Max Verstappen vs Michael Schumacher: They are more similar than you think!

It might sound a bit weird, but Max Verstappen's father was Michael Schumacher's teammate in Formula 1 during his stay at Benetton. Both Jos Verstappen and Michael Schumacher were friends at the time. For Schumacher, everything worked out as he became a seven-time world champion. That was not the case with Jos Verstappen, though, as the Dutch driver didn't have a very successful career in F1.

Having said that, Jos Verstappen does seem to have imbibe some winning qualities in Max Verstappen. Qualities that have led to the Red Bull driver having some uncanny similarities compared to the career trajectory of Michael Schumacher.

What are these qualities? Let's find out!

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What similarities do Max Verstappen and Michael Schumacher share?

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#1 Exceptional wet weather skills early in their careers

Some things come down to the pure talent of the driver and his natural ability. Both Michael Schumacher and Max Verstappen were able to showcase their talents in wet weather early in their careers.

For Michael Schumacher, his very first win in F1 was at a rainy Spa in 1992. His victory was the result of him driving with supreme confidence, overtaking exceptional talents like Nigel Mansell.

Similarly for Max Verstappen, everyone had become aware of how good a driver he was in his very first year with Red Bull. It was in the rain at the 2016 F1 Brazilian GP where everyone stood up and took notice of his talent.

The driver was finding grip on a drenched track while everyone else was struggling to hold a straight line.

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#2 An uncanny driving ability that circumvents the rulebook

What made Michael Schumacher a menace to the stewards of his era was his ability to place the car in certain positions that were in the gray area more often than not.

The German was a ruthless driver, rarely giving an inch to the opposition. He often bent the rules to breaking point, which frustrated fellow drivers when he didn't get punished.

David Coulthard and Martin Brundle famously claimed that Michael Schumacher wouldn't give his fellow drivers more than an inch of what was permissible by the rules.

Similarly, Max Verstappen has been notoriously difficult to pass on raceday. In the 2018 F1 season, Lewis Hamilton even remarked that he raced Verstappen differently from other drivers. There was even a rule that was modified and put in place because of how the Red Bull driver would move twice under braking.

The famous saying: "If you haven't tried, you've already lost," applies to both Michael Schumacher and Max Verstappen's driving style early in their careers.

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#3 The controversial first F1 championship triumph

Michael Schumacher's first F1 championship campaign was in the 1994 season with Benetton. He had a one-point lead over Williams' Damon Hill heading into the last race of the season.

In the season finale in Adelaide, Schumacher ran wide in one corner. His controversial entrance back onto the track resulted in a side-on collision with Damon Hill, eliminating both drivers.

Schumacher ended up winning the title by that one point. Adding to the controversy, replays indicated the collision could have been intentional from the German (in attempt to save his title run).

In the case of Max Verstappen, almost every F1 fan knows what happened during the 2021 F1 Abu Dhabi GP. The Red Bull driver was handed an opportunity to beat Lewis Hamilton on the last lap following the safety car period as certain lapped cars were allowed to unlap themselves. This left Hamilton completely exposed on his older tires, with Verstappen breathing hard in his neck.

Despite race director Michael Masi's debated call, it was a finale to be remembered as the Dutchman beat the Briton in an epic duel to claim his maiden world title. The run will surely go down as one of the greatest single laps in F1 history.