Former Formula 1 star Riccardo Patrese has shared insights into his efforts to “help wake up” Michael Schumacher. However, the retired driver reached out to the Schumacher family only to have his offers of assistance declined. Schumacher’s health status has been the subject of intense speculation since the German legend suffered a severe brain injury from a 2013 skiing accident. And his family has since been fiercely protective of his privacy . Patrese, 71, was once team-mates with a young Schumacher at Benetton in 1993. Despite retiring from racing the following year, Patrese formed a lasting friendship with Schumacher, bonded by their mutual passion for football and often playing together in charity matches. The Italian spoke to Listofsweepstakescasinos.com (via the Daily Express ) about the bond he shared with Schumacher and his desire to aid his friend’s recovery. But with that attempt came a painful denial. “Then he had the accident,” said Patrese. “That is a very sad moment. You know that sometimes if they hear [a familiar voice], some boys wake up, that they recognise a voice. “I asked [Schumacher’s wife] Corinna if they wanted me to go there and try to help if I could. Well, if I could, I would have, but they said, ‘No, thank you. It’s not the moment. It’s not the moment.’ But that moment has never come.” Patrese’s remarks indicate just how eager he was, and perhaps still is, to offer even the smallest assistance to his former team-mate. However, he is not the first from Schumacher’s old inner circle to be shut out from his drastically altered life. In a 2022 interview with the Irish Mirror , the late Eddie Jordan disclosed how Corinna also denied him the opportunity to visit Schumacher. ‘Schumi’ made his F1 debut for Jordan in 1991 but was quickly poached by Benetton before he could set foot on a track again. Even Michael’s brother, Ralf, has admitted losing touch with his sibling’s family since the accident more than a decade ago. Speaking to German magazine Bunte in 2023, Ralf said he’s always available if anyone in Michael’s family reaches out to him, but he has largely had to come to terms with the drop in communication over the years. When asked what Schumacher might be doing today if he hadn’t suffered the accident in 2013, Patrese couldn’t say for certain, except that it would involve “something with action.” He characterised his former colleague as an adrenaline junkie with whom he had a “very good connection,” a bond that has since been lost. He and Schumacher competed in F1 charity football matches for a good number of years until Patrese had to deescalate his involvement. However, one name stood out above all others when it came to appointing his captaincy successor. 鈥淚 know nothing, but from the first moment of course I was in very good connection with Michael, because of the national team of drivers for soccer for charity,” he added. “He was coming and playing soccer with this team that we were doing. We are still doing it for charity. “He was the captain of the team. When I left, I gave to him the armband of the captain and he was really very happy to do it. First of all, he liked football a lot. So because of that, he was an enthusiast about the games. And because of that, we always kept in good contact.” December will mark the 12th anniversary of Schumacher’s devastating accident in the French Alps. Details surrounding his present condition remain as sparse as ever, even to many of those who could call him friend.