Keke Rosberg seems to be making a serious bid to take over from Niki Lauda as F1's top old fart commentator; in the last week he has made quotable comments to just about every journalist in sight, opining the hell out of the sport and its participants. On this showing, Niki needs to look to his laurels, on productivity at least.
Keke and Nico
Look at the range of Keke's thoughts too - you name it, he has an opinion to offer. From Hamilton to Fisichella, BMW's chances to Vettel, Keke has it all sewn up.
And it is hard to argue with such sound reasoning as well. Yes, Hamilton will have a much more difficult year given the expectations raised in 2007, of course all the rookies are going to have to prove themselves against more experienced team mates, and BMW are indeed hard to assess, given their initial problems with the F1.08 and their inconsistent testing times. Here is a commentator at the peak of his game, treading the sure and solid ground, avoiding the wild and fanciful.
Keke has chosen the right moment to make his move as well, Niki having already revealed that he thinks Ferrari are way ahead; after that, there is not much to speculate on, is there? With consummate ease, Keke has seen the gap and slipped by the old statesman.
The others are also-rans, of course. John Watson makes his occasional bid for fame but usually gets lost in the pack, Prost's appearances are so rare that he might as well stay in the pits, Jackie Stewart is wrapped up in a personal battle with Max Mosley, and Damon Hill has enough on his plate with trying to ensure Silverstone's survival.
So what has brought on this sudden leap of Keke's into the spotlight and will he be able to maintain such scintillating form? The plain fact is he finds himself with time on his hands. In an unguarded moment, he let slip the revelation that Nico, his son, rarely discusses the job with him: "When I talk to Nico, we talk about other things; he tells me nothing (about F1), even when I push him!", he said.
Ominous news for Lauda, methinks. With little to do in helping his gifted son towards stardom, Keke is free to pronounce his opinions at every opportunity. Never one to hold back when an overtaking move presents itself, the old warrior has seized his opportunity and sprinted into the lead.
And I, for one, am glad that Keke has done so. Niki is always good for a few quirky viewpoints but is desperately handicapped by his Ferrari fascination. Keke brings a new approach to the game, actually trying to tell it like it is with no holds barred. He was always honest, even admitting on his retirement from the sport that he felt that Prost had beaten him (prematurely, in my opinion - he did not give himself the benefit of taking luck into account).
We shall see how the year pans out but I suspect that we have seen the emergence of the new king of the ex-champion commentators. Go Keke!