Overview

Schumacher is a living legend, a 7 time F1 world champion and the most successful driver ever. He has re-written the record books on numerous occasions and made a comeback in 2010, after initially retiring in 2006.

He debuted for Jordan at the 1991 Belgium GP but he was soon snapped up by Benneton and stayed with them till 1995. In that space of time he won 19 races and 2 world championships in 1994 and 1995, or though the former was won under controversial circumstances after he crashed into title rival Damon Hill at the final round. He won the 1994 crown despite being disqualified from 2 rounds.

In 1996 he moved to Ferrari, a team who were seeking their first drivers and constructors titles in a while. His first win for Ferrari came at the Spanish GP 1996, with 2 further wins following. He was in contention for the 1997 title and was against new boy Jacques Villeneuve. He was disqualified from the season standings after deliberately crashing into Villeneuve at the European GP, the final round, to try and get him to retire. In 1999 he broke his leg but finished 5th in the standings, despite missing 6 rounds.

By this time Schumacher was known for splitting opinion. Some F1 fans loved his controversial and aggressive style while others felt it was unfair and foul play. Thanks to some geniuses at Ferrari and his fast pace, Ferrari were about to return to winning the titles they have been waiting for.

In 2000 he won his debut championship for Ferrari after dominating the season. The following 2 seasons, however, were even more dominant with Schumacher only not winning 22 races between 2000 and the end of 2002, and most of those were podiums. In 2002 he finished on the podium in every round. In 2003 he won the title but it was a lot closer, while 2004 he was challenged closely by the BAR of Jenson Button but kept him well clear of the title. In 2005 he finished 3rd in the standings after a bad start, but he soon won races and challenged Fernando Alonso. It was the Spaniard who he would be challenging for the title in 2006 but missed out. At the Italian GP 2006 he announced he would retire from the sport.

Between 1992 and 2006 he finished every year with a win, and every year in the top 5 of the standings. He had scored the majority of the records and was known as the master of F1. After leaving F1 he competed in a few Motorbike races and spent time with his family, but made his return to F1 in 2010, he could not resist. He joined the Mercedes team but did not score a single podium. He finished a best of 4th on 2 occasions with 9th in the standings at the end of the year. 2011 was no better, a spell of mistakes and incidents outweighed some stunning performances but 8th in the standings was the best he could do.

He will be racing for the Mercedes team in 2012 again, alongside Nico Rosberg. It will be their 3^rd year as team mates.