“I just knew that was Uncle Michael”- Max Verstappen recalls his time with Ferrari legend Michael Schumacher

Samriddhi Jaiswal | 10/01/2022
"I just knew that was Uncle Michael"- Max Verstappen recalls his time with Ferrari legend Michael Schumacher

Max Verstappen, the newly crowned World Champion, recalled his time together with Michael Schumacher when he was a child.

Max Verstappen’s father Jos Verstappen and Michael Schumacher had a close relationship dating back to their time together at Benetton. Both the families enjoyed family holidays together. Max Verstappen has been pictured with Schumacher in his early years in the F1 paddock.

Revisiting the memories, Verstappen said that he was not more than three or four years old, so he did not who Schumacher was. He did not know that he was enjoying his trips with the multiple-time world champion. To him, it was simply “Uncle Michael.”

Verstappen told F1-insider.com, “I was three or four years old at the time. I just knew that was Uncle Michael, who was very nice, who was an extremely big family man. But I never saw him as a record World Champion, I didn’t know that.

“You can see that in the old photos and videos we have at home, Mick [Schumacher] was always there or Gina [Michael’s daughter]. It was great. I still have positive memories of those weekends today. We always drove two-seater karts, Michael, with Mick or Gina, my father with me.”

Verstappen said that while Schumacher and Verstappen Sr did at times hand over the controls, “if it became too dangerous, the fathers took over very quickly.”

Also Read: Former World Champion talks about the moment he met Max Verstappen

Max Verstappen thinks Mick faced more pressure along the F1 ladder

Of course, both Mick and Max are Formula 1 drivers of their own now. While Verstappen has won the 2021 championship, Mick struggled with Haas to score points.

2021 was Schumacher’s rookie year in F1 with Haas, where he remains for 2022. Verstappen thinks despite go-karting together and being in touch for so long, Schumacher’s journey to F1 has been different to his.

Verstappen thinks that with Michael’s career coming to an end, Mick experienced a lot more pressure along the F1 ladder.

Also Read: Mick Schumacher reveals best experiences from his rookie season in F1

Post Edited By: Samriddhi Jaiswal
Jos Verstappen Max Verstappen Michael Schumacher Mick Schumacher

About the author

Samriddhi Jaiswal

Samriddhi Jaiswal is an F1 editor and writer at The SportsRush. She started her career as a business journalist but soon found her calling in lights out here we go! Samriddhi has been a Ferrari fan even when her interaction with F1 was occasional. Her first real experience with the thrilling sport came when Charles Leclerc clinched his iconic victory in Spa and Monza and painted the track red. Now, a Tifosi, Samriddhi is a hardcore fan of the prancing horse and can relate to the chaos within the Italian camp and also admires Ayrton Senna and Michael Schumacher. Off the track, she finds her home in books and musical instruments.

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