Schumacher vows to fight on
Michael Schumacher finds himself heading into unusual territory this weekend after five years as the undisputed king of Formula One.
This time last year Schumacher was being feted as a seven-time world champion, wrapping up his nap hand of successive titles with Ferrari before the Italian Grand Prix at Monza.
Twelve months on, and it is remarkable to witness how fortunes can swing because there is every possibility Schumacher and six-times consecutive constructors’ champions Ferrari will lose their grip on their crowns in front of their adoring public.
With just five races remaining, the 36-year-old German trails the man who would be king in championship leader Fernando Alonso by 40 points, while Ferrari are 44 points adrift of team leaders Renault
If Schumacher, in particular, fails to finish in front of Alonso on Sunday, his reign will be over, leaving the Spaniard to then battle with McLaren’s Kimi Raikkonen to the finishing line.
Despite the misery sustained in the last race in Turkey, described by Schumacher as the team’s “worst performance for a long time,” he remains ever the competitor and optimist.
“Last year we knew we already had both world titles in the bag,” said Schumacher.
“This time around we are not in such a fortunate position and the chances of winning the title are remote.
“Still, it is our home race. Even though our current results are not up to those of the past, we will go into the race with the same spirit and motivation of the past few years.
“I think we can get amongst the points and even make the podium. However, it will only be clear once we are on the track tomorrow, as we discovered last year.
“Then we will see how the weekend goes. As I have said, this is a very important race for us and we, by nature, enjoy a good battle.”
Despite Schumacher’s fighting spirit, in his heart of hearts he will surely know all is effectively lost this year and all that remains is a sense of pride - and to see how the enthralling battle between Alonso and Raikkonen will unfold.
After a poor start to the season, Raikkonen’s McLaren has become the car to beat, yet in recent races Alonso has been doing just enough to hang onto the Finn’s coat-tails with relentless regularity.
In Istanbul, Raikkonen roared to victory and appeared poised to claw back four points on Alonso as team-mate Juan Pablo Montoya was all set to complete a team one-two.
But the Colombian, with tyres wearing, ran wide at one corner late on to allow Alonso to claim second and limit the damage to just two points lost, with his lead still a very healthy 24.
That has been indicative of Alonso’s luck and he knows all he has to continue to do is to remain in Raikkonen’s sights.
“As long as we finish the races, we are okay,” said Alonso.
“If we are competitive and can get on the podium, it will be hard to lose my advantage.
“The advantage we have is that I can still afford some bad races and not lose the lead.
“McLaren have pressure to be perfect until China, and if they are not, we will be there to punish them.”
In-form Raikkonen feels confident enough to suggest the season will go to the wire as he said: “The situation in both the drivers’ and constructors’ championships is still open and nobody knows what’s going to happen until the last race in October.
“The car has the pace to win at Monza. It continued to feel really strong and quick in Turkey, where we had a great race.
“However, Monza is considerably quicker and is the fastest track with speeds averaging 160mph. But I am not giving up the fight, so we shall see.”
