Michael Schumacher
Born: 3 January 1969, Hurth-Hermuhlheim, Germany Grand Prix Starts: 248 Grand Prix Victories: 91 Points Total: 1369 World Champion: 1994, 1995, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004
Schumacher, in a league of his own, has rewritten the record books. He is the only driver to have taken five championships in a row, surprassing Fangio. His F1 debut came at Spa in 1991, driving for Jordan. He retired before the end of the first lap, but in qualifying seventh he'd already proved that he had talent. Benetton quickly signed him and he rewarded them with a fifth at Monza two weeks later. In his first full season in 1992, he was regularly on the podium, and this, together with a maiden win at Spa, put him third in the championship that year. 1993 gave him another win, plus eight podiums.
1994 saw him take his first title, albeit amid controversy, with Hill in the final race at Adelaide. He retained the title in 1995 with nine wins, casting aside all doubts as to his championship abilities.
In 1996, he moved to Ferrari, whose car was not as fast as Williams, and suffered a temporary setback. He began his dominance of F1 in 2000, taking five consecutive championship titles, his best year being 2004 when he won 12 of the first 13 rounds.
At the beginning of 2005, rule changes were introduced to try to level the playing field and make the racing more competitive. Whether as a result of this or not, Schumacher had a disappointing season, taking just one victory - at Indianapolis - and making five podiums. He finished the season third behind Alonso and Raikkonen.
2006 was to be Schumacher's final season in Formula One and his chance of winning one last championship were slim with Alonso dominating at the beginning of the season. However, in a thrilling reversal of fortunes, Schumacher began to catch up and eventually he and Alonso were neck and neck with just two races to go. Sadly, engine trouble forced Schumacher out of the penultimate race in Japan, which pushed Alonso too far out of his grasp. He may have finished his last championship in second position, but his place among the sports all-time greats had been assured long before.
