Michael Schumacher Biography

World's greatest formula 1 driver, Michael Schumacher was born near Cologne, Germany, in the little village of Hurth-Hermuhleim. At the age of four he learned to drive and, by six was the club champion. As teenager he was runner-up in the Junior World Championships at go-kartat and two years later he became the European Champion.

After fifteen years of go-kart racing he switched to racing cars and came out in front in numerous German championships. In 1991 he became a full-time junior driver for Mercedes, with hopes of rapidly advancing to Formula 1 Jordan team. His dream quickly became a reality, and he joined the Jordan team soon afterwards.

He had already won his first Grand Prix, at Belgium's Spa-Francorchamps, in a Benetton Ford. After placing third in the World Championship of 1992 and fourth of 1993, he landed the World Title in 1994 and dedicated it to Ayrton Senna "the man who deserved to get it".

In 1995 he not only marry Corinna but also became the youngest driver ever to clinch a double Formula 1 championship, aged just 25. They have two children together, daughter Gina-Maria (born in 1997) and son Mick (born in 1999), After four and a half years with Benetton, Schumacher signed a contract with Ferrari.

As early as 1998, he renewed his contract with Ferrari until the year 2002. The 1999 season was an emotional roller-coaster ride for Schumacher. At Silverstone he suffered the first serious accident of his career. After sustaining a double fracture of the right leg the German driver was forced to withdraw from the Championship for six Grand Prix races.

In the year 2000 Schumacher done what he promised he would do and brought the driver's title home to Ferrari for the first time in 21 years. Nine race wins in a season dominated by the brilliance of Schumacher was more than enough to secure his 3rd world title.

As defending champion in the 2001 season Michael Schumacher simply ran away with the world title his fourth in total and second for Ferrari. Once again Michael won nine races along with eleven pole positions. Schumacher renewed his Ferrari contract until 2004 and looks set to continue winning races and titles for the Maranello team.

Michael Schumacher has gone on to become the most successful driver in Formula 1 history. In 2003 he beat Juan Fangio's five championships, by taking his sixth, and he currently has a seventh under his belt. Shumacher is also the highest paid racing driver in the world, earing a reputed $30 million.