BEYOND THE GRID: Bernd Schneider on nearly denying Michael Schumacher his F1 debut and being team mates with icons

For a driver who only qualified for nine Formula 1 races in three seasons, German racing legend Bernd Schneider sure has some epic stories from his short stint on the grid in the late 1980’s and early ‘90’s.
Speaking to Tom Clarkson on the latest episode of Beyond The Grid, Schneider talks about how close he came to denying Michael Schumacher his F1 debut and the huge contract Eddie Jordan offered him to return to the sport.
BEYOND THE GRID: Jolyon Palmer on his 'career-killer' teammates and sudden F1 exit
Schneider – who went on to become a five-time DTM champion with Mercedes-Benz after his F1 career finished – also reveals how he was nearly partly responsible for Mercedes pulling out of all motorsport after their car flipped several times at Le Mans in 1999.
Additionally, the 60-year-old explains what it was like to be team mates with some iconic names in motorsport including Mika Hakkinen, Mark Webber and Jean Alesi.
To listen to this week’s episode of Beyond The Grid, simply hit go on the audio player above or click here to listen via your preferred podcasting platform.
Next Up
Related Articles
ExclusiveLawson examines factors behind his impressive 2026 so far
BettingWhy Verstappen fans are rushing to back him again
The points Mercedes have lost to reliability issues so far
The 2026 Qualifying and race head-to-heads so far
10 famous names who have driven F1 cars
ExclusiveWhy Vowles is convinced ‘it will all come good’ at Williams