Honour or Success?
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by user Alex Holowczak
Formula One fans are having debates about whether the recently retired Michael Shumacher has as high a standpoint in the sport as Stirling Moss.
Here's a little summary of their accomplishments:
Michael Schumacher
- 7 times World Champion - Record
- 91 Grand Prix victories - Record
- More pole positions than anyone else
- Third in most Grand Prix raced in
Stirling Moss
- Never World Champion - runner up four times.
- Barely double figures of Grand Prix victories
On paper, Schumacher is better - clearly. But looking a bit deeper, there is more important things at play.
Moss was a great driver in the 1950s. He won about 40% of every race he entered. He was just unlucky with Championship races, however, with unreliable cars. In 1955, at the British Grand Prix, Moss won, but it looked as though his great team-mate and rival (and most importantly, friend) Juan Manuel Fangio, a 5 time World Champion, in order to let him become the first British winner of his home Grand Prix.
Moss prefered to race in British cars, rather than the best cars. As a result, he tended to drive uncompetitive Vanwalls, Coopers, or Lotus' against the likes of Mercedes, Ferrari and Maserati, the dominant teams of the time.
It looked like he would win the championship in 1958. Going into the final race, it was between him and Mike Hawthorn for the title. Hawthorn had a penalty though, and it looked like it would hand Moss the title. Moss then appealed to the FIA, and race committee, and got Hawthorn's penalty overturned. He argued that his rival should have the chance to race. Hawthorn went on to beat him to take the title.
Moss was four time runner up when he retired.
Schumacher has had several "issues" in his career. In 1994, he and Damon Hill were in contention for the World Championship, and in the final race at Adelaide, Schumacher had damaged his suspension by going off the track. Hill - who was second behind him - caught up and tried to overtake. Schumacher turned in on him, and was thrown out of the race. However, Hill's car was badly damaged in the collision, and his pit team were unable to repair his car. Schumacher, who led before the race, was World Champion.
In 1997, it was between Schumacher and Jacques Villeneuve at the European Grand Prix in Jerez - again the final race of the season. Schumacher led at the start of the race. He and Villeneuve broke clear of the field. When they came up to a back marker, the car - whose engine was supplied by Ferrari - deliberately held up Villeneuve, helping Schumacher to a few second lead. Villeneuve caught up and tried to overtake. Schumacher saw it late, and turned in on him as he had on Hill four years earlier. This time though, he was out of the race, but Villeneuve was fine - and he went on to finish third to become World Champion. Schumacher was disqualified from the World Title.
In 1998, at the British Grand Prix, Schumacher won the race in the pit lane while serving a penalty. Legal under the rules of the sport, but very unfair. It was a loophole. The field were outraged, saying the sport was again thrown into disrepute. Schumacher went unpunished, but the rule was then changed - (had he finished the race without taking the stop/go penalty, 25 seconds would be added to his race time. Serving the penalty was optional at the time, but it is now compulsory that you do not take the penalty. If Schumacher had the 25 second penalty, he would have lost the race.
In 2005, his Ferrari team refused a petition to put a chicane in to save the United States Grand Prix fiasco - on the instruction of Schumacher. His car was uncompetitive against the cars that couldn't run safely.
In 2006, his final year in F1, he still hadn't learned. In Monaco, Schumacher was concerned that rival Fernando Alonso was going to beat him to pole position. Schuamcher then parked his car at one corner - i.e. he stopped to block the track. Alonso had no option but to slow down to avoid colliding with him. Schumacher was sent to the back of the grid, and the field again turned against him.
So, users of the 'chair, who do think has left a more positive legacy in Formula One, the honourable Stirling Moss, or the rule bending, oft criticised Michael Schumacher?
