How Schumacher's broken leg in 1999 was Ferrari's fault, and why Michael didn't complain
How Schumacher's broken leg in 1999 was Ferrari's fault, and why Michael didn't complain
Former Ferrari team principal Stefano Domenicali pinpointed Michael Schumacher's attention to detail and relationship with his engineering team as crucial elements in the German great's Formula 1 success, highlighting the broken leg he suffered in 1999 as proof of the point.
Schumacher was effectively ruled out of title contention in 1999 after breaking his leg in a crash at Silverstone, with Mika Hakkinen going on to hold off Eddie Irvine to secure back-to-back championships.
While Schumacher's attention to detail is famed, Domenicali says his refusal to blame the team – even when it caused him serious injury – was key to his success.
"He was an incredible guy in that position when he was a world champion for so many years for us in Ferrari," Domenicali told Nico Rosberg on the world champion's 'Beyond Victory' podcast.
"In frame-by-frame, the analysis on how he could improve his performance, so the team, the engineers can improve the performance of the car…
"He was the one who made [decisions] with the engineers, [using] the switches, trying to exploit the maximum performance in brake balance, in driving mode in all the settings – and now there are so many.
"This is something that we need to bring home, and the other thing that is very important for the team perspective, he never ever accused the team for any problem that he had.
"And he could have had the chance to do it.
"I remember 1999 when he had a problem in Silverstone, when he crashed and broke his leg, it was a problem unfortunately that a bolt was not tight enough on the brakes.
"But you never heard anything negative and [heard Schumacher] say 'the team did a mistake'.
"So that's something that you bring home and you will have all the troops, all the people that will fight even stronger for you in that situation."
Related
Change your timezone:
Latest News
Chinese Grand Prix Sprint 2024 results: Hamilton gets best result of year as Ferraris CLASH
- 2 hours ago
F1 News Today: FIA investigate F1 star as Ferraris clash at Chinese GP
- 1 hour ago
F1 Chinese Grand Prix weather forecast - latest today from Shanghai
- 3 hours ago
Hamilton dealt China blow after major FIA decision as Ricciardo given huge Horner warning - GPFans F1 Recap
- Yesterday 23:57
F1 team unveil star-studded lineup in China
- Yesterday 23:12
F1 Qualifying Today: Chinese Grand Prix 2024 start times, schedule and TV
- Yesterday 22:27
Related news
Schumacher's personal collection to be sold in MEGA-MONEY auction
Rare drunk Schumacher story revealed by fierce F1 rival
F1 legend claims he ‘destroyed’ Schumacher mentally in AWKWARD relationship
Former F1 star makes HUGE Schumacher and Hamilton claim
F1 Standings
Drivers
- Oliver Bearman
- Charles Leclerc
- Carlos Sainz
- Lando Norris
- Oscar Piastri
- Pierre Gasly
- Esteban Ocon
- Sergio Pérez
- Max Verstappen
- Alexander Albon
- Logan Sargeant
- Lewis Hamilton
- George Russell
- Nico Hülkenberg
- Kevin Magnussen
- Fernando Alonso
- Lance Stroll
- Valtteri Bottas
- Zhou Guanyu
- Daniel Ricciardo
- Yuki Tsunoda
Races
- Gulf Air Grand Prix of Bahrain 2024
- Saudi Arabian Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Australia 2024
- MSC Cruises Grand Prix of Japan 2024
- Grand Prix of China 2024
- Miami Grand Prix 2024
- Gran Premio dell'Emilia Romagna 2024
- Grand Prix of Monaco 2024
- Grand Prix du Canada 2024
- Gran Premio de España 2024
- Grand Prix of Austria 2024
- Grand Prix of Great Britain 2024
- Grand Prix of Hungary 2024
- Grand Prix of Belgium 2024
- Heineken Dutch Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Italy 2024
- Grand Prix of Azerbaijan 2024
- Grand Prix of Singapore 2024
- Grand Prix of the United States 2024
- Gran Premio de la Ciudad de Mexico 2024
- Grande Prêmio de São Paulo 2024
- Heineken Silver Las Vegas Grand Prix 2024
- Qatar Grand Prix 2024
- Grand Prix of Abu Dhabi 2024
About GPFans
GPFans is a multi-platform, multi-language brand dedicated to Formula One coverage. We bring you all the ins and outs of the sport, 24/7, everything from up-to-the-minute news and features to the latest viral stories and clips.We believe that a new generation of exciting, outspoken drivers will make F1 more popular than ever before, and we want to give our users access to as much of their heroes as possible, on and off the track. From Lewis Hamilton to Max Verstappen, Daniel Ricciardo to Sebastian Vettel, we provide in-depth analysis of every every Grand Prix in the season, from Australia to Abu Dhabi.
With Formula One under the new ownership of Liberty Media, how the sport is being covered is evolving, and GPFans will look to be at the heart of this progression into new media, as one of the fastest-growing sites covering the king of motorsports.
Follow us on your favorite social media channel
Corporate & Media
Innovatieweg 20C7007 CD, Doetinchem, Netherlands
+31645516860