Former Ferrari boss Ross Brawn has exposed the truth about claims Michael Schumacher was a “despicable, horrible character”.
The man who was by the German driver’s side during his seven F1 world titles said Schumacher was a very different person when off the track.
The legendary racer was known to be a ruthless driver on the track, which swayed public opinion.
The 51-year-old was accused of driving “dangerously” as he needed to win no matter what, but Brawn said Schumacher changed people’s opinions once they met him away from the track.
“I don’t know if he quite enjoyed the impression he created because he was quite an intimidating character in many ways,” Brawn told Sky’s new docu-series Race to Perfection.
“But if you knew him personally he was quite the opposite, very engaging, very personal.
“So many times I introduced him to people who, before they met him, thought he was a despicable, horrible character and you introduce them, and once they got to know him they completely changed.
“I had that happen so many times because there was Michael the racing driver out on the track and there was Michael the human being away from the track.”
Brawn says whoever had the chance to get to know Schumacher on a personal level thought the world of him.
“I don’t know of anyone who worked with Michael who had a bad word to say about him,” Brawn said.
“Lots of people who raced against him had a different opinion but nobody I know who ever worked with Michael ever had a bad opinion about him because of his integrity, his commitment, his human side.
“He was a very strong team member of any team he was part of and it’s a tragedy what’s happened but he’s a lovely human being.”
This article originally appeared on Over60.