In the survival of the fittest, the old dog proved his pedigree. Michael Schumacher, the 43-year-old driver who had gone 47 races without finishing on the podium, benefited from a steady drive in the European Grand Prix to finish third. Yet, following recent near misses, his strongest finish in six years was a result more of consistency and good fortune than it was perilous, inspiring driving.
Mercedes-GP's veteran German discreetly climbed through the field as his rivals dropped out, finishing on the rostrum for the 155th time in a career that has spanned more than two decades.
The return to the podium of sport's most decorated driver was a befitting sight for a race that was as chaotic as it was captivating.
Schumacher has seven world championships and 91 race wins to his name, yet had been made to wait 27 months since his return to the sport, following a three-year hiatus, before he could finally spray bubbles alongside his peers.
The former Ferrari driver has come cruelly close to success already this season, none more so than his loss of the pole in Monaco after collecting a five-place grid penalty at the previous race.
Yet Sunday's result was so unexpected he conceded post-race he had lost track of his position and passed the chequered flag blissfully unaware.
It was a deserved result for a driver who has faced much criticism. Consistent, reliable, strong in the fight and the fastest car through the speed trap, it was not unlike the kind of drive Schumacher has performed in recent races.
However, while in four of his past seven races he has been forced to retire due to mechanical failures, he got the lucky breaks he has craved on the shoreline-hugging street circuit in eastern Spain.
Over 57 laps on a track not known for its overtaking opportunities, Schumacher passed six drivers, including his teammate Nico Rosberg, who set the fastest lap of the day, and the former world champion Jenson Button.
However, much like Fernando Alonso, who became the first driver to win twice this season, his success arrived primarily from the retirement of cars in front of him.
Had Sebastian Vettel and Romain Grosjean not suffered faulty alternators, he would never have finished on the podium.
Likewise, if Pastor Maldonado had not wiped out Lewis Hamilton on the penultimate lap, he would not have felt the need, as he did on Sunday, to ask directions towards the prize ceremony while standing in the parc ferme.
Few can deny the return of Schumacher will result in more positivity surrounding a sport already enjoying heightened interest courtesy of having produced an unpredictable sequence of results that had, ahead of Sunday's race, seen seven different winners from as many races.
When he appeared in the post-race news conference, such was his state of elation that, when asked for a few words in his own language for German viewers, he delivered an eloquent, emotive eulogy - in English.
It would have been heartbreaking for his team if the Federation Internationale de l'Automobile, world motorsport's governing body, had punished Schumacher for having his adjustable rear wing open under double-yellow flags.
Team data showed he slowed considerably before approaching the Hamilton-Maldonado incident and the FIA punishing their sport's most successful driver would have achieved little more than postponing what has grown increasingly inevitable: Schumacher is ready to resurrect his relationship with the F1 podium.
gmeenaghan@thenational.ae
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Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
