World Champion 2001

As in so many previous years, reporters‘ questions revolved around the prospects for the season, the appraisal of opponents, the evaluation of the new car. And still nothing  was like earlier times. For after the World Championship victory in 2000 the probing nature of the questions was gone, their undertone was milder.

„Strangely that year is a gap. I feel in retrospect like the experiences and emotions of the years 2000 and 2002 were so much higher or lower, so I don’t have any really concrete memories of that year. Maybe of Hungary most of all, of my World Championship victory and the team’s at the same time. That was the first time that I was able to celebrate the title in Europe, which made the celebration so much greater because of the fans. And because the guys were also finished, we were really able to enjoy the party. And I think of Ralf too because he won his first race that year, and we stood together on the podium a few times.“

Indeed, the year 2001 also brought Michael the title as the driver with the most Grand Prix victories ever: he won his 52nd victory in Belgium and with it passed Alain Prost on the Formula 1 all-time list.