What is the 'Nico Rosberg curse' and how did it fall on Max Verstappen and Ferrari during the 2023 F1 Italian GP race weekend?

Former F1 world champion Nico Rosberg's unintentional and famous curse fell on Max Verstappen and Ferrari at the 2023 F1 Italian GP.

Although the German is frequently seen as a presenter on Sky Sports and is one of the most famous characters in the sport, he is more popular for the unintentional curse he puts on current teams and drivers through his selfies and comments.

There is a running joke in the F1 world that whoever Rosberg clicks a selfie with or shows support for, that team or driver underperforms or encounters some unfortunate fate during race weekends.

Before the qualifying session of the 2023 F1 Italian GP, Nico Rosberg commented that Max Verstappen could take the pole position around Monza. This statement acted as a jinx, as the Red Bull driver was unable to take the pole away from Carlos Sainz in Q3.

Later on, Rosberg posted a picture from the pit wall, where the pit boxes of Red Bull and Ferrari were visible. Although it did not affect Red Bull in the main race, Ferrari was defeated by Red Bull drivers and finished third and fourth.

Of course, Rosberg does not intentionally do so, as he simply states what he feels or randomly clicks pictures. However, the coincidence of that team or driver not performing well has occurred so many times that many people feel that there could be an actual curse at work.

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Red Bull advisor on Max Verstappen's tire temperature management at the 2023 F1 Italian GP

Red Bull advisor Helmut Marko recently stated how Max Verstappen had to manage his tires' temperatures during the latter stages of the 2023 F1 Italian GP.

Furthermore, the Dutchman had to swallow his urge to clock in the fastest lap of the race simply because he was unable to push hard enough for a last-minute pitstop.

“We had to manage it and didn't want to take any risks, but it also helped to get the idea of a fastest race lap out of the head for Max,” Marko told Motorsport Network.

“That had to do with rising temperatures that we had to control. We had to keep it within a certain window. Moreover, he was 12 seconds ahead, so there was no reason to take any risks. On the other hand, this was also positive to get the idea of a possibly fastest race lap out of Max's head,” he added.

Max Verstappen won yet another race and broke the record for the most consecutive F1 race wins in the history of the sport.