Fernando Alonso of Spain and Aston Martin F1 Team looks on- Source: Getty
Aston Martin F1 driver Fernando Alonso previously claimed that becoming champion when Michael Schumacher was still on track had "more value" whilst paying tribute to the German driver after his initial retirement at the end of the 2006 season. The Spaniard had a very close title battle with the then-Ferrari driver that year and managed to win his second consecutive title with Renault on the final hurdle in Brazil.
The two champions had close battles in 2005 and 2006 and were fair and aggressive when racing against each other. Schumacher had announced his retirement from the sport after winning the Italian Grand Prix in 2006 as he made way for Kimi Raikkonen next year.
In the post-race press conference in Brazil in 2006, Alonso paid tribute to his Ferrari rival Schumacher and sang praises of his skills and caliber, saying:
"Yeah it has been very close and I think it was good to fight with him. I always said that to become Champion when Michael still on the track has maybe more value than when he retired.
