After Dinner Speakers: Ralph Schumacher, Nicholas Negroponte, N Sync

alf drove Karts from an early age, but he launched into his racing career in Formula Three in 1994, joining WTS Racing, which was owned by brother Michael's mentor, Willi Weber. His first win for the team came at the end of the 94 season giving him needed points to rank third overall, behind Jorg Muller and Alexander Wurz.His second season was a battle for the title with Norberto Fontana, which he lost. In 1996 he progressed to Formula 3000, winning three races and taking the title at the final round. 1997 saw his entry into Formula One, racing for the Jordan team. He proved fast, achieving his first podium result, a third place, in Argentina, the third race of the season. Although he had the raw speed, Ralf tended to crash a lot. The 97 season saw him retire from 10 races, half of which were accident related, and it appeared as if 1998 was to be the same. Partnered with Damon Hill, by mid season he showed that he too, like Michael, could excel under wet conditions, bringing home Jordan's first point for the season in a wet Silverstone race. From that race on, he showed speed and consistency, culminating in his best finish ever, a second, in horrendous conditions at Belgium. Despite his good results, he finished 10th overall,and decided to partner Alex Zanardi at Williams for the 99 season.