Michael Schumacher gets a 10 position penalty at the Hungarian Grand Prix
Driving for Mercedes, Michael Schumacher had a tragic race in Hungary. After the incident with Rubens Barrichello, Michael Schumacher has received scathing criticism from all corners. Many former drivers and professionals such as Niki Lauda and Eddie Irvine have criticized his defending maneuver when Barrichello was making a move on Schumacher near the pit lane.
It was in lap 66 along the pit wall before turn 1 where Rubens Barrichello was trying to make an overtaking maneuver against the German driver. After getting close enough to grab the slipstream, he made an overtaking move on Schumacher. Michael started squeezing towards the inside almost causing an accident at 180mph. It almost seemed like the German was trying to push him to the wall. According to Barrichello, this was the scariest moment of his career. Experts might call it an outstanding drive or a coincidence that this event did not end in a tragic accident.
Michael Schumacher has made many dumb mistakes in the past while driving a Formula One car. However, media reports estimate this has to be the dumbest. Schumacher has been known to use his car almost as a weapon at times in the past. He made a similar act that involved Damon Hill in 1994 in Adelaide that was the championship decider. In 2002, he did the same against his brother Ralph Schumacher and again against Fernando Alonso in 2003.
Many former drivers and professionals had their say on this incident. Warwick said that Michael is lucky not to be disqualified after his act. Niki Lauda, in an interview exclaimed, "To endanger another competitor in such a way is totally unnecessary. I cannot understand why he does those things." Eddie Irvine also added the words “idiot” while referring to Schumacher during his comments on this maneuver. Others have stated that Schumacher should never have tried to push his former teammate in that way.
This championship has been the worst for Michael Schumacher since his first season in Formula 1 that began in the year 1991. Schumacher is currently placed at the 9th place with 38 points. He has not scored a win or a pole in this season as yet. Adding to his woes, Schumacher has not been able to score a podium position either. Now he has been penalized for 10 positions for the Belgian Grand Prix that will take place on August 29. This will make things even more difficult for Michael Schumacher and team Mercedes as they are struggling in this season as well.
Norbert Haug from Team Mercedes says that the team is very strong and that they needed to stick together. Haug believes that they can do much better and they just need to catch up with the rest. They seem focused and hope to challenge for the championship next season. They are currently in 4th place with 124 points.
Keeping this aside, Michael Schumacher has had the best career any driver has to offer in Formula 1 racing till date. This includes 91 victories, 154 podium positions, 68 poles and 7 championships in the years 1994, 1995, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003 and 2004. He has the world record of having the most race wins and the record is yet to be broken.
Michael Schumacher issued an apology for his act which was issued on his own website. The German claims that he was not intentionally trying to endanger Barrichello with his maneuver. According to his statement, the driver was naturally trying to make it difficult for his opponent and he agrees that the move he was trying to make was difficult and the stewards have made the right decision. Schumacher also added that he was moving to the inside to make it very clear and obvious for Rubens to go to the other side as there was more space but he chose not to. The slow motion footage clearly shows that Schumacher was watching in the rear mirror during the incident.
Michael Schumacher should now focus on the qualifying for the Belgian Grand Prix and his pit strategy would be the key to his next race. Michael Schumacher seems happy with the stewards’ decision but it will cost him dearly. The next race will be very important for team Mercedes and Michael Schumacher since they need to score some points before the season ends.
Tags: