Formula 1 | Weber remembers the winter of 2009: “I advised Schumacher against signing for Mercedes”

In a chat given to the columns of the Abendzeitung newspaper, Willi Weber returned to the marriage sanctioned between Michael Schumacher and Mercedes during the winter of 2009, underlining how the choice to return to Formula 1 was strongly desired by the German, disappointed by the transition in vain with Ferrari a few months earlier.

The seven-time World Champion, we remember, was chosen by Luca Cordero di Montezemolo to replace Felipe Massa, who was stopped in the pits due to the failure in Budapest, but the aftermath of an old motorbike accident did not allow him to move up aboard the F60, therefore leading the Maranello team to first opt ​​for Luca Badoer and subsequently to bet on Giancarlo Fisichella.

It should be noted that the former Manager, returning to the Mercedes issue, advised the German against returning to the wheel, so as to avoid risks linked to his image. A tip that Michael completely ignored.

Here are the words of Wili Weber: “I didn't advise Michael to return to Formula 1. In fact, I called him and asked him not to. He had everything to lose. He was a seven-time world champion with nothing to prove. I tried to reason with him, but he really wanted to go back to driving. I thought it was fine for him, but he would have done it without my support.”

When asked if this dispute soured their relationship, Weber responded: "Not at all. We still had a contract until 2014, but I didn't want to travel the world anymore. Everything in life has its time and Michael and I have collaborated for almost twenty years. The life of the past could not be brought back. We separated as friends and in any case we spoke hundreds of times on the phone, even meeting for coffee and dinner."