Michael Schumacher's career as a Formula 1 driver has been touched by tragedy, incredible success, and also a fair share of controversy. Schumacher came into the sport when he joined the Jordan team for the 1991 Belgian GP, following a spell in sportscars driving for the Sauber Mercedes team. Schumacher's inauspicious spell at Jordan was over almost as soon as it had begun, when he was snatched from under a disbelieving Eddie Jordan's nose to join the Benetton team. There began an illustrious career that was to deliver his maiden GP win at Spa in 1992 and two World Championships, the first in 1994 and then again in 1995. 1994 was a turbulent year which gave Michael his first glimpse of F1 tragedy with the deaths of Roland Ratzenburger and the great Ayrton Senna at Imola. Schumacher's first title came after a season long battle with Damon Hill, which was decided in controversial fashion at the last GP of the season in Australia, as Schumacher swung his crippled Benetton accross the circuit colliding with Hill as he attempted to pass, and forcing Damon out of the race with damaged suspension. Schumacher took his second title in 1995, again with Benetton before leaving for Ferrari, a partnership that was destined to be the most successful the sport has ever seen.It took some time to put the key players in place, with Jean Todt, Ross Brawn, Rory Byrne and Nigel Stepney all joining the dream team. Schumacher rewarded them by delivering his first win for Maranello in the Spanish GP at Barcelona in 1996. Damon Hill and Jacques Villeneuve claimed the drivers title in 1996 and 1997 for the then dominant Williams team, a period in which Michael and Ferrari were steadily laying the foundations for the future. Michael again courted controversy in 1997 when he made a desperate move on Jacques Villeneuve in an attempt to snatch the title, but this time it was Schumacher who retired as a result with Jacques going on to take the title. The ill conceived move prompted the FIA to exclude Michael from the championship standings stripping him of the runners up spot in the process. Schumacher bounced back however and was locked in battle with McLaren and Mika Hakkinen in 1998 and 1999, with Mika taking back to back titles, but Schumacher and Ferrari had begun to flex their muscles giving the first indication of the total supremacy that was to come. There followed a 5 year spell of unprecedented success, the like of which had never before been seen in the sport, with Ferrari and Schumacher, ably supported by Eddie Irvine and later Rubens Barrichello sweeping all before them in a style that would have made Enzo Ferrari proud. It was during this time that Schumacher began his assault on all of the major F1 records taking back to back titles in 2000 with 9 wins, 2001 with 9 wins, 2002 with 12 wins, 2003 with 6 wins and 2004 with 13 wins. Incredibly Michael had beaten Juan Manuel Fangio's long standing record of 5 world titles, a record that many believed was unbeatable. 2005 saw Ferrari and Schumacher's domination come to an abrupt end with new kid on the block Fernando Alonso and Renault taking the title. Michael could only manage a single hollow victory at the farcical US GP following a huge accident for Ralf Schumacher due to tyre failure and the subsequent withdrawal of the Michelin shod teams. 2006 saw something of a resurgence for Ferrari with Schumacher determined to wrestle the title back from Alonso in a year that saw rumours of his impending retirement becoming more and more prevalent. He caused more controversy at Monaco when his Ferrari came gently to a halt against the barriers in the dying moments of qualifying bringing out the yellow flags thereby guaranteeing his pole position time would not be beaten. However the FIA reacted to the outcry that followed as many believed the manouevre was premeditated and Michael's times were nullified, resulting in him starting the race from the pit-lane. Alonso took the win with Schumacher finishing in 5th place. Despite the fact that Michael took 7 wins during the season, and produced an epic drive against adversity to bring his career to a close in the final race at Interlagos, it was Fernando Alonso that secured his second drivers title. Michael had duly announced his retirement (See Mercedes GP comment below) at Monza thus bringing to an end the most successful career ever in terms of statistics. The inevitable question asked on his retirement, is whether he is the greatest F1 driver ever?. In terms of statistics the answer has to be yes, but opinion is divided beyond pure numbers. Michael's brushes with controversy, probably driven by his ruthless and single minded desire to win, for many means that he has to share the greatest tag with drivers of the calibre of Juan Manuel Fangio, Ayrton Senna, and Jim Clark. There can be no perfect answer, and everyone has their own view. What is certain is that he will be missed, as he has been the benchmark for such a long time, and whatever you think we may never see some of the records he has established beaten again. Sensationally Michael Schumacher was tempted out of retirement by the Mercedes GP Team (Ex Brawn GP) for the 2010 season and will be partnered by Nico Rosberg to form an all German line up.
Nationality - German
Born 03 Jan 1969
First GP Belgium 1991
Total GP's - 250
Wins - 91
Poles - 68
Fastest laps - 75
Total points - 1369
Front row starts - 115
Podium finishes - 154
Max wins in a season - 13
Consecutive wins
in a season - 7
Teams
-Jordan
-Benetton
-Ferrari
-Mercedes GP
Claim to fame
-World Champion
-1994
-1995
-2000
-2001
-2002
-2003
-2004
