Having utterly dominated the first half of this decade, set and bettered countless records and triumphed over the next generation of young talent, there's little doubt that Michael Schumacher was the driver of note throughout these past 10 years of racing. In his 16 years of Formula One racing, Schumacher broke records for most race wins, podium finishes, pole positions, front row starts, fastest laps, points scored, points finishes, races led, laps led and world championship successes, underlining his indescribable ability both on and off the track. While his record of seven world championships is likely to go unbeaten for many decades to come, his even more impressive tally of finishing inside the top three in the championship on 13 occasions shows just how consistent a driver he was over the course of his career.

Having fought through a broken leg and two years of Hakkinen triumphs, Michael and Ferrari finally began to flex their considerable muscle in 2000, starting the season with a super-competitive car. The arrival of Rubens Barrichello as his team-mate added further to Schumacher's competitiveness, and in the first few races scored three wins on the bounce. After another podium finish with third in Britain, Schumacher scored his only non podium finish of the year in Spain when a puncture relegated him to fifth, before recording four retirements in five races, punctuated by a Canadian GP victory in the middle. Having seen his lead drop by 20 points thanks to the retirements, Schumacher came out fighting for the final third of the year, recording six consecutive podium finishes, including four straight wins, to take the title at the second-last in Japan from archrival Mika Hakkinen.

Schumacher continued in a similar vein of form in 2001, beginning the season with two victories and a second place, before retiring in San Marino thanks to brake problems. His unstoppable march was soon back on-track though, and a dominant win in Spain was followed by a run including three wins and three second places. His second and final retirement of the year came at his home German Grand Prix, again through reliability problems, although victory was unlikely on the day. Never one to be put down, Schumacher bounced back with two comfortable wins in Hungary and Belgium, the first of which secured him his second title of the decade, his fourth in total, having opened up a 43-point lead over main rival David Coulthard. Another win, second and fourth place put him on 123 points by the end of the year, almost 60 clear of Coulthard.

Unfortunately for the rest of the grid, Schumacher's most dominant years were still lying in wait, with one of his most crushing seasons of racing coming in 2002. Thanks to the extreme reliability and pace of the F2002, Schumacher qualified in the top three on every occasion in 2002, while also finishing every race in either first or second, bar the Malaysian Grand Prix where he suffered a relative blip on his run with a paltry third place. 11 victories was the reward for his hard work, a record at the time, but his success wasn't without controversy. At the Austrian Grand Prix, having trailed his team-mate for the entire race, was gifted the win after Barrichello was forced to make way in view of the championship, just six races in. Victory at the French Grand Prix in late July secured him his fifth world championship, with an unprecedented six races remaining. His haul of 144 points was also a record, as Ferrari scooped the constructors' title with 221 points, more than double that of their nearest rival.

A raft of changes to the sport's regulations for 2003 saw the points and qualifying systems reworked, as bosses looked to stop Schumacher's dominant and crushing form. Alas the changes did nothing to cease Schumacher's record-breaking run, although this time had to wait until the final lap of the season to be confirmed champion. After starting the season rather poorly with just one win in four races in the previous year's car, Schumacher immediately upped the pace as their 2003 model made its debut, taking four consecutive podium finishes. A mid-season lull, including unfortunate doses of bad luck, forced Schumacher to third or lower for five consecutive races, but the consistent points finishes nevertheless kept him in the championship lead. After reopening the gap to ten points with two wins in Italy and the United States, Schumacher limped to the title with eighth place in Japan, beating young Kimi Räikkönen to the crown by two points.

After leaving a little too much for chance in 2003, Schumacher and Ferrari re-emerged in their best shape ever for 2004, dominating in a fashion unlikely to be seen ever again in Grand Prix racing. In the year's first 13 races, Schumacher won all but one, recording a staggering 12 victories, regularly winning by well over five seconds. Although the points system officially kept the title alive until the Belgian Grand Prix, when second place brought his run of wins to an end, in truth the fight was long over by mid-season. With both titles secured, Schumacher switched off for the remainder of the season, recording just one win, and an uncharacteristic 17th place in the inaugural Chinese Grand Prix that few will remember.

Schumacher's dominance finally came to an end in 2005, when a comparatively woeful Ferrari offered little in the way of comparison to its predecessors. After starting the year with a modified 2004 car, the 2005 version was rushed through to save his blushes, but consistent points finishes was all he could manage. An undeserved victory fell into his lap at the United States after all Michelin-shod runners withdrew for safety reasons, keeping his run of 14 consecutive winning years ticking over. Second place in San Marino was the highlight of his season, fighting Alonso hard for the victory, but still managed to take third place in the championship.

Ferrari returned to competitiveness in 2006, and Schumacher refamiliarised himself with the well-trodden ground of world championship battles, up against the sport's youngest champion Fernando Alonso. After scoring second place in the season-opening Bahrain Grand Prix, he had to wait until round four to take his first victory, with wins in San Marino and Europe closing the gap to Alonso. Controversy revisited his doorstep at the Monaco Grand Prix when he was demoted to the back of the grid for parking his car on-track during qualifying, but somehow managed to fight his way back to fifth. Two second places and three consecutive wins brought him to within 11 points of Alonso by mid-summer, but a poor race in Hungary yielded just a single point as Alonso fortunately retired. He lost ground to the Spaniard in Turkey however, finishing third behind Alonso, before wiping out his advantage with two wins in Italy and China, setting up a nail-biting end, with two races remaining. Any hopes of an eighth title all but went up in smoke in Japan however, when an untimely engine failure robbed him of a potential ten points, sending Alonso ten into the lead, and requiring a near miracle in Brazil. That miracle wasn't forthcoming though, and despite a storming drive from tenth on the grid, finished fourth as Alonso took a deserved championship.

Decade highs:
Dominating Formula One for five years between 2000 and 2004
Super-dominant years of 2002 and 2004
Super-super-dominant run in 2004, winning 12 of the first 13 races
Bowing out of F1 with a truly memorable drive in Brazil 2006

Decade lows:
Austria 2002 controversy, when team orders forced Barrichello to hand the win over
Disappointing 2005 season, recording just one win

2010s?
Having retired in 2006, Schumacher has spent time racing motorbikes, and has flirted with a return to F1. With Mercedes chasing him for 2010, a comeback is possible, although unlikely. Nevertheless, Schumacher will probably retain some link to F1 over the coming years.