A close friend of Michael Schumacher and a former F1 racer has admitted his worst fears for the stricken icon and has made a plea to the motor racing legend’s family
A close friend of Michael Schumacher and a former F1 driver has admitted he fears for the ‘unwell’ legend as he makes a plea to the family.
Schumacher, 57, has been out of the public eye for almost 13 years since he suffered a catastrophic brain injury in a skiing accident. The seven-time world champion is only visited by an incredibly close-knit group, meaning his friends and former racing counterparts have not seen him in over a decade.
Since the accident, there has been a host of speculation about his mental and physical state, while his family and wife Corinna have not shared any images of the driver to protect his dignity. But it’s not just the public who are unaware of Schumacher’s condition, even close friends and colleagues are also left in the dark.
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One of those friends, Christian Danner, who raced in F1 in two spells between 1985 and 1989, is in regular contact with Michael’s wife Corinna but revealed that he is told little about Schumacher’s condition.
Speaking to OLBG, Danner admitted he fears for the German icon but wants to see his friend and fellow countryman again.
He said: “However Michael looks, or under whatever conditions he’s alive – I don’t know – I want to see him again.
“The fact that he’s not appearing anywhere indicates that he’s probably not very well. But Formula One’s prepared for that. Formula One’s prepared for everything.
“He’s one of the heroes in the history of Formula One, so if he would be happy and fit enough to come back, no matter the circumstances, in whatever condition, I think Formula One can cope with it easily.
“There are all these rumours he’s in Majorca, and they’ve put him in an estate there, and so forth.
“When I’m speaking to Corinna, she’s not mentioning it. When I’m speaking to other people who could know, they don’t tell me.
“There are heroes in any kind of sport that have had a problem and have kind of fallen. But once they’re alive, I think it does everyone a lot of good (to see them again).
“For me personally, it would be absolutely smashing to see him. I think that feeling is around for virtually everybody in Formula One.”