Schumacher failed at Mercedes, says driver's former manager

Michael Schumacher's former manager Willi Weber says that the German 'failed' in his 2010 return to grand prix racing with Mercedes.

John Barnard, a designer who worked with Schumacher at Ferrari, has previously aired his opinions on Schumacher's Mercedes stint, and Weber told the Kolner Express that he shares this view.

“I see it 100 percent the same way,” said Weber. “Michael had this special car setup for his style [at Ferrari] and didn’t get it from the Mercedes.

“The newer cars had developed in a different direction, and Michael couldn’t influence the technology as much as he could at Benetton and Ferrari.

“That is true, but after Ross [Brawn] could not improve the car much after 2009 and Rosberg was suddenly the faster one, Michael couldn’t compensate for that. It was a different technology and driver generation, even though Michael was as fit as ever."

Is this Michael Schumacher's best-ever F1 drive?Read more

Weber had advised Schumacher against returning to the sport in 2010 but, having experimented with racing motorcycles, it was clear that Schumacher still had the bug for racing.

The fact that Schumacher did not heed Weber's advice is still a clear point of contention.

“Michael failed at Mercedes. If only he had listened to me,” Weber added.

“He tried everything and together with Rosberg they made the car faster so that Mercedes could be world champion so many times. But it [returning] was still unnecessary.”

Related

More F1 news

Latest F1 news

Lewis Hamilton fumes at Dutch Grand Prix as Ferrari ruin their own strategy

• 1 hour ago

Ted's Notebook: When will the hit Sky F1 show be on next?

• 1 hour ago

Max Verstappen reveals reason for heartbreaking Dutch Grand Prix crash

• 1 hour ago

F1 Standings 2026: Latest points leaders as Lewis Hamilton title bid falters at Dutch Grand Prix

• 2 hours ago

F1 Results Today: Dutch Grand Prix 2026 times, finishing positions and penalties

• 2 hours ago

F1 stars hit with HUGE penalties after Max Verstappen crash at Dutch Grand Prix

• Today 16:04