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Max Verstappen's former mentor Franz Tost has revealed that he had walked up to Michael Schumacher to pursue him against coming back to F1. The German legend retired from the sport in 2006 with Ferrari.
At the time of his retirement, he was the most successful driver in F1 history. He had more than 90 wins and 7 world titles, and there was no one that came close to him. After his retirement in 2006, F1 had Lewis Hamilton join the sport in 2007, and so did Sebastian Vettel.
In 2010, Mercedes announced a return to F1. The German brand bought Brawn GP and took over the operation that was initially run by Honda. In a remarkable move, the team also announced that German F1 legend Michael Schumacher was making a return to the sport with the team.
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It was always going to be a challenge because Michael Schumacher was already in his 40s and the landscape of F1 had changed. Talking to F1 Insider, Franz Tost revealed that he had walked up to Michael Schumacher just before his return. Calling it pointless, he said:
"Michael's comeback was completely pointless. I discussed this with Michael at dinner shortly before his return. I told him: Your time is up. The following dialogue ensued. I asked him: 'What do you expect?' He said: 'I want to win races and become world champion again.'"
"I said: 'You can forget about that. Formula 1 is completely different today. When you left Ferrari, you could test without any willpower. You had your own tire manufacturer, Bridgestone, that did everything for you. If you had understeer, for example, you tested a tire until the problem was solved. Today you have standard tires and only seven test days, half of which are for you, the rest for Rosberg. Forget it. But the crucial thing: your direct competitors are twenty years younger than you. Especially in Formula 1, once you reach a certain age, things move too quickly. Then it's over.' He accepted it without grumbling," he added.
How did Michael Schumacher's F1 return fare?
Michael Schumacher's return to F1 was not successful. It became clear very early that Mercedes needed some time to get the car to a point where it could fight for the title. At the same time, Michael Schumacher was unable to sprinkle his magic on the track, as the tools that made him competitive in the previous era of racing were just not at his disposal right now, as the F1 ecosystem had changed.
Michael Schumacher did three seasons on his return with Mercedes from 2010 to 2012. During this time he was unable to keep up with Nico Rosberg in terms of performance.
The highlight of his return would be the podium in Valencia secured by the driver late in the race in 2012. He would retire in Brazil in 2012 and end a storied career with 7 world championships.
