60 Fun Facts About Michael Schumacher

How many Formula One World Drivers' Championships did Michael Schumacher win?

Lewis Hamilton equalled the record in 2020.

How many Grand Prix wins did Schumacher retire with, a record at the time?

He still holds the record for most fastest laps, with 77.

In which West German town was Schumacher born in 1969?

His father was a bricklayer who later ran the local kart track while his mother worked its canteen.

How did the four-year-old Schumacher's father upgrade his pedal kart?

After the boy crashed it into a lamp post, his parents took him to the Kerpen-Horrem kart track.

In which country did 12-year-old Schumacher get a kart licence, dodging Germany's minimum age of 14?

He got his German licence in 1983, a year after winning the German Junior Kart Championship.

Which street race did Schumacher win in 1990 driving the closing laps without a rear wing?

A Finnish rival crashed into the back of him while trying to pass; Schumacher gave the prize money to his indebted family.

Which German manufacturer's junior sports-car programme did Schumacher join in 1990?

He won season finales in Mexico and Japan in Sauber-Mercedes cars and finished fifth at Le Mans in 1991.

For which team did Schumacher make his Formula One debut at the 1991 Belgian Grand Prix?

He replaced the imprisoned Bertrand Gachot, and his sports-car employer paid $150,000 for the seat.

How did Schumacher learn the Belgian circuit before his debut, having never raced there?

His teammate Andrea de Cesaris was tied up in contract talks and could not show him round.

Where did Schumacher qualify on his F1 debut in a midfield car he had tested for half a day?

He retired on the first lap with clutch problems, but Benetton signed him for the very next race.

Which three-time world champion was Schumacher's teammate at Benetton in late 1991?

Schumacher out-qualified him four times in five and finished ahead of him at Monza in only his second race.

At which circuit did Schumacher take his first Grand Prix win, in a wet 1992 race?

He later called it 'far and away my favourite track'; it was the last win for a car with an H-pattern manual gearbox.

With whom did Schumacher collide at the final race of 1994 to clinch his first title?

He had won eight races that season, one overshadowed by a fatal crash directly ahead of him at Imola.

Why was Schumacher disqualified and banned for two races after the 1994 British Grand Prix?

He had been penalised for overtaking Hill on the formation lap; Benetton blamed a communication error.

In which year did Schumacher move to Ferrari?

He finished third that season with a struggling car and later brought key Benetton staff with him.

Which two Benetton men did Schumacher lure to Ferrari in 1997?

One was the designer and the other the technical director behind all seven of his titles.

Schumacher was disqualified from the 1997 championship after colliding with which driver at Jerez?

He turned in early on lap 48, slid into the gravel and watched his rival score the points he needed.

Which Finnish driver beat Schumacher to the 1998 title and was his main rival around 2000?

Schumacher finally beat him to the 2000 crown, ending Ferrari's long wait for a drivers' title.

What injury did Schumacher suffer after a brake failure in 1999?

He was second in the championship at the time and missed six races.

How long had Ferrari waited for a drivers' title when Schumacher won it in 2000?

Jody Scheckter had been the last Ferrari champion, in 1979.

How many races did Schumacher win in 2002, a record at the time?

He finished on the podium in every race that year, an unmatched perfect record.

How many of the 18 races did Schumacher win in 2004?

That season brought his final title.

What happened at the 2002 Austrian Grand Prix that angered fans?

Schumacher pushed Barrichello onto the top step of the podium and Ferrari was fined $1 million for the disturbance.

By what margin did Schumacher hand Barrichello victory at the 2002 United States Grand Prix?

It was the second-closest finish in Formula One history, his way of repaying the Austria favour.

Whose record for most career wins did Schumacher break at the 2001 Belgian Grand Prix, his 52nd victory?

That record had stood since 1993.

The 2001 Canadian Grand Prix produced Formula One's first ever 1-2 finish by brothers. Who won it?

Michael finished second to his younger brother, who drove for Williams.

To whom did Schumacher narrowly finish runner-up in 2006 before announcing his first retirement?

He had dropped to third in 2005 after regulation changes.

In what kind of racing did Schumacher compete during 2008, between his F1 careers?

He also acted as adviser to Ferrari and Jean Todt's 'super assistant'.

Which manufacturer's returning works team did Schumacher drive for in his 2010-2012 comeback?

His teammate was the 24-year-old Nico Rosberg, and Ross Brawn was again his team principal.

How many days had passed between Schumacher's last race for Ferrari and his 2010 comeback in Bahrain?

He finished sixth on his return, behind new teammate Nico Rosberg.

At which race did Schumacher claim his final podium, in 2012?

