Michael Schumacher- a different view

[Jims5543]

It has been said during the race broadcast that MS wants constant info. He needs to be fed info all race long. What his lap times are his oponents lap times, split times, etc.. He likes to know everything while he is driving.

He is a fierce competitor and some mistake that for a character flaw. I think his generosity and his relationship with his team speakes volumes.

His competitors hate him and their fans despise him, big suprise. It must have been a really frustrating last 10 years for all of them.

[Dottore]

Originally posted by MFAFF

There are sides to MS which reveal a humanity and concern for others which is not able to be seen in the race day snippets...but are they the true man or people skills deployed to bring people on side and deliver the most from them to his benefit?

Are you a lawyer with an international firm by any chance MFAFF? You sound just like an associate I once fired.

Please tell me:

(a) How, exactly, do you expect MS to reveal "his humanity and concern for others" in race day snippets? (Good grief!)

(b) If MS is really the ungentlemanly, opportunistic, ruthless a__hole you believe him to be, do you think he would really give tens or even hundreds of millions of dollars to charity just "in order to bring people on side and deliver the most from them to his benefit"??? (Reality check please!)

(c) Can everyone else above be wrong about him? I met him once, only very briefly, in Kuala Lumpur, but found him charming, modest, self-effacing, almost shy in fact. He's really just a very normal, simple and decent guy at heart who loves to talk about cars and soccer.

What is with this constant vilification of the man because of some racing incidents that occurred in the heat of battle, the number of which you can count on the fingers of a severely mutilated hand, and which are spread across a stunning career of more than a decade?

[MFAFF]

Dottore,

No thankfully I'm not a lawyer, use them lots; but not one of them.

And to be honest I have had a long professional and personal association with one of the 'greatest ever' in my own field.

And you know what... MS fits that mould exactly...a dedicated, talented, focused person, whose entire life is their profession.

To all those who meet him he is charm personified, attentive and modest...he has built up a very successful business that employs hundreds of people, he has generated income that is, in our field, unheard of previously, he has won awards and accolades globally for the work his office produces, has built professional links to national leaders in almost every continent... you get the drift..yet that in itself is a facade, a mask deployed to ensure people are supportive and do their best for him.. a remarkable leadership trait. But it is all a mask, a skill being deployed for his benefit...

The reason they are modest and shy is often insecurity, not in their abilities as an XYZ, but in their social skills. They have devoted so much of their time to success that they have omitted to provide time for social development...and being perfectionists they seek to work even harder to fit in, to not appear aloof and arrogant or worse , not as able as others.

Similarly the giving away for vast sums of money is only partly altrusitic...even MS, living in Switzerland has tax issues to deal with. This donation is a means of accomodating that, of creating a good profile and of genuine concern for others..

Get beyond that mask, strip it away and an entirely different beast is revealled. One which knows no dissent, no compromise for others, in any area of life...because they do not permit it to themselves. This never demeans their success or ability, but it does bring into question their greatness.
Whilst they may be the best ever, they may not be great.

On the other hand I have know truely able, successful and great people in other fields. They have all the success, all of the ability, but they also know that regardless they are not special people. They are ordinary people with extraordinary abilities....their first priority is to enusre those skills and abilities are what they are known for, not thier success, not their generosity or records, but the skill.

Race day snippets...whilst he is gracious in this thanks to his tema and sponsors.. he has rarely acknowledged his competitors. As we know the best championships are those which have pitted two or more protagonists in a down to the wire result. The only time he has was against Mika H, when he was outdriven, not by a better package, but by a driver who displayed more determination to win.. that he respected and admired. He was ungracious in losing the championship last year, perfering to leave excuses about the material than acknowledging his part in that team failure.. afterall if he takes credit for the rebirth of Ferrari he takes equal blame for the glitch..

As for the hand full of incidents perhaps looking at it the other way would help... If you live a life of probity and conformity, yet just once you break the law and get caught for it you are still a criminal.

Say Paul Thayer or Randy Cunnigham... great heroes, American symbols, very successful in their filed; whose weakness is what they are actually accountable for...

In F1 terms MS falls into that category, a brilliant driver, a dedicated professional with a fanastic record of success, yet with the certain knowledge that he will 'cheat' for want of a better word, to win.

In saying that I do not for an instant think that FA is a 'greater' driver than MS.. he has yet to prove himself in both consistency and ability, all he has done is beat one of the best in a convinncing manner. It brings him into the contention but does not make him a fully fledged member. He needs a few more years to do that.

As for bitterness I think you are mis-tagging my comments. I couldn't care less who or which team wins.. provided it is the person and team that on the day made the most of the opportunites, the work, the conditions etc on the day and did so within the rules that are set out...I'm equally happy to see a Super Aguri win as a Renault or McLaren.

I'm less happy to see a Ferrari win because at the back of my mind is the lingering doubt, a suspicion if you will, borne out over time that they are not playing to the same rules as every one else..and that to me is a sufficient bar to greatness.

Like Lancia's domination of the rallies in the 90s being over hauled by Toyota..it was all great until Toyota were 'discovered' to be using illegal turbos.....it undermines the results, it undermines the sport...and hence makes it a cynical exercise.

MS's ability is uncontested, as is his record...what is being ontested is his greatness...he is a remarkable competitor..but is he a great one?

[Dottore]

I think we have to agree to disagree on this one MFAFF. We've already flogged this horse to death.

[nostatic]

Originally posted by MFAFF


Get beyond that mask, strip it away and an entirely different beast is revealled.

Geez....you can say that about almost anyone. That pretty much sums up human nature. Do you hold everyone to an impossibly high standard? The greatest F1 driver (possibly ever) has character flaws. I shall alert the media...

What next? A politician who lies? A business executive who takes advantage of competitors? A common joe who has a few too many and insults his friend? My gawd, the humanity!

[MFAFF]

Dottore,

Agreed,


Nostatic,

Too damn right....

[jluetjen]

Considering what he gets paid, and the attention that he has been under for these last 10+ years, MS comes across as incredibly well balanced and mature. Without mentioning any names, he has never been reported in situations which others of his level of fame or wealth have fallen into:

- Exposing himself while drunk in a London strip club
- Having police raid his home during a party (or worse finding a body there!)
- Being involved, or even insinuated in any way with drugs or criminals
- Having an affair or progressing through a string of temporary wives, or worse -- nannies!
- Abandoning responsibility to his kids.
- Sticking his foot in his mouth in the political arena, or making grandstand charity contributions for the sake of publicity.

and the list goes on. Pick up a copy of people magazine for other examples of poor behaviour that MS has managed to avoid. I hope that he has a safe conclusion to his F1 career and is able to retire a safe and happy man with his wife and kids. That being said, I'd love to see him pop up occasionally to take a swipe at Le Mans again (so that he can improve on his 5th place there), not to mention IROC or NASCAR just for kicks! I suspect that he already owns a few Ferrari dealerships, and numerous other investments thanks to Willi Webber.