Back then, Michael Schumacher could have been world champion early, needed a win and his rival Damon Hill shouldn’t have finished second. Schumacher won the first title only at the memorable finale in Adelaide, but Suzuka’s rain chaos was no less memorable. Because Schumacher showed his incredible qualities in the rain, which Hill still rave about today.
“You could see his arms whirling everywhere. He worked incredibly hard on the steering wheel and corrected a lot. Many of his teammates at the time could not handle the car, but he had the reflexes and the talent, »said the 1996 world champion in the podcast.
Hill won the race, which was interrupted by Martin Brundle after a crash. At that time the rule was that the times of both parts are added up. That meant: Schumacher was 6.8 seconds ahead of the first part, but Hill won because he was 10.1 seconds ahead of Schumacher after the restart.
«I thought: I have the best seat here. Everyone else is watching the TV, but I’m sitting right in his gear and can see exactly what he’s doing, »says Hill. «Anyone else would have left. He does not. He caught it every time. I just thought: does the guy ever make a mistake? Even with one arm on his back, he was still a dangerous opponent, ”said Hill.
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