Damon Hill takes subtle dig at Michael Schumacher as he gives assessment on title rival

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Damon Hill has claimed Michael Schumacher made errors when he returned to F1 with Mercedes in a subtle dig at his former title rival. Hill suggested Schumacher was involved in incidents which you would “never have seen him do in the past” on his F1 return.

He said the Mercedes driver had a “few little dropped balls” with the Silver Arrows and suggested “something cracks” as a driver gets older. Speaking to the F1 Nation podcast, Hill explained: “You also saw stuff with Michael that you would never have seen him do in the past.

“He had a few little dropped balls. Running into the back of people in Singapore. And little things you look at and go ‘that’s not like Michael to do that’. So something cracks, something gets worn out in the ageing process. You’re not as instinctive is the main thing.”

Schumacher returned to F1 with the Silver Arrows for 2010, four seasons after retiring from Ferrari at the end of 2006. However, unlike his Ferrari dominance, Schumacher was unable to reach the same success on his return to the sport.

His Mercedes highlight came at the 2012 Monaco Grand Prix where he topped the timesheets in qualifying. But, he was unable to start the race from the front of the grid after being issued a penalty earlier on in the weekend.

Schumacher admitted back in 2010 that age was a factor in struggling to achieve his previous success. He questioned: “How can a 41-year-old be as good as a top-level 23 or 24-year-old?”

Schumacher retired again at the end of 2012 having picked up a best result of third in Valencia earlier that season.

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But, Hill is not the only one to question Schumacher’s return to the sport with his former manager Willi Weber admitting he tried to talk the seven-time champion out of the move. He previously commented: “Let’s say, this was, even in hindsight, the stupidest thing he could do. He told me he was bored, he had to drive.

“Then I say, ‘Michael, what do you want? You can only lose. You can’t win anymore. You won everything. You are the best racer in the world. You stand on the highest pedestal that exists. You can only lose now. But, he just didn’t want to hear it.”

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