Everbody hates Michael
Even for the most anti-sport people, the one name everyone associates with Formula 1 is that of Michael Schumacher. Love him or hate him, he’s the one everyone remembers… though the main opinion of him seems to fall into the ‘hate him’ category. He’s the personality of motor sport we love to hate, and his recent downfall from his throne as the King of the car seems to have gone down rather well with those who love to criticise him. There is one reasonably obvious question here though… Why? Here’s the man who’s won a record breaking seven title wins with two different teams, has more race wins than any formula 1 driver in history and is generally considered one of the most brilliant drivers to ever grace the sport, yet if you aren’t a hardcore fan, chances are you enjoy seeing him lose. Is this just a condition of being brilliant, or is it a little bit more complex than that?
Perhaps from a British perspective the fist-clenchingly (it’s a word) infuriating Australian Grand Prix of 1994 in which Schumacher controversially knocked into Damon Hill, forcing him to retire and therefore snatching the title in the last race of the season, could be considered a pretty solid reason to despise him. However, this doesn’t explain the rest of the World… oddly enough. We look now to Schumacher’s current team, and the team that he will likely stick with until his retirement, good old Ferrari. They’re a happy bunch (with the exception of Ross Brawn) who have seen many races dominated by their trademark red cars and too many victories to count (184… clearly I have too much time on my hands) but perhaps, nay, definitely can be accused of ‘spitting the dummy’ on various occasions when Ferrari seemed to be at a disadvantage. This is obviously seen as a spoiled brat attitude, and in situations where most teams would look the other way, Ferrari demand perfection. In my opinion in order to assess why Michael gets such a hard time you need to look to those above him. After all, they’re the ones who ordered Ruebens Barrichello the ‘shining light of Brazilian motorsport’ , to allow Schumi to pass in the closing stages in order to secure the title on two very memorable occasions… with booing and a controversial trophy switch involved in the latter. Perhaps watching a crowd-pleasing cheerful Brazilian being screwed over to let the team’s golden boy through is what has really irked F1 fans of late. The 2005 season came as a shock to everyone. It was the first time Ferrari lost the title since Mika Hakkinen took the title only 2 points in front of Eddie Irvine in 1999, the first time in the 21st century that Ferrari had lost in fact. Fans were happy to see a change, and a new champion driving for a different team winning was a refreshing change. So now the seven times World champion is trying to claw his way back to the top, and perhaps 2006 could witness his return… but many are hoping for a repeat of Alonso’s success or even a new title holder instead. At the end of the day , Michael Schumacher will always be remembered as the man who dominated motorsport by gaining titles over, wait for it, two decades. In a sport where everyone seems to love the underdog, perhaps the man himself should be pleased to have as big a support against him as is for him. Ladies and gentlemen, Michael Schumacher, the man, the legend, one of the most disliked men in sport.
LK
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