[libranof1987]

If the following 2 reports are anything to go by, looks like Michael Schumacher isn't very keen (predictably) on continuing in Formula 1.

Schumacher admits the joy is no longer there - The Times of India

Schumacher likely to call it quits: Ex-teammate - The Times of India

I'll quote a few lines : "The simple fact is that he is no longer the best driver on the track"..."Schumacher has not lost any of his skill - the new generation of young drivers are just better than him."..."It is a case that the level required to win in F1 has gone up and he is not at that standard anymore."

Both Ferrari and Schumi need urgent and huge resurrection; maybe they could join forces and be a winning combination again (like the initial Schumacher-Ferrari reign)!

[anachronix]

All of Michael's teammates who couldn't beat him on track are having a go at him in the press. This was Herbert's chance and thats about it!

The Mercedes did well in qualifying in Turkey, however it started fading away through the race. Michael looked restless & desperate on Sunday and did some mediocre defense on the track.

[myavu]

He will continue till 2012 last race. He admitted that he did not enjoyed the race, but that does not mean that he is going to quit.

Let us see what turns out at the end of this season.

Best of luck MS.

Cheers!

Vinu

[iceman7]

In fact, just this morning I read a very nice article in the papers which spoke about "what is the right time for a sports person to call it quits?" - And this article made a nice case study of both Schumi and Roger Federer.

That said, I was never too keen to see Schumi return. I have no doubts on the man's capabilities, but he has achieved what many could only dream of...and he should have left it at that.

[libranof1987]

I've read that too!

Common examples are Schumacher, Federer and Ganguly.

One of the main reason why Schumacher was virtually unchallenged in the early part of last decade was the sheer awesomeness of Ferrari.

And his genius (and a small amount of other things) made him the better Ferrari.

The conditions in F1 now are such that you need a significantly better car; most of the drivers have near similar driving skills.

Schumi with his driving alone cannot pull it off.

[ajman28]

It's always better to retire when you are at the top. The fans will forever consider you as a legend. Schumi should have stayed retired after his scintillating run with Ferrari. But I guess it's easier said than done when one's whole life revolves around a sport.

I could think of a few greats who signed off in style. Pete Sampras, Ian Thorpe, Shane Warne, Muthiah Muralidaran, and Zidane (even though his last act was a shocking send off!!). Even Hakinen signed off in style from F1. Michael Jordan and Schumi signed off at the right time but I guess they made a big mistake by returning again. It just reminds us that they are after all normal human beings!

I just hope Sachin does not do a Schumi or a Jordan.

[VW2010]

Schumi is not even aggressive let alone threatening. He cant beat his own team mate let alone others. Time to retire is what i feel.

[PAVAN KADAM]

Originally Posted by VW2010

Schumi is not even aggressive let alone threatening. He cant beat his own team mate let alone others. Time to retire is what i feel.

One liner flying comments is not what we need here.

Kindly contribute to the topic.

We have seen him playing the PIVOTAL role in developing Mercedes GP through from the time they started. Schumi has always referrs and quotes his team to the Press as "WE" unlike Nico who says "I"

Nico has been getting added packages to his car which basically is working well for him, considering the last seasons result, Schumi ended very close to Nico.

http://articles.timesofindia.indiati...grand-prix-joy

Lets read the article better than "Read Between the Lines"

There is that aggressiveness and Hunger, but sadly his car is not responding to his driving style.

Yes, he's past his prime, but he still has what it takes to be the top contender, but its not the case with his car.

[Shubz]

The 3 M's is what matter. The Man, The Machine and The Money. When Schumi was with Ferrari, all the 3 factors were in abundance. Then came the following,

FIA put the spending cap.
Schumi not getting any younger by the day
Young drivers in their early twenties were adapting much faster to the F1 environs.
Technological advancements. Cars mostly controlled from the pit/dug out etc.

I always felt Schumi is best associated with the prancing horse. I still cannot recognize Schumi when he was with Benetton etc.

