Schumacher made his Formula One debut with the Jordan-Ford team at the 1991 Belgian Grand Prix, driving as a replacement for Bertrand Gachot, who was serving a prison sentence for an incident with a London cab driver.
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Pin-up boy
Following his debut with Jordan, Schumacher was signed by Benetton-Ford, which sparked a massive legal row between the two manufacturers.
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Maiden victory
Schumacher enjoyed his first F1 victory in Belgium in 1992, the first of his record 91 race wins.
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Controversial world title win
After a ding-dong battle with Damon Hill during the 1994 season, Schumacher claimed his first world championship after a controversial final race in Adelaide. The German led the world title standings by a single point heading into the final race of the season and the drama was amplified when the two drivers collided midway through the race. Both were forced to retire and Schumacher won the world title, but many F1 insiders blamed the German for the incident.
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Back-to-back
Schumacher repeated the dose in 1995, this time beating Hill by a massive 33 points to win his second world championship. The German won an incredible nine races during the season.
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The Prancing Horse
In 1996, Schumacher began a new chapter in his career by joining Ferrari.
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Challenged
Schumacher couldn’t immediately replicate his world-title winning form at Ferrari, with first Damon Hill and then Jacques Villeneuve and Mika Häkkinen (twice) claiming world championships between 1996 and 1999.
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Back on top
Schumacher won his third world title in 2000 after a year-long battle with Hakkinen. The German won the final four races of the season to claim the crown by 29 points.
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Complete domination
Between 2000 and 2004, Schumacher won more races and more world championships than any other driver in the history of the sport. He won 48 races in five seasons, including an amazing 12 out of the first 13 races in 2004, and took home the world title for five years in a row. It secured his place as one of sport's greatest ever athletes.
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New king
Schumacher's period of domination ended in 2005 when Spaniard Fernando Alonso won the world championship. It ended a streak of five consecutive world titles for the German.
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Farewell
At the 2006 Italian Grand Prix, Schumacher announced he would retire at the end of that season. At the time of his retirement, he had seven world titles, 91 race wins and 154 podiums to his name.
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Comeback
In December 2009, it was announced that Schumacher would return to Formula One alongside fellow German driver Nico Rosberg at Mercedes.
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Fading veteran
Schumacher failed to rediscover his former glories, finishing on the podium just once during his three seasons with Mercedes. He finished ninth overall in 2010, eighth in 2011 and 13th in 2012.
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Retirement - Version 2.0
In October 2012, Schumacher confirmed he would retire for a second time. He finished his Formula One career with 91 wins and 155 podium finishes from 307 starts.
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Tragic accident
In late 2013, Schumahcer was placed in an induced coma after a skiing accident in France. There has been little change to his condition in the months since and there is little hope of a full recovery.
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Take a look back at Michael Schumacher's outstanding Formula One career in pictures.