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Michael Schumacher is one of the living legends of Formula One racing. The seven times World Champion retired from the sport in 2006, but made a dramatic announcement of a comeback at the end of 2009. In 2010 Schumacher will attempt to become the first F1 driver to win 100 Grand Prixs.
Nationality: German
Date of Birth: 03/01/1969
Team: Mercedes
World Championship Titles: 7
First Race: 1991 Belgian Grand Prix
First Win: 1992 Belgian Grand Prix
Car Number:
2009 Championship Position: N/A
Michael Schumacher made his Formula One debut in 1991 at the age of 22, driving for the Jordan team in the Belgian Grand Prix. The rookie famously learnt the Spa track on a fold-up bicycle, and went on to perform impressively on debut, instantly attracting the interest of the racing community.
It took exactly a year for Schumacher to take his first grand prix,
winning the Belgian Grand Prix at second attempt while driving for Benetton on a wet Spa track. Despite driving an inferior car, Schumacher managed to finish in the top three of the Drivers Championship in his first full season in the sport.
The following season saw Schumacher’s ambitions frustrated by a lackluster Benetton car, which resulted in 17 retirements during the season. In 1994 Schumacher survived a torrent of controversy to win his first Drivers Championship, winning the title by crashing arch-rival, Damon Hill, out of the final race of the season.
Schumacher’s second title win was far more comprehensive, as the German dominated the Drivers Championship, eventually finishing the season 33 points ahead of Damon Hill. In doing so Schumacher became the youngest two-time champion in the history of Formula One, and helped Benetton to its first Constructors Championship.
Michael Schumacher joined Ferrari in 1996, and spent three frustrating seasons as runner-up in the Drivers Championship. During this period Schumacher continued to court controversy, and found himself disqualified from the championship after attempting to win the 1997 title by crashing with Jacques Villeneuve.
The new millennium saw Schumacher come to the fore at Ferrari, as the German took his first title with the team in 2000. That win sparked a record string of title victories, as Schumacher claimed the Drivers Championship five years in succession while Ferrari dominated the Constructors Championship.
In 2005 Ferrari began to lose momentum, and Schumacher managed to win only one race, finishing 3rd in the Drivers Championship. The German managed a place better in 2006, with an engine failure at the Japanese Grand Prix ultimately costing him the title. Schumacher chose to retire from the sport at the end of the season.
Fans believed that Schumacher’s career was dead and buried until the 2009 Formula One season, when the German offered to fill in for the injured Felipe Massa at Ferrari. Schumacher was set to launch his comeback before medical complications due to neck injury sustained earlier in the year ruled him out of contention for a place in the team.
Schumacher refused to give up on his comeback plans, and towards the end of the 2009 season announced that he’d be returning to the sport in 2010 as a driver for the Mercedes GP team, driving alongside compatriot Nico Rosberg.
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