Michael Schumacher

So, let's talk about this... 🙂 let's take a serious look back at his seasons from 1996 through today.

'94 and '95—I think we can all pretty much agree on those years... 🙂

1996—he joins Ferrari when the whole team is basically in shambles. (Believe it or not, Ferrari actually managed more wins in 1996 than they did during the entire stretch from 1991 to 1995).
The car was incredibly weak, yet MS still manages to pull off three victories...

1997—he loses the championship to JV in the very last race.
Now, look, JV honestly snatched that title away, but the real point here is that it’s an absolute MIRACLE that MS could drag a Ferrari that mediocre all the way into a position where he actually had a shot at the title.

1998—McLaren is the powerhouse team, and while Ferrari is slowly climbing back up, it just wasn't enough to take down Hakkinen.

1999—if things hadn't gone sideways, that title would have been his.
But hey, even damn Eddie Irvin nearly pulled off a championship himself... I don't need any more proof than that.

2000–2004—it was a dominant car paired with the best driver on the planet; there's really nothing left to say there.
2003 was a bit of an outlier because of the tires, but the end result remained the same. 🙂
If Ferrari had been running Michelins that year, they would have caused even more absolute mayhem than what we're seeing this season.
🙂

Gotta go grab some lunch. 🙂

Let me say this one more time;
Name me just one single teammate of Schumacher's who was actually championship material...🙂

ambermoose12 said:2003 was a bit of an outlier because of the tire situation, but the end result doesn't change. 🙂
If Ferrari had been running Michelins back then, they would have caused even more chaos than they are this year.
🙂

Look, Bridgestone builds tires specifically for Ferrari—they’re custom-made for them. Those tires are incredible, but they just don't work for teams like Sauber or Jordan, which is exactly why BAR made the switch to Michelin...

Michelin makes tires for everyone... but I honestly don't think Ferrari would be any faster on a universal Michelin setup compared to those specialized Bridgestone Ferrari tires...

wearyraven41 said:Let me say this one more time:
Name just one of Schumacher's teammates who actually has championship potential...🙂

Eddie Irvin was right on the verge of a title. Rubens has that championship stuff too.

James Roberts87 said:Eddie Irvin was right on the verge of a title. Rubens is also championship material.

Look, Eddie Irvin actually took the title, but Zola hasn't managed a win with Ferrari even when Schumi wasn't around. Meanwhile, Rubens has racked up all those wins since joining Ferrari—basically driving the best car on the grid—and he still hasn't pulled together enough to win a single season.

wearyraven41 said:Eddie Irvin took the title, but Zola can't get it done with Ferrari, even without Schumi around. Meanwhile, Rubens has racked up all those wins since joining Ferrari—the best car on the grid—and he still hasn't had enough to clinch a championship single season...

Honestly, even Montoya or Raikkonen wouldn't have had more than Rubens if they were teammates with MS.

wearyraven41 said:Look, Bridgestone isn't just making tires—they're building them specifically for Ferrari. They're custom-tailored, which makes them incredible, but they don't mean a damn thing for a Sauber or a Jordan. That’s exactly why BAR made the jump to Michelin...

Now, Michelin makes tires meant for everyone... but let’s be real here—do we honestly believe Ferrari would be fast on some universal Michelin tire? Not a chance. They need those specific Bridgestone Ferrari tires to stay ahead...

For the 2003 season 🙂 Bridgestone is absolutely screwed 🙂
I mean, there's really no point in overanalyzing this. It's as simple as that.

ambermoose12 said:The 2003 season. Looking back, it really was quite something, wasn't it? It felt like one of those years where you just couldn't predict what was coming next. I remember sitting in my living room, coffee in hand, watching the races unfold, and thinking how much weight was resting on certain shoulders. It was a year of intense pressure and incredible skill. 🙂 Bridgestone is in deep trouble. 🙂
I don't think there's much point in overthinking this one.

It feels like there’s room to add a bit of creative thinking here—or maybe just find a loophole in the rules.

And here we are, giving him all the credit, while he just goes about being foolish...

Damson said:Eddie Irvin grabbed the title, but Schumacher just can't pull it off with Ferrari—even when he doesn't have Schumi's help—and Rubens gets all those wins once he's in a Ferrari (aka the best car out there) yet still can't rack up enough to win a single season....

Don't forget—Irvine missed out on that title by only two points...
and as for the Brazilian guy, I'm totally with you on that one...

