When Michael Schumacher raised eyebrows with the reason behind his retirement from Ferrari in 2006

Former seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher, one of the greatest drivers in F1 history, won his first two titles in 1994 and 1995 with the Benetton F1 team. The next year, it went on to become the factory for Renault outfit. Meanwhile, Schumacher won five consecutive titles from 2000 to 2004 with Ferrari, in a legendary partnership.

Gunning for his eighth world title in 2006, the then 38-year-old Schumacher surprised everyone with his decision to retire at the end of the season after winning the Italian Grand Prix that year.

Despite his age, Michael Schumacher was competitive against young drivers like his title rival Fernando Alonso and his then-teammate Felipe Massa regularly. The Brazilian, who was promoted to Ferrari in 2006 from Sauber, was Schumacher's long-time teammate Rubens Barrichello's replacement at the Italian team.

The Sao Paulo native had a moderate debut season with Ferrari as he won two races in Turkey and his home race in Brazill, and finished P3 in the standings with 80 points. However, there were reports that the Scuderia was considering replacing him with Kimi Raikkonen for the following year.

However, Michael Schumacher's retirement announcement saved his seat. While speaking with the Swiss newspaper Blick, the German said the same and reflected on the reason behind stopping after 2006:

"I stopped because I didn't want my friend Felipe Massa to be unemployed. I would have had no problem going up against Kimi Raikkonen."

The seven-time world champion returned to F1 in 2010 with Mercedes but failed to recapture the heights of his peak in the sport with the German team.

Felipe Massa chimes in on his dynamic with Michael Schumacher

Former Ferrari driver Felipe Massa revealed that he felt "lucky" to be teammates with Michael Schumacher during the 2006 season. Speaking with Swiat Wyscigow, Massa said:

“It was great. I mean, it was a great experience. It was a great time to be able to be teammates with Michael Schumacher. I learned a lot from him. He was an amazing driver. The way he was working… We were very close as well. In the end I was lucky to be part of that experience.”

Massa later told UOL Esporte that he suffered more with Fernando Alonso than the seven-time world champion in the same team, adding:

"It’s not easy because you know you’re alongside the number one [Schumacher] and everything the power a driver like that has is very big within the team. If he decides to do something, the team will do it. Then at work, it’s not easy and sometimes you have to swallow some things that are not easy."

“But I think that at the time, I suffered a lot more with Alonso than with him for example. With him [Schumacher], it was a very big situation where Ferrari was investing in a young man like me and also, he is at the end of his moment in Formula 1 and also at Ferrari.”

Felipe Massa failed to win any races while being teammates with the Spaniard from 2010 to 2013 and had to play the second fiddle in the championship.