STORY OF THE DAY: Schumacher delivers his first Ferrari victory in the rain

Michael Schumacher won the 1996 Spanish Grand Prix at Barcelona, the seventh round of the Formula One World Championship, to claim his first victory as a Ferrari driver. In exceptionally wet conditions, he finished comfortably ahead of Jean Alesi and Jacques Villeneuve. The result provided an early landmark in the rebuilding of Ferrari’s Formula One challenge.

Schumacher made a poor start and initially fell down the order, but his pace soon transformed the race. Once settled into the conditions, he passed the cars ahead and built a decisive advantage despite running for part of the afternoon with an engine problem. His precision on a flooded circuit turned a difficult and unreliable car into the clear winner.

The F310 introduced Ferrari’s first Formula One V10, a naturally aspirated three-litre engine replacing the V12 used in 1995. John Barnard’s original design employed distinctive high cockpit sides required by new safety regulations, while its aerodynamics and packaging underwent substantial revision during the season. It was not the strongest chassis of 1996, making the Barcelona performance especially revealing.

Michael Schumacher, born in Germany, arrived at Ferrari in 1996 as a double World Champion with Benetton. He accepted the task of restoring a team that had not won the Drivers’ Championship since 1979. Barcelona was the first of his many Ferrari victories and an early demonstration of the driving ability around which the team’s revival would be built.