REMEMBER the favourite essay question which teachers like to set in school: "What do you want to be when you grow up?"

When they were 12, Nico Rosberg and Lewis Hamilton knew exactly what they wanted to do in life - to become Formula One drivers.

They honed their racing skills from their karting days, and have become good friends since.

They shared a childhood dream, which was to stand side-by-side on the podium of a F1 race one day.

That dream became a reality last Sunday when Hamilton, representing McLaren, won the Australian Grand Prix while Rosberg secured his first podium finish for Williams in third spot.

It was a poignant moment as the two close friends hugged each other and drowned themselves in champagne.

Rosberg, who was in Singapore for the RBS Grand Prix Challenge Grand Finale on Tuesday, told The New Paper: "Lewis (Hamilton) and I started racing against each other when we were 12 years old.

"We were team-mates in the same karting team for two years.

"We had always dreamt of standing together on the F1 podium one day.

"It was really cool when it actually happened on Sunday."

While Hamilton is arguably the most talked-about driver in Formula One these days, it won't be long before Rosberg becomes a household name like his childhood friend, if his performance in Australia last weekend was anything to go by.

In an incident-filled race, only seven of the 22 cars finished the race, the fewest in Melbourne's 13-year history.

"It was complete chaos," said the 22-year-old German.

Right till the end, you didn't know what was going to happen.

"My game-plan was to stay on the track, don't make any mistakes and get to the finishing line.

"Luckily, it turned out well for us."

THUMBS-UP

While Rosberg has given the thumbs-up to the new Williams FW30 which he is driving, he admits that his Toyota-powered car has still some way to go in matching the powerful Ferrari and McLaren machines.

But man for man, Rosberg believes that he is a match for Hamilton.

He said: "Obviously, the hype is on Lewis now. But I believe in myself. I know I have what it takes to be as good as Lewis, if not better.

"Otherwise, I might as well quit and stay at home.

"Lewis has done a great job, but he's had the luck which you need in sports.

"He was given a winning car at the start of his career. Nobody has ever had that privilege before.

"But that's only half of the deal. You still need to make the best out of it, and Lewis has done exactly that."

If fate had it, he could have been competing alongside Hamilton in McLaren colours.

Along with Adrian Sutil and Heikki Kovalainen, Rosberg was one of the drivers singled out by Hamilton to replace his estranged former team-mate Fernando Alonso, who is now back with Renault.

But Rosberg, who finished ninth in the Drivers' Championship last season, signed a new contract with Williams, ending speculation about a move to McLaren. Kovalainen has since signed for McLaren.

Rosberg had said in an earlier interview: "I could imagine myself joining McLaren just like I could see myself at Ferrari.

"Every young driver wants a car that can bring you the title. I'm no different. I race for success. But I feel I have to be patient."

Patience is one of the many virtues he inherited from his father Keke, who was Finland's 1982 world F1 champion.

Not one media interview goes by without Rosberg being asked about his famous father.

He said: "My dad doesn't follow me to every race as he used to. But he's been invaluable to me and my career.

"Obviously, he can't help me drive the car, but he has helped me with a lot of things outside the track, like how to deal with the press," he quipped.

Having a famous dad is not the only interesting tidbit about Rosberg.

He was offered a place to study aerodynamics at Imperial College in London three years ago.

GP2 SERIES

But instead he decided to join the ART Grand Prix team in the newly-created GP2 Series.

It proved to be the right decision as he went on to become the first driver to win the GP2 title.

He said: "I would have enjoyed studying at Imperial College. But I realised that I cannot study and race at the same time.

In the end, I chose to do what I really like - racing.

"I thought I could always go back to studying if things didn't work out. That's over now, because I think I'm doing pretty well."

Rosberg will be searching for his second podium finish at Sepang this weekend.

Judging by his performance in Melbourne, there is talk that Williams would make a return to the front of the grid on a regular basis. But Rosberg prefers to take one race at a time.

He said: "I'm really happy with the new car. The biggest difference has been the aerodynamics of the car.

"They have made a lot of progress on the downforce or the wings, which is most important for F1 cars.

"We got off to a good start in Melbourne, which is good for our confidence.

"But I reckon we're still around the fourth-best team at the moment, so we still have some way to go.

"My target for the next few races is to finish in the points."

Beating his childhood friend Hamilton would be an added bonus.

This article was first published in The New Paper on Mar 20, 2008.