a rainy weekend at Silverstone in 2012. What I saw from Michael in qualifying there was incredible.

“He didn’t take pole position – he only came third – so the international press didn’t give it the recognition it deserved. But I was able to study the data showing how he steered the car across the wet track. Simply world-class.”

After sifting through Schumacher’s data from the rainy qualifying session in Singapore, Rosberg was very impressed with what he saw: “He applied a technique he learnt back in his go-karting days in Kerpen to Formula 1.

“He played with the brakes and throttle simultaneously to balance the car. And that’s exactly what he did in the fast corners at Silverstone. Out of this world – not human.”

It could also be mentioned that Schumacher’s go-karting techniques have likely rubbed off on Max Verstappen, given the Dutchman spent quite a lot of time with the F1 legend as a youngster.

The Verstappens and Schumachers were close friends during their respective stints on the grid, with Jos Verstappen serving as Michael’s teammate at the Benetton F1 outfit.