When you think of Formula 1 and its many teams, there is only one that should come to mind. That team, obviously being Ferrari, is a staple of the sport in more ways than one. While we might not have seen dominance from the Italian-based team in recent years, they are by far the most successful throughout history and the only team to have competed in every Formula 1 season.
During the 1990’s when Ferrari hadn’t won a Constructors’ or Drivers’ title in over a decade, the team from Maranello decided to offer two-time World Champion Michael Schumacher a seat. An opportunity that would go down in history as one of the most successful partnerships of all time.
The Michael Schumacher effect at Ferrari explained
Michael Schumacher joined the Ferrari outfit for the 1996 season and first entered the car in late November 1995. This was simply a test drive, however, enough for the German driver to get a good feeling of what the car was like.
Driving his first lap in the Ferrari, he was genuinely convinced that his move was the dumbest thing he’d ever done. At the end of the day, he would leave with a smile on his face, seeing the potential within Ferrari. While he commented to the media that there was a lot of work to be done, he was, however, very happy with the few laps he drove during rainfall.
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From this optimism, Michael was confident to show the world what he could do in Ferrari red. Showing tremendous amounts of raw talent and speed, he would secure three wins and finish 3rd in the championship. A feat he would only improve upon as he created a work ethic like no other.
The German Champion would be heavily involved in understanding the inner workings of the car. Michael himself would spend day and night improving the car and pushing himself to the limit.
Building Ferrari back up with talents from other teams
With Schumacher’s early success at Ferrari, the team attracted some major talent in 1997. Talent that was directly tied to Schumacher from his years at Benetton. They signed Rory Byrne as Chief Designer, Ross Brawn as technical director. These personnel additions came largely due to the Team Principal at Ferrari, Jean Todt.
Todt had convinced Schumacher to join the Italian outfit in 1996 and had a long-term plan for Ferrari. With the technical talent he had attracted for the 1997 F1 season, not only Schumacher but also teammate Eddie Irvine managed to score podiums on a regular basis.
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Ferrari managed a P2 finish in 1997, and this time, they showed everyone they could fight for titles once again. That season was all the proof Todt needed to know that Ferrari would dominate once again. Only a few seasons later, the most dominant pairing of man, machine and team showed exactly that to the world.
Michael Schumacher won five consecutive titles with Ferrari from 2000 until 2004, bringing his total to seven. In the 2002 season, he stood on the podium in every single race. He added on this in 2003, which saw the F1 legend collect a total of 13 victories in the 18-race season.
