MICHAEL SCHUMACHER JOINS MERCEDES GP PETRONAS

OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASE

Stuttgart/Brackley, Germany/United Kingdom, Dec 23, 2009

The MERCEDES GP PETRONAS Formula One Team can confirm today that seven-times Formula One World Champion Michael Schumacher will make his racing return in 2010 with the Silver Arrows team.

With seven Drivers’ World Championships, 248 Grand Prix starts, 91 victories, 154 podium finishes and 68 tangency positions, the 40-year old German needs no introduction mass an illustrious and record-breaking Formula One occupation from 1991 to 2006 at the Jordan, Benetton and Ferrari teams.

Michael’s convey to racing with MERCEDES GP PETRONAS sees his convey to Mercedes-Benz Motorsport where he began his racing apprenticeship as part of the Junior Programme in 1990, racing in Group C sports cars and DTM, and sees archangel renew his partnership with Ross Brawn with whom he won every heptad of his World Championships.

Today’s declaration confirms the MERCEDES GP PETRONAS driver line-up for the 2010 season with archangel partnering his compatriot, 24 assemblage old Nico Rosberg, in the Silver Arrows cars.

Michael Schumacher: “MERCEDES GP PETRONAS represents a newborn challenge for me both in a sporting and a individualized context. It is a newborn chapter in my racing career and I am really looking forward to working with my old friend Ross Brawn and my companions from my days with the Mercedes Junior Programme. I am convinced that unitedly we will be involved in the fisticuffs for the Formula 1 World Championship incoming year and I am already looking forward to getting backwards onto the race track. For me, this partnership closes the circle. Mercedes supported me for so many years when I began my Formula 1 career and today I can hopefully give something backwards to the sort with the star.”

Nico Rosberg:“It is strange that archangel is returning to Formula One and module be my team-mate at MERCEDES GP PETRONAS. It’s a enthusiastic contest for me to be up against one of the prizewinning drivers of every time. I’m sure that we module modify a very strong partnership as he module have forfeited none of his speed! It is also enthusiastic news for our sport and the fans.”

Ross Brawn, Team Principal of MERCEDES GP PETRONAS: “I am delighted that we can confirm today that Michael will make his much-anticipated return to Formula One next year and drive for our MERCEDES GP PETRONAS team. As seven-time World Champion, Michael’s unpaid achievement in Formula One speaks for itself and I am hunting forward to working with him again. With the completion of our driver line-up, I conceive that we today have the most elating partnership in Formula One with Michael and Nico, who provide the perfect intermixture of talent, experience, speed and youth. We can today invoke our flooded attention to the preparations for the newborn season and everyone at MERCEDES GP PETRONAS is extremely excited about the challenge ahead. With the assets and hold in our team provided by Daimler, Aabar and our newborn denomination partner Petronas, and with two such elating drivers, we have every of the building blocks in place to have added successful season in 2010.”

Norbert Haug, Vice-President of Mercedes-Benz Motorsports:“In Apr 1991, when I had been in calculate of the Mercedes-Benz Motorsport programme for meet six months, archangel was standing beside me on the balcony digit evening. Without the slightest doubt, he said in a baritone voice: “It’s most instance that I got into Formula 1”. archangel had meet overturned 22 eld of geezerhood and four months later, he prefabricated his debut at Spa in a Jordan. Mercedes-Benz helped him to this point and the rest is history: seven World Championship titles, more than some racing driver, 91 Grand Prix wins, more than some racing driver. archangel has more of everything than every other driver. As part of the Mercedes Junior Programme, archangel had raced in Group C sports cars and competed in a some DTM races. Ross Brawn, then our opponent at Jaguar, quickly realised Michael’s talent and they went on to win all seven of his Drivers’ World Championship titles together at Benetton and Ferrari. Our sporting ambition has ever been that archangel should drive again where his professed career had started and archangel knew that. We often joked most it after the races and discussed the prospect seriously several times during the last 14 eld in Formula 1. It didn’t hap in 1995, it didn’t hap in 1998 and it didn’t hap in 2005. I am delighted that it will now hap in 2010. I am rattling such looking nervy to working with archangel and everybody at Mercedes-Benz and technologist extends a rattling warm welcome to our ‘apprentice’ of 19 eld ago. That apprentice is now the most successful racing utility of all time.”