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Nico Rosberg has been one of the regular fixtures for the Sky F1 team in the last few years. The 2016 F1 world champion was very commonly found in the paddock, with the rest of the team last season conducting interviews. This season, however, the German is doing all of that from his home in Monte-Carlo.
Doing so for the fly-away races did make sense. When the German was not in the paddock for the Monaco GP, where he resides, however, it raised questions of whether he was denied entry into the paddock for not having a vaccination certificate on him.
As reported by PlanetF1, Nico Rosberg's PR manager admitted that the driver has not been vaccinated as his doctor feels he already has enough antibodies in the system. She said:
“The former F1 driver has chosen not to be vaccinated for Covid-19 as he has already had it and therefore his doctor feels he has enough antibodies.”
While that is the case, however, Rosberg's manager refuted claims that he had been denied entry into the paddock, saying:
“This is not true. He didn’t try to get into the F1 paddock.”
She further clarified, saying:
“Nico Rosberg recovered from a corona virus infection and currently holds a recovery certificate. He has his antibody levels tested regularly and, on the recommendation of his doctor, does not currently require any vaccinations. In addition, he continues to comply with all necessary hygiene and precautionary measures.”
Last season, the FIA stipulated that only a negative PCR test was needed for those who needed access to the paddock, but this year, it has ruled that only those vaccinated are allowed in. There are, however, grounds where those with medical reasons can apply for a special permit. For now, it is unclear whether Rosberg did apply for the exemption.
Rumors of Nico Rosberg getting banned from the paddock were doing rounds yesterday
After reports emerged that Nico Rosberg had opted not to be vaccinated and had been absent from the F1 paddock this season, many media outlets ran the story of the former F1 champion being banned from the paddock on those grounds.
While it is still unclear as to why Rosberg was not in the paddock in Monaco, this just seems to be the start of a story that might have a few iterations left still.
