Michael Schumacher the name that gave goose bumps for F1 race enthusiasts is the greatest car racer the history has ever seen. Schumacher aka Schumey for fans is the king of the F1 championships. In this article, we are trying to provide you with everything that you would love to learn about the master car racer.
History
Image Source : I.Telegraph.Co.Uk
Schumacher was born in Germany. He started his racing career in go karting and went on to win the German Junior Go Kart championship and European Go Kart championship in the early 80’s. After his successful Go Kart victories, he turned to Formula 3 (F3) racing league in the 90’s. Here also Schumacher continued his victories. After being the German F3 champion in 1990, he joined the F1 racing series.
Career in Formula 1
He first started his F1 career with Jordan Team where he first raced in F1 as an alternate driver. Schumacher won the seventh position in his first F1 race which was a great achievement for an F1 rookie. His saga was yet to start; he got his first podium finish with Camel Benetton Ford where he finished 3rd in the 1992 F1 series and later secured 1st place in the 1994 and 1995 F1 races. He joined Ferrari in the year 1996.
With Ferrari, his career graph skyrocketed as he finished 1st in 7 races, and 2nd and 3rd in two races for Ferrari. After winning the 2000 Grand Prix series, Schumacher announced his retirement. Later on, in the year 2010, he came back to driver seat with Mercedes GP PETRONAS team. He raced for Mercedes till 2012, before he announced that he will not race for the next season after the 2012 Grand Prix.
Skiing Accident
Image Source : Nyt.Com
In December 2013, Schumacher was skiing with his son, Mike in the French Alps. He fell and hit his head on a rock while skiing. He was hospitalized with a severe head injury. Thanks to the helmet he was wearing, Schumey did survive the accident but he was in a comma for the next six months. Later on, in September 2014, he was taken home for further rehabilitation. He is currently paralyzed in a wheelchair, where his condition is improving gradually.
Achievements
Schumacher, a proud holder of many F1 records, has won the most number of championships, the most race victories, the fastest lap record, the most number of pole positions and most victories in a single season. He still holds the record of the most consecutive podium finishes in a single season.
Furthermore, he is the two time winner of Laures World Sportsman of the Year. As of this wasn’t enough, he holds the record for the most number of nominations for a motor sport athlete. Also, he was honored as the officer of Legion d’honneur by the French government on 2010.
Despite his severe head injury and paralysis, Michael Schumacher is recovering faster just like how he was racing. There are millions of fans praying and cheering all over the world for ‘The Greatest Driver Sports Has Ever Seen’, to come back to his normal life.