Michael Schumacher’s first tests in Formula 1 almost did not take place. In question, the Silverstone track, which was already reserved… by an athlete from a completely different discipline.
When Bertrand Gachot was imprisoned for using tear gas during a dispute with a taxi driver, Jordan Grand Prix had to replace him without wasting time in view of the following Formula 1 race, at Spa-Francorchamps. Very quickly, the choice fell on the young Michael Schumacherfreshly crowned in F3 Germany, who shone with Sauber and Mercedes in the Sports Car World Championship.
Team principal Eddie Jordan nevertheless wanted to allow the young wolf to do a few laps of the wheel before throwing him into the deep end, and it is logical that the structure of Silverstone turned to the track which is at 500 meters from its factory. Initially unsuccessful…
“I couldn’t discuss with Silverstone because someone had already booked the track”, explains Jordan in the Formula For Success podcast. “I asked, ‘Who the hell could it be?’ But they wouldn’t tell me. So I jumped in my car and drove to Silverstone to find no one but Nick Faldo, author of six Grand Slam victories [en golf], in his Porsche 956; he couldn’t insure it for the road, so he booked the track for the day.”
“I said to him, ‘Nick, I think we have to find a compromise of some sort, here, find some kind of agreement. How about you do me a huge, huge favor by letting us ride when you’re not riding, while you can ride when we’re not riding?’ And after some heated bargaining, he agreed with me.”
Michael Schumacher (Jordan) on track for his first Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps
Eddie Jordan thus proposed to Nick Faldo to test the Jordan 191 at the end of the afternoon, but a major obstacle existed: the English golfer was significantly taller than the average Formula 1 driver, measuring for example 17 centimeters in height. more than Schumacher, who had spent the day in this single-seater.
“For those who don’t know Nick, he’s 1.91m tall. He’s a giant”underlines Jordan. “Anyway, when he tried to get in the car, he couldn’t, as you would expect, because these cars are tiny. So he had to squeeze in and get in at an angle. The only problem is we couldn’t put the wheel in. If something had happened I would have been charged with manslaughter because it was suicide it should never have happened but he wanted to drive the car at all costs. And he drove it. He will probably tell us whether he drove it well or not, but we have our opinion! In short, he is Nick, a true champion.”
And it took Faldo a while to realize what he had been through. “About ten years later he called me and said, ‘ANDListen EJ, I just need to clear something up. That person who was in your car that day, someone told me it was Michael Schumacher’s very first time in Formula 1, can you tell me if that’s the case?’ And it’s a true story. It was Michael Schumacher’s first time in F1. Nick Faldo gave him the laps, and we gave Nick the car to run with. Everyone came home happy, especially Nick Faldo. And now he is jubilant to have tested the same car as the great Michael Schumacher, he tells everyone!
With Jonathan Noble