Michael Schumacher Signs One-year Deal For Mercedes GP

Wild rumours have turned into unverified truths and now reality? Seven-times Formula One champion Michael Schumacher has signed a one-year deal for Mercedes GP, German newspaper Bild reported yesterday. The 40-year-old Schumacher was reported as being present at the Mercedes team's headquarters in Brackley earlier in the day, signing on for the German outfit for a fee of 7 million euros (RM 34.3 million).

With 91 victories and a record seven titles, Schumacher is the most successful driver in the history of Formula One. Ross Brawn, now the team principal of Mercedes GP, was the man who guided Schumacher to all his titles at both Ferrari and Benetton.

Having retired at the end of 2006, Schumacher has been working as a consultant for Ferrari, albeit not on a binding agreement. Earlier this year, he had wanted to race in place of the injured Ferrari driver Felipe Massa, but niggling neck pains suffered during a motorbike crash eventually made the return impossible.

Formula One's oldest champion is the late Juan Manuel Fangio, who won his fifth title at 46. So it seems, Schumacher, who is turning 41 next year, will have to wait some time before he has a chance to break that record.

AboutSeow Yaohan

Seow Yao Han strives to bring you the latest and the most comprehensive information on cars available in Malaysia. But it's never easy for him to talk and write cars in this part of the world because what you lust after is often not what you drive home. When the euphoria of test-driving that branded, super-expensive sports car dies down, he just goes home in his less-than-glamorous ride.