The explanation was quite simple. Each time he won a world title – from his overall 7 – his car had an odd race number on it. Consequently, as he is targeting an 8th world title in either 2010 or the seasons after that, he believed he'll only have a decent shot at clinching it if he'll race with an odd number.
With Nico Rosberg being the first driver confirmed by Mercedes GP for the 2010 season, he was handed the No 3 race number, while Schu was to take the No 4. However, team manager Ross Brawn revealed, during the car launch event at the Mercedes-Benz Museum on Monday – that the team did Schu a favor, especially since Rosberg had no objection to it.
“Michael is a bit superstitious when it comes to odd and even numbers – although he certainly has nothing against an eighth title. For us to refuse this favor (to Schumacher) would have been pointless, because Nico didn't care. Nico agreed. Anyway, what they both really want is car number 1,” said Brawn.
What's curious about it is that no driver who has competed with the No. 4 race number on his car ever won a world title. Although that might make some drivers wonder, the youngest of the Mercedes racers thinks it won't have any effect on his performances through 2010.
“When I win in Bahrain, people will care not about the number that is on my car, but about the driver who is inside,” said Rosberg.
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