Mercedes AMG
Bernie Ecclestone has said that Michael Schumacher's should not have returned to Formula One.
Schumacher retired in 2006 after taking seven world championships and ninety-one victories but returned to the sport in 2010 with Mercedes.
However, in three seasons the German took one podium finish and a best of eighth in the points table.
"I would rather he had stopped as a seven-time world champion than stopping now. People new to the sport - people who have joined the F1 fan fraternity just recently - will remember Michael now, not as he was", he told the Official F1 website.
"They don’t see the hero that he was but the human that can fail. I think the important thing is - and this is probably difficult - to know when you can’t do what you used to do any more and then hand it over to somebody else."
Despite this view, Ecclestone believes the sport will miss Schumacher.
"He enjoyed racing and was there helping to do good things for Formula One. We will miss Michael, because even though he wasn’t winning races in those three years, he is still very popular".
Ecclestone also thinks it would be difficult for Schumacher to adopt a role within the sport due to his close connections with Mercedes.
"Well, we wouldn’t and we couldn’t keep him in another role because he is too close to Mercedes. It would have been easier when he was still close to Ferrari, I guess".
