“So I’m the team owner, theoretically, I’m the chairman. And I go to the Grands Prix,” he told the High Performance Podcast. “At that time, I had a girlfriend. And my girlfriend would speak German, so they’d interact.

“And he had been dating his future wife, Corinna, I don’t think for very long, but I could tell he took [their relationship] seriously. So at a certain point, I was in a different situation. So I get into the next Grand Prix with another girl - and I could tell immediately Michael did not like that.

“And we had no confidence, we were not friends. And he made sure I would know that he was not agreeing with my choice. But it was not in an arrogant manner. It was not in an impolite manner. It was just a way of telling me, ‘Well, you shouldn’t do that.’”

When asked by host Jake Humphrey whether the F1 icon told him his feelings explicitly, Benetton replied: “That’s just how he behaved. That tells you, if you want to read it in a different manner, that he was very determined.

Clearly, those principles played a major role in Schumacher’s rise to superstardom. After winning back-to-back world titles with Benetton in 1994 and 1995, he went on to claim another five in Ferrari colours.

Those first four-and-a-half years in Enstone proved formative, however, and gave the German his breakthrough as a genuine contender on the world stage. It was only after being given the backing of an F1 superpower that he was truly able to demonstrate his quality on a more consistent basis.

The drivers of today might do well to take heed of those same lessons in discipline and staying true to a set plan. It also serves to illustrate how the foundation of happiness in one’s private can help pave the way to glory on the track.