James Roberts87 said:Honestly, even if they had Montoya or Raikkonen, they wouldn't have seen more success than Rubens if they didn't have MS on their side.

The thing is, they’ll never truly have MS as a teammate because they'd never be allowed to actually beat him, would they?

mistybear87 said:They’ll never let MS be a teammate because they simply wouldn't permit anyone to actually beat him.

Heh... honestly, I find myself wondering what MS did to deserve that kind of treatment from Ferrari in the first place. Just curious...🙂

At Ferrari, you aren't allowed to win more than once or twice a season while the title fight is still heating up. Or, to put it more bluntly—they've basically banned any move resembling what Montoya used to pull for Jaguar...

There isn't much left to say about Schumi. The guy is easily the greatest driver to ever sit in a cockpit! 🙏
It feels like nobody else can touch those titles until he finally decides to hang it up. And honestly, looking at him lately, I don't think he's even close to being finished... 😁

Jack Ward2, I’m with you. The guy drives like a machine... just hits every single turn exactly the same way every time.
The real secret is Schumi. He knows his car better than anyone—he knows exactly what feels off and what’s working perfectly. He can tell the mechanics precisely which part of the engine is acting up instead of just blaming the whole thing.

mistybear87 said:they'll never be teammates with MS because they wouldn't be allowed to beat him

Well, then there's no issue. They can be his teammates tomorrow for all I care.

mistyfalcon24 said:The real secret sauce with Schumi is just how much he actually knows about his car. He isn't just driving; he understands exactly how the setup feels, what’s working, and what’s totally off. He can walk right up to the mechanics and tell them exactly which tiny adjustment needs to be made. It’s not just about having a beast of an engine; it's about him knowing how to tame it.

I'm totally with you there. Honestly, I think the guy just has a bit more brainpower than most of the other guys out there.

ambermoose12 said:1996—he rolls up to Ferrari when they’re supposedly falling apart. (Actually, Ferrari had more wins in '96 than they did during the whole '91 to '95 stretch combined).
The car was pretty weak, yet MS still managed to snag three wins...

Look, back in '95, Ferrari was sitting at third in the standings. They were definitely behind the top two, but they weren't exactly a dumpster fire. Montezemolo and Todt were already on board and starting to get their act together. Schumacher showing up was a massive shot in the arm for the crew, especially since he actually knows how to work with engineers to develop a car. It’s just incredibly annoying hearing people push this fake narrative about how much of a mess things were at Ferrari... Like he walked into a Minardi or something.
Ferrari has always been a powerhouse, and yeah, like any big team, they hit rough patches now and then. One of the biggest was in the early nineties, but they were already bouncing back by the time MS arrived. He’s obviously a legend, and probably the most important piece of the puzzle that led to the dominance we saw later on, I won't deny that... but he isn't some wizard who conjured greatness out of thin air.

stormyviper11 said:Back in '95, Ferrari was sitting in third place in the standings. They were definitely trailing behind the top two, but they weren't some laughingstock, either. Montezemolo and Todt were already on board and starting to get their house in order. When Schumacher arrived, it was an undeniable shot in the arm for the whole squad—especially given how much he contributed to the technical development of the car—but honestly, it’s just infuriating to hear these constant, blatant lies about the state of things at Ferrari... As if he walked into a Minardi garage or something.
Ferrari has always been, and remains, a powerhouse—and like any massive organization, sure, they hit rough patches now and then. One of their biggest slumps was back in the early nineties, but by the time MS showed up, they were already well on their way to a comeback. Look, there's no denying he's a legend; he's arguably the most vital piece of the puzzle that led to this team's current era of dominance, I won't argue that. But let's be real: he isn't some wizard who can conjure greatness out of thin air.

HE'S A LEGEND, MAYBE EVEN THE GREATEST. That's where the conversation ends for me.
And let’s be honest—that '96 Ferrari was significantly worse than the 2004 Williams when you look at the eras they were competing in.

I still vividly remember that race in France when Schumacher’s half-shaft just snapped right as he was pulling out of the pits.

Checking out some clips from the Italian press about the last race, and this one snippet from "La Repubblica" really hit home—basically saying if Michael Jordan isn't clicking, Ferrari is totally tanking. Without him, they’re basically nothing right now—just riding his coattails. It's high time the team starts looking for someone younger, hungrier, and actually talented to step up alongside him...

That's it.