Competition car
Chassis no. 02

- Single-seater driven by Michael Schumacher during the 1995 season
- 1995 World Drivers' and Constructors' Champion
- Exceptional record in competition
- In its period Mild Seven racing colours
- Equipped with a Judd V10 3.5L engine

The single-seater we are presenting is an interesting car as it symbolises the start of Michael Schumacher's career with Benetton and his meteoric rise to his first world titles.

Originally, however, nothing predestined Benetton to win Formula 1 Grands Prix. A fashion company, it was on a roll in the 1980s and wanted to promote its dynamic image. To do so, it turned to Formula 1, initially just as a sponsor, but then as a team owner when, in 1985, it bought Toleman, which was struggling financially. The 1986 season was marked by some encouraging results, and three years later, the flamboyant Flavio Briatore, who had successfully launched Benetton's clothing in the USA, was appointed team manager. He succeeded in recruiting the engineer John Barnard, who had been responsible for McLaren's success, and his presence persuaded Nelson Piquet to join the team as well.
In 1990, Piquet won two races and finished third in the F1 World Championship. For the 1991 season, Barnard developed the B191, powered by a Ford engine, after Briatore had signed a contract with the American manufacturer. But Barnard's time with the team was short-lived and he left, making way for two men who had come over from Jaguar, Ross Brawn and Tom Walkinshaw, who became Benetton's sporting director.
At the end of 1991, Benetton took a decision which would determine its future: to hire Michael Schumacher, a promising young driver who had come up through the Mercedes racing programme, on a contract running until 1993.
The 1992 B192, designed like the previous single-seaters by Rory Byrne, was let down by a less powerful engine than its competitors Ferrari and Williams-Renault, but this did not stop the young German prodigy from winning the Belgian Grand Prix and scoring enough podiums for Benetton to achieve third place in the F1 World Championship.
For 1993, Schumacher was supported by Riccardo Patrese, but the Benetton B193 proved tricky to drive and Schumacher won only one race, in Portugal. Given this lack of success, Schumacher threatened to leave Benetton and join McLaren. He was persuaded, however, to stay for another two years thanks to a contract negotiated by his agent Willi Weber, which Benetton paid for with the arrival of Mild Seven, whose blue livery the Italian single-seaters would now sport.
The 1994 B194 was better developed than its predecessor and its new Ford Zetec engine more of a match for the demands of the grid. At the start of the season, Schumacher faced formidable opposition from Ayrton Senna, driving the Williams-Renault FW16. But the Brazilian's car failed to live up to his expectations and he retired during the first two Grands Prix, at Interlagos and Aida, both of which were won by the German driver with his Benetton. Sadly, the San Marino Grand Prix, at Imola, was marred by Senna's fatal accident, which left the world of motorsport reeling. But "the show must go on" and Schumacher claimed his third victory. Nothing, it seemed, could stop him on his way to the world title.
The rest of the season was not without drama: Benetton came close to being disqualified on technical grounds, then Schumacher was suspended for two races for ignoring a black flag at Silverstone. As a result, at the final Grand Prix at Adelaide, Schumacher and Damon Hill (Williams-Renault) still had everything to play for. The two drivers fought a relentless battle until a collision forced both cars to retire. Schumacher won the World Championship, the first of his seven titles.

For 1995, Benetton was better equipped than ever. As well as its star driver, the team now had the Renault engine, one of the best on the grid. Its main opponents were the Williams-Renaults driven by Damon Hill and David Coulthard, and even though the B195 designed by Rory Byrne and Ross Brawn was quite a handful to drive, Schumacher brilliantly confirmed his title of the previous year by winning nine Grands Prix: Brazil, Spain, Monaco, France, Germany, Belgium, Europe, Pacific and Japan. It was the ultimate accolade for him and the Benetton team, who won both the Drivers' and Constructors' titles.
It was therefore the Benetton team which enabled the young German's talent to blossom, before he left to start a new chapter in his career with Ferrari from 1996. With Benetton, Schumacher won 19 of the 68 races in which he competed, and the team was the only one, along with Ferrari, to be associated with the German driver's world titles.

The car we are presenting is the Benetton B195 no. 02, one of the Benettons which Schumacher drove to his nine victories during the 1995 season and which saw him crowned World Drivers' and Constructors' Champion. It is hard to find exact information regarding the victories achieved by each chassis number during the 1995 season, but we can be certain that no. 02 won several Grands Prix and contributed to the Drivers' and Constructors' titles. For 1995, the car was powered by the 3-litre Renault RS7 V10 engine. When its owner bought the car in England, where it was taking part in the Goodwood Festival of Speed, it no longer had its Renault engine but was equipped with a Judd V10 3,5L engine. After he bought the car, the owner, a leading collector of Formula 1 cars, handed it over to his team of mechanics to overhaul it completely and get it running, so that he could drive it at various events, such as at Magny-Cours. This single-seater in its Mild Seven livery is a monument, a testament to one of Michael Schumacher's most brilliant seasons, and to Benetton's instinctive belief in the emerging talent of this promising young driver.

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