Formula 1 legends
Vettel on Schumacher: “A hero of my generation”
German Formula 1 legends: Sebastian Vettel (r) and Michael Schumacher. photo
© Franck Robichon/dpa
Shortly after Michael Schumacher’s skiing accident, Sebastian Vettel sent his friend a text message. The scope of the accident then becomes clear. Vettel on Schumacher and a change.
“In sport, things always move on, they even move on very quickly. That’s a good thing because time runs forward and not backwards, time shouldn’t stand still. Someone like Michael will always remain a household name because his successes, “His statistics will forever be readable in black and white. But the peculiarities of characters also remain,” Vettel told the German Press Agency before the tenth anniversary of Schumacher’s serious skiing accident on December 29th. “That Michael had this special bond with Ferrari, that he achieved the miracle of the World Championships, put together a team there and stuck together for such a long time.”
This one lap time, this one pole position, this one victory, “that’s often not it at all. It may sound banal, but it’s the way there that can be so special,” explained Vettel, who himself became world champion four times.
Schumacher is an idol for Vettel
Schumacher, seven-time world champion, is an idol for him. After the accident in France at the end of 2013, Vettel sent him a text message asking whether everything was okay. The severity of the accident then became clear. Schumacher lives shielded from the public. The family has not provided any information about his condition.
Vettel’s view of Schumacher is different than that of the current or future generation. Stars would experience “a change”. “Even if it’s hard to imagine, a Michael Schumacher or a Michael Jordan are perceived differently over time,” said Vettel, who retired from Formula 1 at the end of 2022. “They will never disappear from the history books or for the absolute cracks, but for many children today a Michael Schumacher is less of a household name than for me back then. He was a hero of my generation. In the future perhaps a Lionel Messi will be less of a household name as perhaps an Erling Haaland. But that’s a good thing, because every era writes its own stories, every era has its own heroines and heroes.”