Michael Schumacher, a legendary and tenacious racing driver, is one of the most iconic figures in Formula 1 history. He’s best remembered for achieving seven World Championships, two with Bennetton and five consecutive titles with Ferrari, but did you know he was once disqualified from the World Drivers’ Championship?
Every driver worth their salt will push until the very end, a trait we’ve seen in recent campaigns. However, Schumacher pushed the limits too far, and the FIA was quick to intervene.
In an epic showdown for the title, Schumacher and Villeneuve got too close
The 1997 World Championship was coming to a close in Jerez, Spain, at the European Grand Prix. The fight had gone down to the wire, with Schumacher and Jacques Villeneuve facing off in one last race to try and clinch the win.
Schumacher was leading by a single point, and in a desperate move to win the Drivers’ Championship, what would have been his third at the time, he tried to push Villeneuve off the track. However, the move ended up costing him instead, and he took himself out of the race. After pulling off a recovery drive, Villeneuve finished on the podium in third place, scoring enough points to seal his victory.
Villeneuve took home his only Championship win, while the FIA were reviewing Schumacher’s move. After deliberation, the FIA controversially decided that Schumacher’s actions were unsportsmanlike and they opted to strip him of all points scored in the 1997 season, disqualifying him from the World Drivers’ Championship.
Have we ever seen a controversy quite like this before?
Schumacher’s disqualification was the first and only time in the history of the sport that a driver has been completely disqualified from the Championship, but it was not the first and only time we’ve seen a title fight get this heated.
Schumacher himself was embroiled in an intense fight with 1996 Champion Damon Hill, with the pair battling hard during the 1994 season. An erratic move from the German took both drivers out of the last season of the race in Adelaide, and Schumacher secured his first title. Many believe the move was a way to eradicate the threat of Hill.
When Teammates Become Rivals: A History of F1’s Fiercest Intra-Team Battles
F1 legends Ayrton Senna and Alan Prost had multiple run-ins during their time as rivals, and their relationship quickly soured. In 1989 at Suzuka, Prost and Senna collided at the first chicane, with Prost retiring and Senna going on to win the race. However, Senna was disqualified from the race by the FIA for an unsafe rejoining to the track, which led to Prost claiming the title in the 1989 season.
The following year, Senna retaliated in a move that many fans consider to be the most unsportsmanlike moment in the history of the sport. He collided with Prost at the same chicane, ending the race for both drivers, and Senna went on to win the championship.
