Ralf speaks out on Michael's shadow
Ralf Schumacher claims his brother’s success has harmed his own dreams of Formula One glory.
Schumacher, whose brother Michael is the sport’s most successful driver, has struggled to step out of the shadow of his older sibling since joining the grand prix grid in 1997.
By that point Michael was already a two-time world champion and Ralf confesses he has not always felt welcome in the Formula One paddock.
“People have always felt that one Schumacher is enough, especially in my case where there was always more focus on the team-mates I had than the other way round,” the 30-year-old told Autosport.
Schumacher, who has won just six grands prix to his brother’s seven world championships, claims he was dogged by negativity in his four years at Williams.
Now preparing for his second season at the Cologne-based Toyota team, the German is happier and believes he can finally concentrate on driving.
He added: “The problem is that generally there’s only 10% of the truth around and so it’s really difficult.
“There is a point where you stop caring what you read about yourself, there’s so much sometimes.
"But I must say, and especially since I changed teams, it has been a lot better and more positive.
"That’s appreciated, definitely.
“I definitely feel at home but I don’t think it’s too much to do with being German because Toyota is full of different nationalities.
“It’s simply about what we want to achieve. In this team we concentrate on that rather than trying to make people’s lives difficult.”
