Motor Racing: Schumacher ponders end of Ferrari era
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BARCELONA, Spain: The champions remained defiant, but there was no ignoring a sensation that Formula One's jackals were circling after Sunday's Spanish Grand Prix.
Will this season be overshadowed by the decline of the mighty Reds as this CNA report suggests? I hope it will be.
Defending drivers' world champion Michael Schumacher and his Ferrari team chief Jean Todt roared back and bristled with self-belief, but after failing to take a point on another near-disastrous afternoon, the team of the prancing stallion had lost much of its vim.
Kimi Raikkonen's victory was not only good for McLaren, it was also a signal that the 'silver arrows' are on their way back in the title race - and, with Renault and the new Spanish hero Fernando Alonso in masterful form, the Red Baron's Ferrari era is over.
Even Schumacher admitted as much after he had been forced to retire after suffering two punctures while he was heading towards a possible third place.
Asked if he could still fight to hang on to his champion's crown, a title held by nobody else since 1999, the 36-year-old German admitted it was slipping from his grasp.
"No question," he said.
"It is moving more and more away, but it is not that far away that we have got to give it up, we will keep on working and keep on fighting. It is not over.
"I don't need very long to find new motivation and new freshness. We will work and work before the next race in Monaco. We are becoming freer because we don't have anything to lose. We can do more things."
Todt, who saw Schumacher experience defeat at Barcelona for the first time since his old rival Mika Hakkinen won the third of his three successive triumphs in 2000, was just as defiant.
"We knew this would be a difficult race, but it turned out to be tougher than expected.
"We have to accept that in this first part of the season, our opponents are stronger than us. But we will not get discouraged and we will absolutely not give up.
"We will tackle the rest of this championship with the same will and determination that has characterised our approach for so many years."
The situation, in plain facts, now shows that Renault lead the constructors' championship with 58 points ahead of Toyota on 40, that McLaren are third on 37 and Williams fourth on 21.
Ferrari lie a distant fifth with 18 points, only four more than Red Bull, a fledgling team built out of the remnants of the Jaguar operation sold off by Ford last winter.
In the drivers' championship, Alonso leads with 44, Italian Jarno Trulli is second with 26 and Raikkonen third on 17.
Schumacher, with 10 points, lies seventh and his team-mate Brazilian Rubens Barrichello 11th with eight.
But Schumacher is nothing if not a fighter.
"I think that third position was realistic," he said.
"I would have been able to stay out quite a bit longer than Alonso, but I don't think it would have been enough to make up those 11 seconds. But of course I would have tried.
"It is clear we are disappointed because in the race we were going okay. It would have been six points. Six important points."
His problems with his left tyres remained a mystery.
"I had some problems on the lap before the first problem and I felt the car getting unbalanced," explained the German.
"At first, I was lucky because it was just two laps before going into the pits so I could go in and have the tyre changed, but the next lap the same thing happened.
"I don't know exactly why it happened because I was not aware of picking up debris on the track, but maybe I did. The other tyres were looking quite good in terms of tyre wear. Both times, it was the left tyre, which is very unusual, and why I would not think it was a tyre problem."
- AFP/ir
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I'm a Schumacher fan, but not Prancing pony fan.. I hope he wins, though it seems unlikely.. He was on the way to becoming a legend.. So sad..
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dont blame it on himnor the team, blame it on bridgestone, 1gp 3 tyres blow up, lucky bar didnt raceOriginally posted by auringedotcom:I'm a Schumacher fan, but not Prancing pony fan.. I hope he wins, though it seems unlikely.. He was on the way to becoming a legend.. So sad.. -
Sauber also uses Bridgestone, although there is talk it is making the switch to Michelin of France. Jordan and Minardi are still with the Japanese tyre manufacturer. Also, didn't BAR switch to Michelin last season?Originally posted by SBS9828X:dont blame it on himnor the team, blame it on bridgestone, 1gp 3 tyres blow up, lucky bar didnt race -
ooh i see MAssa oso puncture tyre tt caused him to retireOriginally posted by iveco:Sauber also uses Bridgestone, if I am not wrong. Jordan and Minardi are still with the Japanese tyre manufacturer. BAR switched to Michelin last season.