Cool facts about Michael Schumacher
By: Jake Rajala
Michael Schumacher is one of many Formula 1 drivers that has tasted top-tier success, while battling through adversity in life. His last name still rings countless bells — as his son, Mick Schumacher, chases glory with Ferrari. With that enunciated, I’m going to simply reminisce and untwine 10 interesting facts on the older, legendary, and inspiring Schumacher.
- He has won seven Championships
Schumacher has an astronimcal seven championship victories — which is tied with Lewis Hamilton for the most championship wins. After racing with Jordan in 1991, he raced with Benneton and really elevated his performance. He won a title in 1994 and 1995 with Benetton. He then won a title in 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, and 2004 with Ferrari. After his long streak of dominance with Ferrari, he raced with Mercedes from 2010 until 2012.
- There is a Netflix show titled “Schumacher” in his honor
There are a few special F1 films that every avid F1 fan should watch. There is obviously the movie “Rush” with Chris Hemsworth, Olivia Wilde, and Daniel Bruhl. Although, there is a hidden gem — by the name of “Schumacher”. The movie is about the life and racing success of Schumacher. It’s available to watch on Netflix. An impressive 89% of Google users like the F1 film.
Drive to Survive is also on Netflix.
- He has donated A LOT of money to charity
Schumacher isn’t only a racing legend, but he has also been a very-high character off the track. He donated nearly $10 million to the Clinton foundation. Sebastian Vettel is another F1 driver that has impressed the F1 world his heart via his push for a better environment.
- His son just won his first ever points
As previously mentioned, Michael Schumacher’s son, Mick, is an ambitious, young Formula 1 driver. Furthermore, Mick just scored his first points in Formula 1 on last Sunday’s British GP. Mick has caught a lot of criticism for not being a threat and failing to be near the caliber of driver that his father was. Hopefully, the 23-year-old driver continues to score more points in 2022 and climb the ladder in 2023.
- Brain Injury
Schumacher suffered a life-changing accident in 2013 at a ski resort. He played with fire in F1, but he tragically suffered an unfathomable injury skiing. He was airlifted to a hospital and then placed in a medical-induced coma for six months to help lower the swelling in his brain. He is currently paralyzed and in a wheel-chair. His wife has expressed a ton of love and strength for him. Per Yahoo Sports, she stated, “We’re together. We live together at home. We do therapy. We do everything we can to make Michael better and to make sure he’s comfortable. And to simply make him feel our family, our bond.
- Helmet
Schumacher had a passion for everything involved with the F1 sport — which was revealed via his push to make a helmet. Him and Schuberth helped create the first lightweight carbon helmet.
- Cars
The mythical driver for Ferrari had such a soft spot for racing that he played a role in the Disney movie, “Cars”. He plays the voice for Ferrari F430. He makes his appearance at the end of the inspiring film. Luigi and Guido are both clearly in heaven after the moment. Cars also featured the legend Lewis Hamilton in the second film.
- Forbes
His success on the track would unequivocally lead to him bringing in the big bucks. Forbes listed him as the “highest paid athlete” in 1999 and 2000. His wealth only began to blossom in the early 2000s — as Eurobusiness labeled him as the first billionaire athlete in 2005. Yahoo Finance lists him as the wealthiest F1 driver in F1 history (as Lewis Hamilton is second and Fernando Alonso is third).
- Karting prodige
Similar to countless F1 icons, Schumacher was quite the karting prodige at a young age. In fact, he was the youngest Kart driver at the track at Kerpem-Horrem. His father also took on a second job to help him chase his passion for karting. After his father struggled to continue to pay for his son’s elevated success, the young Schumacher sought out financial help from local businesses. He had quite the underdog story, to say the least.
- He is a German icon
He was of course born in Hurth, North Shine-Westphalia, Western Germany. Although, he also really brought Germany to the front stage in the racing world. It should be noted that there were a few other German drivers excluding Schumacher in the F1 world at the same time. After Schumacher retired, they nicely carried the German torch. Other famous F1 drivers from Germany are Sebastian Vettel, Nico Rosberg, Nico Hulkenberg, and Adrian Sutil.