"Michael was just trying to play his usual Michael games": F1 pundit reminisces when Michael Schumacher dismissed Adrian Newey's creation at McLaren

F1 pundit Karun Chandhok walked down memory lane to reminisce about the moment when Michael Schumacher was left unimpressed by the McLaren MP4-18, which was designed by Adrian Newey.

Schumacher was known for his mind games and subtle off-track digs towards his rivals.

Back in 2003, when Schumacher was asked about McLaren's new car, he simply said (via Autosport):

"I am not dramatically worried about the new car. We have such a masterpiece in our hands that I'm sure it will survive the new McLaren."

Speaking about Schumacher's comments on the Bring Back V10s podcast, Chandhok claimed that it could be one of the mind games that the legendary German driver was playing, particularly because McLaren came into 2003 to challenge Ferrari for the world championship.

"I don't know if this was Schumacher being Schumacher, playing his, sort of psychological mind games. He sort of used a sort of dismissive tone almost, to bat away any opposition. He had this incredible confidence that he carried combined with this momentum at the time, they [Ferrari] were the steam roller coming into 2003. And the all of a sudden, the old McLaren is a championship threat," said Chandhok.

"Maybe Michael was just trying to play his usual Michael games. Doesn't sound like Newey was too bothered, was he?" he added.

In the 2003 F1 season, Schumacher yet again clinched another world championship with Ferrari, while the team won the constructors' title. McLaren's Kimi Raikkonen was only two points behind the German driver, securing second, while the British team themselves ended up in third place.

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Former F1 CEO feels Michael Schumacher was the only driver more ruthless than Max Verstappen

Former F1 CEO Bernie Ecclestone praised current world champion Max Verstappen and pointed out similarities between the Dutchman and Michael Schumacher.

While he feels Verstappen is extremely ruthless on the track, Ecclestone was quick to add that Schumacher was even more ruthless than the Red Bull driver.

"Verstappen has a bit of Schumacher in him. But I must say that Max is not as ruthless as Michael was. Michael didn't even think of compromising," Ecclestone told the German wing of Sky Sports.

Michael Schumacher, who has seven world titles under his belt and is regarded as one of the best in the sport, is far ahead of Max Verstappen in terms of achievements. However, the Dutch driver has been able to surpass some of the records set by Schumacher in recent history.