A quarter-century in the F1® Safety Car

Even after 25 years and leading more than 1400 laps, those butterflies still haven’t completely disappeared for Bernd. “I wouldn’t say I’m nervous, but I think every athlete needs adrenaline,” he says. “It gives you focus, and the start is always quite tough because there's a high chance of an accident happening.”

Over the past quarter-century, Bernd has spent more time in the latest and greatest machinery from Mercedes-Benz than almost anyone else on earth. His duties during a race weekend, however, aren’t limited to F1® Safety Car periods; there are also special sessions allocated in the lead-up to allow the Safety and Medical Car drivers to get up to speed and practice procedures.