"He was genuinely shocked": When former Ferrari man recounted Michael Schumacher's bewildered reaction after the infamous Jerez 1997 incident

Michael Schumacher stirred a huge controversy during the 1997 F1 championship battle when he crashed into Williams driver Jacques Villeneuve. Recalling the controversial incident, former Ferrari technical director Ross Brawn said the German driver was shocked to see the replays of the crash as he claimed innocence.

Schumacher has been one of the most successful drivers in F1, with seven championship titles to his name. However, his career has been equally impacted by controversies.

In an infamous incident that took place at the European Grand Prix in 1997, Schumacher allegedly crashed into his championship rival Jacques Villeneuve. The German driver was leading the title race by a single point, and on that fateful day, Williams was quicker than Ferrari.

Schumacher was ahead of Villeneuve, and when the latter made an inside move for an overtake, the Ferrari driver crashed into him, resulting in severe damage to the car, which forced Michael to retire from the race. However, Jacques went on to finish the race at P3 and clinched his championship title.

Meanwhile, former Ferrari technical director Ross Brawn recalled the incident during his podcast appearance with Beyond The Grid. Brawn claimed that Schumacher was shocked to see the replays after he stormed into the pit lane fuming at Villeneuve.

"When he came back to the pits, he was convinced Villeneuve was the villain. So, he came back to the pits screaming, "we have to get Villeneuve disqualified" he'd driven into him. And then we showed him the video, and he was genuinely shocked, in his own mind, Villeneuve had hit him," said Brawn. [48.00]

Schumacher faced significant penalties in the aftermath of the infamous crash as he was disqualified from the 1997 championship race. He also received a lot of flak from the fans and officials for allegedly resorting to unsportsmanlike behavior.

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When Michael Schumacher was involved in a similar incident with Damon Hill

Formula One - Michael Schumacher (Image Source: Getty)

Before Michael Schumacher was involved in the Jerez incident in 1997, he was accused of deliberately sabotaging Damon Hill at Adelaide in 1994. Amid a heated championship battle, the final face-off during the Australian Grand Prix took a dramatic turn when Schumacher turned right into Hill, leading to a crash. Hill made a move on the right for an overtake, but Michael's abrupt turn resulted in a high-intensity clash.

The impact of the collision was strong, as both cars couldn't participate further in the race, leading to DNF. However, the German driver faced significant backlash and was accused of deliberately crashing into Damon Hill.

Unlike in 1997, Michael Schumacher got away with his actions in 1994. However, the Adelaide crash still remains one of the most controversial incidents of the seven-time world champion's otherwise prolific career in F1.