Michael Schumacher 2019: Former Teammate Explains Why Retired F1 Icon Is Still the All-Time Best

Michael Schumacher has been retired from Formula 1 for several years now. But to many fans and fellow retired F1 professionals, Schumacher remains to be the best driver of all time.

Schumacher has officially retired from F1 for over a year when met the unfortunate accident in December 2013 that caused him severe injuries. He has not been seen in public since and official updates from his family has been very scarce as well.

Before his retirement, Schumacher acquired seven F1 World Championship wins — five of which he won driving for Scuderia Ferrari. His record of wins has since been unmatched but the professional car racing scene has witnessed a new generation of skilled drivers in the likes of five-time world champion Lewis Hamilton.

However, it is safe to say that Schumacher’s status of being the greatest F1 driver will always be up for debate and he will be compared with former and current drivers. Just recently, Schumacher’s ex-teammate Eddie Irvine discussed with BBC Sports why Schumacher had a better F1 run than the late Brazilian racing driver Ayrton Senna.

“I think Michael was probably the best ever,” Irvine declared. “I think Senna’s technique was flawed. He was this amazingly talented driver and had an amazing touch, but he had a couple of techniques that weren’t correct and he didn’t look into everything.”

Irvine went on to compare how Schumacher “practiced the pit entry” while Senna did not. To Irvine, it was one of the major aspects that Senna missed out on. Senna passed away at 34 following a fatal crash while competing at the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix in Italy.

Meanwhile, Schumacher has just celebrated his 50th birthday earlier this month. Even though he did not appear in any public event, his family assured fans that Schumacher is doing good while continuing his health recovery.

“You can be sure that he is in the very best of hands and that we are doing everything humanly possible to help him,” the Schumacher family said in a rare statement. “Please understand if we are following Michael’s wishes and keeping such a sensitive subject as health, as it has always been, in privacy.”