Jock Clear says Lewis Hamilton would never abandon his ‘sportsmanship’ like Michael Schumacher

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Jock Clear spoke about his experience working with Michael Schumacher and how the legendary driver managed to earn his respect.

To this day, Michael Schumacher is the benchmark for all Formula 1 drivers. Not only was the seven-time world champion one of the best to ever do it, but he also set the standard for all future drivers.

The best drivers in the world today, like Max Verstappen, are compared to Schumacher frequently, and not just for their performances on the track.

Schumacher had his fair share of rivalries during his time. Perhaps none more prominent than the rivalry between Schumacher and Jacques Villeneuve.

Of course, Schumacher famously crashed into Villeneuve during the 1997 European Grand Prix, costing him the title. This move would end up creating a huge rift between Schumacher and Jock Clear.

READ MORE: Ross Brawn admits the FIA was right to ‘screw’ Ferrari as Michael Schumacher ‘had to be stopped’

Jock Clear explains how 1997 incident made him lose respect for Michael Schumacher

Jock Clear spoke in an interview with Peter Windsor about his time working with Jacques Villeneuve at Williams, and how he felt about Michael Schumacher.

Clear admitted that the Jerez incident soured his view of Schumacher, saying that a driver like Lewis Hamilton wouldn’t do the same. In fact, the feelings were so strong that Clear refused to work with Schumacher at Mercedes.

“I knew Michael reasonably well because of our battles in 1997. We spoke to each other, but we were enemies. Honestly, I had a pretty poor opinion of him for a few years after that…

“Lewis wouldn’t have done it for sure. I had a pretty poor view of his sportsmanship. When he came to Mercedes, we changed both drivers… Nico and Michael were coming.

“Ross [Brawn] brought us into a meeting, and he said, ‘I guess we need to sort out who is going to be race engineer for whom.’ I said, ‘I’m not going to race engineer Michael, that’s for sure.’”

READ MORE: Lewis Hamilton is now acting differently from Michael Schumacher behind the scenes at Ferrari

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Jock Clear reveals how Michael Schumacher earned his respect after controversial 1997 battle

Clear spoke further about the circumstances that led to him becoming Schumacher’s race engineer at Mercedes, and how his opinion of him turned around after working together.

“I had Nico… One thing led to another, and I finished working with Nico at the end of 2010. We just didn’t click… Michael immediately said, ‘Well, if Nico doesn’t want him, I’ll have him.’ I crossed the table and went to the other side.

“We brought Bono (Peter Bonnington) as a race engineer. So that was Bono’s first year as a race engineer… We got on famously. We really did. It was a great triumvirate for those couple of years with myself, Bono, and Michael.

“It was a real eye-opener to see how a seven-time world champion goes about business. He just knew how to deal with people…

“Going from not having a great deal of respect for him as a sporting player, that became completely irrelevant in the following years because I had a huge amount of respect for him as a man. He is a lovely human being…”

While Schumacher’s stint with Mercedes wasn’t marked with a lot of success, seeing the legendary driver return to the grid after his first retirement allowed Formula 1 to advertise a genuine attraction.

In his final season, Schumacher would earn his final podium finish at the 2012 European Grand Prix, allowing him to enjoy success with Clear and Bonnington.