Gerhard Berger believes that Nico Rosberg is an even match for Sebastian Vettel, and if they were in the same team, he wouldn’t know which German to put his money on.
“For me, Nico is on a par with Vettel,” he told Auto und Motorsport. “He can win with the right car.
“Nico has shown this year that he makes very few mistakes and he usually places before Michael Schumacher. If Rosberg and Vettel were to sit in the same car, I would not know whom I should put my money.”
The 50-year old then moved into Adrian Sutil, ranking him as the surprise of the season along with Rosberg, despite admitting he laughed at the Force India driver prior to 2010.
“Last year I was laughing at him,” he said of Sutil. “I would have never believed that he had so much potential. He has tremendous speed, and he has reduced his errors dramatically. For me, he is with Rosberg the surprise of the season.”
Berger then concluded that rookie German, Nico Hulkenberg, could be a match for team-mate Rubens Barrichello, if he starts making fewer mistakes.
“He’s currently learning. He makes many more mistakes than Vettel and Rosberg at the start of their careers. [But] I think the mistakes that undermined Hülkenberg are normal for a first year.
“If everything fits, then he goes almost to the level of Barrichello. And that’s a compliment.
“Barrichello is certainly the best man in the second league.”
