Schumacher: the driver who lived twice

October 4th 2012: Michael Schumacher announces his retirement from racing. He shared his decision on the eve of the Japanese Grand Prix. A place he knows well, having climbed six times on the highest step of the podium. Moreover, grid updates had recently been announced which we know would have many repercussions in the future. Mercedes had announced the hiring of Lewis Hamilton for three years, beginning with the 2013 season. McLaren would have hired Sergio Pérez.

Michael Schumacher announces his retirement from Formula 1, despite receiving an offer by Sauber. The German driver claims to be in a similar situation as the first retirement of 2006 and still knows nothing about his future.

I have decided to retire from Formula 1 at the end of the season. I can be happy with my performance during the last 3 years, as I have seen that I can still compete with the best drivers of the world. But then, at some point, it is time to say Goodbye – and this time, it might even be forever.

Schumacher announces his retirement, 4th October 2012

October 4th 2024: twelve years have passed since the former idol of Maranello decided to take off his circus suit, putting aside his second life as a driver, after having said goodbye to the first. The spectacular triumphs with Ferrari and Benetton, branded Flavio Briatore, for a total of almost unmatched seven World Championships won. A decision that the Red Baron makes at 43: a meditated farewell and perhaps influenced by the expectations not completely satisfied by the adventure in Mercedes. Since 2010, when he returned to race with the team led by Ross Brawn, he has collected a series of "bad impressions" with some rare exceptions, such as the podium in Valencia and a 'virtual' pole position (due to a previous disqualification) in Monte Carlo. Any reasons? Let’s just say a particularly not competitive car, a good dose of bad luck and an extremely fast teammate like Nico Rosberg. But can we really blame a champion like Michael who wanted to try to repeat himself? Perhaps him being a Champion is precisely this: the ambition to replicate, if not exceed, himself.

He won his two first World Championships with Benetton (in 1994 and 1995), until he reached the five incredible consecutive ones with Ferrari (severally in 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003 and 2004). Schumy was also the first German to become a Formula 1 World Champion; in 2003 he became the most titled driver (with the victory of the sixth world title, beating the record of Juan Manuel Fangio) and in 2004 he set another record winning his fifth consecutive title (the previous record, which was always held by Fangio, was four consecutive world titles). Now he shares that beautiful record of 7 world championships with Lewis Hamilton, the one who would have replaced him in Mercedes and who, somehow, took over his legacy.

Michael Schumacher in Ferrari

In 2006, Schumacher retired for the first time, immediately after that eighth World Championship faded away by the hand of his true heir to Ferrari, Fernando Alonso. Fate wanted his first last 'ciak' to take place in the land where Ayrton was resting, in Brazil, and he repaid the fans with a race as unfortunate as exceptional: like Senna, indeed. With the last fast lap of his career, Schumacher, went out of the scene in the way his character demanded, as a champion. So, the record of successes achieved in career by Michael remains unchanged to 2006. It’s so big that it gives goosebumps: 7 world titles, 91 grand prix won, 155 podiums and 68 pole positions, plus a long list of undefeated records.

Surely the Michael who arrived at the 2012 press conference was not the same as before. «In the past six years I have learned a lot about myself, for example that you can open yourself without losing focus, that losing can be both more difficult and more instructive than winning. Sometimes I lost this out of sight in the earlier years». He won his first world title after pushing Damon Hill off the road. He failed to make a similar move in 1997 with Jacques Villeneuve. Not to forget: he deliberately parked his car in the 2006 Monaco qualifying to prevent Fernando Alonso from taking pole position! These are only the most extreme examples of a modus operandi in which Schumacher often seemed to act without morality, a man who was willing to do literally anything to win, the sporting personification of the prince of Machiavelli, for which the end justifies the means.

We are all humans and we all make mistakes and with hindsight you would probably do it differently if you had a second opportunity, but that's life.

Schumacher did indeed have a second chance in F1, and he took it, because in three years he had not found anything in his life that could really replace it.

Michael Schumacher is the driver who has lived twice: two lives, two careers, two different outcomes. But the truth is that the legacy he leaves us is one: that of a legend.

Written by Emma