Michael Schumacher and his brother Ralf were inseparable during the latter’s early days in the sport but they grew apart.
Michael Schumacher is undoubtedly the greatest driver in the F1 world but he is not the only one to have the racing in his blood in his family.
His brother Ralf Schumacher debuted in motorsport in the 1997 season with Jordan and enjoyed a respectable career. During Ralf’s early days in the sport, the brothers were inseparable. While Ralf was working his way up in the sport, Michael was already a sensation in the paddock.
While they competed together at the pinnacle of the motorsport for several years, their relationship got worse over time. Corinna, Michael’s partner, and Cora, Ralf’s other half had their differences that caused the brothers to drift apart.
In a book about Michael written by James Allen titled ‘Edge of Greatness’, Michael’s former manager Sabine Kehm said, “It’s a very natural thing. Ralf has his family in Austria, and Michael has his family in Switzerland.”
“They used to meet at the track but now there is the whole wife’s situation and, of course, Michael defends Corinna and Ralf defends Cora, so they have their differences there.”
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Michael Schumacher denied getting involved in any verbal war
Corinna avoided any sort of celebrity spotlight but Cora embraced it. While doing so she took a dig at her sister-in-law during an interview with a German magazine during the 2000s.
“Corinna and I have little contact,” she said. “We holiday in different places, we hardly phone, we live somewhere else. A pity really, as we both have children. But Corinna’s nature and mine are totally different.
“I am a sincere, cosmopolitan woman. Not the sort who puts on an act or parades the fact that she is Mother Teresa. My sister-in-law is stuck with the label of being the ‘perfect’ wife in the ‘perfect’ world and that sort of thing.
Amidst all this, Michael did not get involved in any kind of war of words with the media. Kehm revealed that the German media have Cora’s mobile number and Ralf’s mobile too so they are easy to get. The media wanted a response from Michael, but his support network always said nothing.
“I told Michael and Corinna, ‘If you react now, they will use that again and again.’ He stayed strong and we always stuck with that. The tabloids went crazy because we did not play their game. But privacy was very important to Michael,” Kehm quoted in the book.
“If he felt that the media was in his home as well he would not be able to deal with it. He needs his home as a refuge. Now he is retired he will try to stay out of the public eye for the rest of his life.”
Michael suffered a tragic skiing incident in 2013 and since then the updates on his health have been a closely guarded secret in the Schumacher family.
Meanwhile, Ralf, who divorced Cora in 2015 after 14 years of marriage, is a commentator on Sky Sports F1 coverage in Germany.
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