He is credited with helping build Mercedes into the championship-winning team it later became.

What German nickname, meaning 'Rain King', did Schumacher earn for his wet-weather driving?

Up to the end of 2003 he won 17 of the 30 wet races he contested.

Which First World War flying ace inspired Schumacher's nickname 'the Red Baron'?

The red Ferrari did the rest; fans also called him Schumi, Schuey and Schu.

How was a prototype of the carbon-fibre helmet Schumacher helped develop publicly tested in 2004?

It survived intact; the helmet cooled the driver through 50 directed air holes.

Whom did Schumacher marry in August 1995?

They have a daughter, Gina-Maria, and a son, Mick, who also became a Formula One driver.

Which motorcycle world champion was Schumacher's neighbour and friend during his years in Monaco?

He lived in Fontvieille from 1992 to 1996 before moving to Switzerland.

Roughly how much has Schumacher donated to charity?

He was named a UNESCO Champion for Sport in 2002.

In which French Alpine resort did Schumacher suffer his skiing accident in December 2013?

He was skiing with his son Mick, hit his head on a rock off-piste and was airlifted to Grenoble.

For how long was Schumacher kept in an induced coma after his accident?

He was moved to Lausanne for rehabilitation, then home in September 2014, and has not appeared in public since.

How many times did Schumacher win the Laureus World Sportsman of the Year award?

In 2002 and 2004; L'Equipe named him Champion of Champions three years running.

Which driver's fatal crash did Schumacher witness from directly behind at Imola in 1994?

Ratzenberger had died in qualifying the day before, at the same San Marino Grand Prix.

Which single-seater title did Schumacher win in 1990 before reaching the top level?

He was funded by manager Willi Weber's WTS team; the year before he had finished third.

Which driver chased Schumacher through the pits after he swerved into his Jaguar in a 1991 sports-car race?

Mechanics and Jochen Mass had to intervene to prevent an assault at the Nurburgring.

How much did Schumacher's sports-car employer pay the Irish team to give him his 1991 debut?

The team then lost a court bid to stop him leaving for Benetton after just one race.

How many points did Schumacher score in 2004, a record at the time?

He also set records for podiums in a season (17, in 2002) and consecutive years with a win (15).

Which multi-time champion said transforming Ferrari was Schumacher's greatest feat?

Statistical rankings by F1metrics and FiveThirtyEight consistently place him among the top five drivers ever.

What was the trade of Schumacher's father Rolf before he ran the local kart track?

His mother Elisabeth ran the track's canteen in Kerpen-Horrem, where Michael became the youngest member.

In which year did Schumacher win the European karting championship before moving to single-seaters?

He had started in a pedal kart built from discarded parts at the age of four.

Which team tried in 1992 to invoke a clause obliging Schumacher to drive for a Mercedes-backed entry?

Sauber was planning its F1 debut with Mercedes backing for 1993, but Schumacher stayed at Benetton.

What salary did Ferrari pay Schumacher for his first two years at the team from 1996?

Ferrari had last won the drivers' title in 1979 and the constructors' in 1983.

Whose record of five world championships did Schumacher equal in 2002 and break in 2003?

Fangio's mark had stood for 46 years when Schumacher claimed his sixth title.

Which Ferrari driver's 2009 injury led the team to plan a Schumacher comeback that never happened?

Massa was struck by a suspension spring in qualifying at the Hungarian Grand Prix.

Who was Schumacher's teammate at Mercedes GP on his 2010 return to Formula One?

The 24-year-old fellow German outscored Schumacher in each of the first four races.

Which driver replaced Schumacher at Mercedes for the 2013 season?

Schumacher's indecision over his future cost him the seat, and he announced his second retirement in October 2012.

In which 2006 Pixar film did Schumacher voice a Ferrari F430?

The same year he cameoed as a chariot driver in the French film Asterix at the Olympic Games.

On which BBC motoring show did Schumacher appear as 'the Stig' in 2009?

He was also voted the most influential person in Formula One history in a 2020 poll.

Schumacher was long president of which representative body, which he helped relaunch in 1994?

The association had been set up in 1961 and disbanded in 1982.

Which city renamed a major street after Schumacher for his support of a children's hospital?

The hospital specialises in caring for amputee victims of the siege; he also holds honorary citizenship there.

How many Grands Prix did Ralf Schumacher win in his 1997-2007 Formula One career?

He and Michael remain the only siblings to have each won a Grand Prix.

With which team did Mick Schumacher make his Formula One debut in 2021?

He became the third Schumacher to race in F1, partnering Nikita Mazepin in a car that scored no points all year.