Martin Brundle says one Michael Schumacher lap left him ‘convinced’ that the timings were ‘dodgy’

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Michael Schumacher was already a two-time world champion when he joined Ferrari in 1996. He would eventually enjoy a record-breaking spell of dominance at Maranello.

The German won five titles with the same team – a record that stood until Lewis Hamilton replaced him at Mercedes. Hamilton delivered six championships to Brackley (though the longest streak still belongs to Schumacher).

Schumacher had to wait for success at Ferrari, a distant memory by the time he left. He finished third in his debut season behind the Williams duo of Damon Hill and Jacques Villeneuve.

After he was thrown out of the 1997 championship, he lost out to McLaren’s Mika Hakkinen in ’98. Schumacher broke his leg at the 1999 British GP, causing him to miss six races and eliminating him from contention.

He finally ended Ferrari’s wait in 2000 and gained revenge on Hakkinen in the process. It was the Italian marquee’s first drivers’ title since Jody Scheckter in 1979.

Martin Brundle suspicious over remarkable Michael Schumacher scenario at 1997 Spanish GP

Schumacher led the championship heading into the finale in 1997. He was one point clear of Villeneuve, who’d won the previous race in Japan.

An extraordinary scenario then unfolded in qualifying, with Villeneuve, Schumacher and the other Williams of Heinz-Harald Frentzen all setting the exact same lap time. Formula 1 measures down to the thousandth of a second.

Under the rules, the driver who crosses the line first owns the tiebreaker. Villeneuve therefore took pole, with Schumacher second and Frentzen third.

Speaking during qualifying for the Miami Grand Prix last weekend, Martin Brundle aired his long-held suspicions over the session. This was his first season working in the F1 media.

Lead commentator David Croft said: “You remember Jerez, 1997? The top three all set the same time. They had the closest top three in Formula 1 history.”

Brundle replied: “I was always convinced there was something dodgy about the timing that day. I was there in Jerez ’97. All three of them were within 0.000, were they not? And [it was] a championship showdown as well.”

What Jacques Villeneuve and Michael Schumacher did in secret after Jerez 1997

Villeneuve and Schumacher collided during the race, with the Ferrari sustaining terminal damage and the damaged Williams able to hang on to third.

The FIA ruled that Schumacher had deliberately initiated contact, aware that he’d be champion if both drivers retired. He was disqualified from the championship as a result.

It later emerged that Schumacher visited Villeneuve after the race to offer his congratulations. While his on-track conduct damaged his reputation, he was a sportsman off it.

His fierce competitiveness saw him occasionally cross lines, but also made him the driver he was. Schumacher even challenged the world karting champion to a test after being told the youngster was ‘the best’.