"Yeah, you're right, I need to prove myself now.": When Michael Schumacher had a stern response to a reporter who questioned his accolades

Former F1 world champion Michael Schumacher previously gave a stern response to a reporter questioning his accolades on his return to the sport in 2010. The German remains arguably the greatest driver in F1 history, owing to his remarkable longevity and accolades on the track, which he captured during the 90s and mid-2000s.

The 56-year-old made a name for himself during the early part of his career as he competed against Nigel Mansell and Ayrton Senna and won a couple of races as well. He later won his two championships with Benetton in 1994 and 1995 before moving to Ferrari and winning five consecutive driver's titles with the Italian team from 2000 to 2004.

He ultimately hung up his gloves at the end of the 2006 season and retired before returning to the grid with Mercedes in 2010. During the launch of the W01 in 2010, a reporter questioned Michael Schumacher's achievement in the sport, to which the former replied:

"Ninety-one victories, seven titles, you win only in a bad way. Absolutely. Yeah, you're right, I need to prove myself now."

But when the reporter claimed that he questioned him about how he achieved those titles, Schumacher added:

"Yeah, I know. I did win all this in the manner in which you are trying to ask questions. Let's be sensible and think about the reality, and look forward to what we might all face, learn and enjoy together. That's what I'm looking for."

Michael Schumacher is often criticized for his hard racing on the track, which has resulted in some controversial moments like his maiden title win in Adelaide and Jerez in 1997, where he was disqualified from the standings for his crash with Jacques Villeneuve.

F1 team boss compares Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton

Williams F1 team principal James Vowles believed that Lewis Hamilton was more "skillful" behind the wheel than Michael Schumacher, as he closely witnessed during his Mercedes days with the two seven-time world champions from the period of 2010 to 2022.

While appearing on the High Performance podcast, the Brit reflected:

"Michael wasn't the most skilful in the car. I've already said that was Lewis. But he knew how to extract every millisecond out of himself and every millisecond out of the team.

"Lewis just had these - just as I said - oodles of natural talent. When you go out in FP1, he's like an octopus all over the wheel. He'll change every setting on the wheel, near enough, and explore it. But it's what makes him incredible."

Lewis Hamilton has broken many of Michael Schumacher's records during his dominant period with Mercedes but remains tied on seven world chmapionships with the German despite coming close to breaking the feat in 2021.