“I wouldn’t have been surprised if Schumacher became an F1 team principal"

“I wouldn’t have been surprised if Schumacher became an F1 team principal"

 

 

 

The 10-year anniversary of the skiing accident which left Schumacher with life-changing injuries passed on December 29.Aged 55, Michael Schumacher now lives in Switzerland and has been kept shielded from public view in the decade since.Had things turned out different, Johnny Herbert wonders if Schumacher might have returned to the paddock in a new role.“I don’t remember any talk of taking over a team,” Herbert told BettingSites.co.uk.“But knowing his character I would not have been surprised to see him jump into a role as a team principal at Mercedes for example and find a way of moving into the management side. “Would he have been good at it? Not all racing drivers have been. “Alain Prost was the prime example who never quite worked out when he had his team.“Niki Lauda did it but only on the management side with Mercedes. “Would he and Michael have worked well together? Actually I think yes. “They would have had both the old school and new school experience. “They would have had a big impact. I could have seen it work well together.”Herbert and Schumacher were teammates at Benetton in 1994 and 1995. Jos Verstappen, Max’s father, was in the same stable in ‘94 too.Schumacher went on to win a record seven F1 titles, which Lewis Hamilton has since matched, and will forever be a legend in the sport.He was also known for his ruthlessness on the track – but not always for his humour.But Herbert insists the German could laugh, too…“It was the fun side,” Herbert said. “We all know there was the massively serious side to him totally driven by getting the best out of himself. Related The forgotten story of Michael Schumacher rejecting the Ferrari team boss job Ex-F1 boss pinpoints key personality trait which made Michael Schumacher great“But there was that end of season downtime, the relaxed moment we always had after Adelaide. “He would enjoy the alcohol treats that were available and we all did. We could only do it once a year.“He would go around the room and his party piece was to rip off everybody’s shirts. Trousers too. But it was mainly buttoned shirts which he would love to rip off. “That was the fun side of him. “Those are the memories most people didn’t see, but they are the lovely memories I have of him. “He had a great sense of humour and hopefully something we will see again.” 

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