Autosport Plus

Success and Succession

The departure of Michael Schumacher will leave a significant void on the Grand Prix grid, following a career that has re-written the record books. His achievements seem unassailable, but so did those of Prost in the previous era so why, asks Richard Barnes, can it not happen again? And who might do it?

Richard Barnes Sep 20, 2006, 1:10 PM

When Michael Schumacher won his maiden world drivers championship title in 1994, it was during a power transition at the head of the sport. The previous greats had all left F1 within the short span of a couple of years - Alain Prost and Nelson Piquet to retirement, Nigel Mansell to the US, Ayrton Senna as victim of the tragic 1994 accident at Imola.

At the time, it seemed as though nobody in the remaining field would go on to emulate Prost and Senna, let alone outstrip their stellar achievements. Yet Schumacher made full use of the ensuing power vacuum to entrench himself as the sport's leading talent, and to forge a career that not only eclipsed Prost's and Senna's success individually, but approximated the statistical success of their careers combined.