Williams team principal James Vowles has opened up about working alongside Michael Schumacher, explaining what made the seven-time world champion such an extraordinary leader.
“He was a leader that absolutely he would say, I'm gonna go this way. The team would follow him there,” Vowles told the High Performance podcast of his time with the racing legend at Mercedes.
"So much so that both sides of the garage wanted him to do well."
Throughout their stint together at the German team, during Schumacher's comeback to the sport from 2010 to 2013, Vowles carries but one regret:"We didn’t get a win for him. That still hurts me today. He deserved a win.”
Asked how Schumacher brought people on the journey with him, Vowles said it came down to genuine human connection.
“First and foremost, he had a genuine interest in who you were and your life," Vowles added.
"I went motorbiking or track with him, as in raced bikes on track with him in Paul Ricard, and we had the time of our lives. We both still laughed about it for many years after that.”
Vowles recalled one particularly touching moment: “He knew at the time my partner's birthday, flowers arrive at home, and it embarrassed me because I didn't do that much.
"He would take a genuine interest in who you are, who your family is, what drives you, every single person in the team.”
Crucially, Vowles stressed that Schumacher’s care was authentic: “It’s not because he's doing it because he wants to gain advantage. He does it because he really cares.
"That's Michael. The Michael you had front facing in front of the media is a very different Michael to what was behind the scenes.”
"He would bring everyone on the journey and lead everyone on the journey. He would extract every, he would squeeze himself for every millisecond he had.
"He would work as late as he needed to, every hour he needed to. That was how he operated," Vowles concluded.