Още в края на 80-те години Мерцедес отново стават голяма сила в шампионата по издържливост, ползвайки каросериите на СН-тима Саубер.
Тогава и назначават в така нар. Мерцедес-ДжуниорТим като пилот младия Шумахер, заедно с К. Вендлингер и Х. Х. Френтцен.
Ето и какво инсайдър инфо дава един фен, по отн. малко по-късно, на привличането от Флавио Бриаторе, на Шуми в отбора на Бенетон.-
Това става основно благодарение на мнението за него на шефа на ТВР-Ягуар тогава- Том Уолкиншоу, който в периода на 1989-1991 години, е и тим-мениджър на отбора на Бенетон.
--- What's missing from this is the reason Benetton got involved in the discussion... At Spa, Tom Walkinshaw (Benetton team manager) persuaded Briatore that Benetton HAD to get Schumacher - because he'd seen how good he was in this other job - Team principal of the TWR Jaguar team in the WSC...
It was Ford's purchase of Jaguar that brought Jaguar and Benetton together, with Walkinshaw instrumental in getting Benetton to offer Schumacher a firm contract to race.
When the WSC then shut down, he was also able to bring over Jaguar designer Ross Brawn to Benetton for 1992 as Technical Director.. (Rory Byrne was already back, having had Reynard's F1 project cancelled and sold to Pacific Racing).
Though Walkinshaw was later shuffled out the door (with Joan Viladelprat) after 1994 following the refuelling rig farce (officially he was 'chosen to run Ligier' which he and Briatore had just bought, anticipating Renault would never pull their supply of engines from a national French team, leaving Benetton/Ligier with the only Renault engines, and Williams stuck for 1995...) it was clear that Walkinshaw and Briatore were just too much ego to have in one place...and Walkinshaw was the fall guy for 1994.
Walkinshaw then sold his stake in Benetton, left Ligier and bought Arrows during 1996; but having brought Brawn and Schumacher together at Benetton, set the groundwork for the Ferrari years in many ways. ---
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