• Mercedes

Rosberg claims to be 'on a par' with Schumacher

Nico Rosberg insists he will be able to match Michael Schumacher © Sutton Images

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• Drivers:
• Nico Rosberg
• |
• Michael Schumacher

• Teams:
• Mercedes

Nico Rosberg is confident he will be able to match the pace of Michael Schumacher at Mercedes this season.

His team is widely regarded to be among the top four heading towards the season opener in Bahrain, alongside Ferrari, Red Bull and McLaren. After four years at Williams without a win, Rosberg is confident he will be challenging for victories in 2010, even if it means beating Schumacher in a head-to-head battle.

"I will definitely be on a par with him and win races this year," Rosberg told Bild. "To do that I have to beat him now and then. But Michael is the best racing driver of all time, and certainly not without justification."

Rosberg admitted the competitive field means that at least one of the top eight drivers will be underperforming. However, he denied that Schumacher, who has spent three years in retirement, will be left behind by his younger rivals.

"It won't be like that," he said. "But the tests have shown that there are at least four strong teams that are very close together and one of these eight drivers must be at best eighth."

Rosberg added that he had earned Schumacher's respect during pre-season testing, even though he had not been able to directly compare his pace as the pair had not been out on the track at the same time.

"I think Michael respects me a bit more after these tests, which is important to me," he said. "Above all, I wanted to show the team that the car runs equally well when I am at the wheel."

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.