Schumacher: “Spa is a circuit with character”
300 Grand Prix and not a wrinkle! After more than 20 years of career, Michael Schumacher still loves Formula 1 as much as ever, especially the Spa-Francorchamps circuit, which remains a special place in his F1 journey.
After celebrating his 20th career anniversary last year on this same circuit, Michael Schumacher will celebrate his 300th Grand Prix this weekend at Spa-Francorchamps. A special track for the seven-time world champion since it was there that he made his debut in 1991 with Jordan. With six wins, he is also the driver who has claimed the most victories in the Belgian Ardennes.
There are so many reasons why this track is special, especially for me because I started here when curves like Eau Rouge and Blanchimont represented a real challenge because the cars were built in a certain way and the layout pushed them to the limit. It’s a circuit with character, marked by history. It goes through the forest, climbs and descends so there are plenty of variations that make it so unique and special. As drivers, we prefer high speeds, if you have a difficult turn at high speed, it’s special, and if you go through Eau Rouge – even if today it’s probably a bit too easy except in the race sometimes – the sensation, the forces pushing you, it’s something you don’t find everywhere, explains Schumacher during the Thursday press conference.
After 300 Grand Prix and a well-filled and successful career, Michael Schumacher has not lost the passion of his beginnings and never tires of racing on circuits around the world at the wheel of a Formula 1: « I have the same passion as I did at the beginning for what I do, absolutely. Formula 1 is the ultimate motorsport and if you are involved, it’s only because you want to do the best you can. There have been many satisfactions over the past 20 years, and I continue to love it. »
From our correspondent in Spa-Francorchamps
