While at Benetton, Schumacher was joined by Martin Brundle as a teammate during the 1992 season before being replaced the following year by Riccardo Patrese.

Schumacher won two titles with Benetton before joining ferrari and creating his legacy with the Scuderia.

The early 2000s were dominated by Schumacher and the iconic Italian Formula 1 team, winning five more championships in a row.

Schumacher initially retired at the end of the 2006 campaign after watching Fernando Alonso win back-to-back titles before returning to Mercedes.

While his time with the Silver Arrows led to just one podium finish, it cemented his legacy among the sport’s elite.

Brundle has spoken to the Sky Sports F1 podcast about his relationship with Schumacher.

He admitted that despite being teammates and rivals on the court, a moment led the German not to speak to him for half a decade.

Why Michael Schumacher didn’t speak to Martin Brundle for five years

Max Verstappen has recently been compared to Schumacher For good and bad reasons, depending on how you look at it.

Schumacher was incredibly aggressive on track and his late-season clashes with Damon Hill and Jacques Villeneuve are iconic in the sport.

Verstappen takes no prisoners either, but both drivers have also earned a reputation for being incredibly fast in wet conditions.

READ MORE: Bernie Ecclestone points out the Michael Schumacher moment that Max Verstappen’s victory in Sao Paulo reminded him

Brundle was a pundit for over 25 years and when asked about his encounters with Schumacher, he said: “Well, funnily enough, we fell out because something I said was translated, taken out of context and translated into German and put in a headline and newspaper .

“And Michael got very upset, I have no idea what it was to this day.

“He didn’t want to talk to me for five years, it was really strange.

“And then we got drunk together in a nightclub in Valencia when he was on sabbatical between Mercedes and Ferrari.

“We were good after that, he was like hanging on my shoulder, like, ‘My teammate, my teammate!’

“And he broke the ice again. “I don’t really know what the problem was, but it was a real shame.”

The impact Michael Schumacher had during his brief time at Mercedes

While Schumacher will always be remembered in F1 for taking to the podium in his iconic red racing suit, his time at Mercedes was equally impactful, albeit for different reasons.

Along with Nico Rosberg, he helped establish a new team on the grid that won multiple world championships after his retirement.

READ MORE: George Russell compares Michael Schumacher’s career after ‘realizing’ similarities

Schumacher is still fondly remembered by Mercedes staff for his kindness and welcoming nature.

Like Verstappen, his reputation off the track is very different to how he is remembered when it comes to his racing style.

Schumacher is considered light years ahead of Lewis Hamilton by his brother Ralfalthough it will be interesting to see how he feels if the 39-year-old Briton manages to secure a record eighth title by taking the opposite route to the German from Mercedes to Ferrari.

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