I secretly hope Schumi returns to Ferrari and Ferrari come up with a monster of a car and get to those winning ways again! Wishful thinking though!

[Ford_madhan]

Schumi's move to Ferrari is not going to happen. And after watching last race, his race pace is almost similar to his teammate. If he can avoid the mistakes, he sure will be there fighting with the top 5. But Mercedes is still not a race winning car, as they seem to fade away as the race progresses.

And another thing i noticed from the last race is, the new generation of young drivers are very aggressive towards each others and if you are fighting at the middle of the pack, you are likely to hit someone or someone will hit you.

[libranof1987]

Originally Posted by Shubz

The 3 M's is what matter. The Man, The Machine and The Money. When Schumi was with Ferrari, all the 3 factors were in abundance. Then came the following,

FIA put the spending cap.
Schumi not getting any younger by the day
Young drivers in their early twenties were adapting much faster to the F1 environs.
Technological advancements. Cars mostly controlled from the pit/dug out etc.

I always felt Schumi is best associated with the prancing horse. I still cannot recognize Schumi when he was with Benetton etc.

I secretly hope Schumi returns to Ferrari and Ferrari come up with a monster of a car and get to those winning ways again! Wishful thinking though!

Exactly. The recent FIA cap on spending, although good for most tier-2 manufacturers (it brough all manufacturers on an almost same level technically) hasn't gone down well with the top guns as it was the technical superiority that made them champions.

Originally Posted by Ford_madhan

Schumi's move to Ferrari is not going to happen. And after watching last race, his race pace is almost similar to his teammate. If he can avoid the mistakes, he sure will be there fighting with the top 5. But Mercedes is still not a race winning car, as they seem to fade away as the race progresses.

And another thing i noticed from the last race is, the new generation of young drivers are very aggressive towards each others and if you are fighting at the middle of the pack, you are likely to hit someone or someone will hit you.

Drivers have always been agressive; it is just that when it was Ferrari+Schumacher, no one really looked at the rest of the drivers!

[vb-saan]

Originally Posted by PAVAN KADAM

There is that aggressiveness and Hunger, but sadly his car is not responding to his driving style.

Yes, he's past his prime, but he still has what it takes to be the top contender, but its not the case with his car.

Completely agree. I have never been a hug Schumi fan, but that said, I will not question his competitiveness and spirit. He had the confidence in him to return to the grid (infact he was almost there when Massa had the accident). He joined a champion team, and with Schumacher around (and also with the added resources from Mercedes), Brawn should have done better than the previous year. But unfortunately, the team is almost back in their Honda days. And even Rosberg have not done anything substantial with the team.

On a separate note, if the team is not able to bring in any substantial improvements, I am sure Schumi will call it a day by end of this season. He cannot remain as graceful loser for a long time

[anachronix]

Originally Posted by libranof1987

Exactly. The recent FIA cap on spending, although good for most tier-2 manufacturers (it brough all manufacturers on an almost same level technically) hasn't gone down well with the top guns as it was the technical superiority that made them champions.

Its not the cap on spending, its the FIA regulations & also lack of in season testing. If both were there, Redbull would be nowhere near the front now. Ferrari & Mclaren would easily be battling it out in front along with the Mercedes!

Originally Posted by Ford_madhan

And another thing i noticed from the last race is, the new generation of young drivers are very aggressive towards each others and if you are fighting at the middle of the pack, you are likely to hit someone or someone will hit you.

These days the young guns are not aggressive, but then they lack experience on track. Most of the overtaking moves or defense ends in an accident. And all the top drivers did go through this phase when they first came into F1.

[VW2010]

If both were there, Redbull would be nowhere near the front now. Ferrari & Mclaren would easily be battling it out in front along with the Mercedes!

If Red-bull can deliver a car that is faster and better than others, why crib about FIA regulation on spending and testing. Redbull has developed a better car.

Now back to the topic. Yes seeing Schumi win is a great site. But we have to accept and move on that he cannot drive faster than the younger generation and is more desperate. We just saw how "Novice"like driving he did the other day and lost his chance of finishing in some points.

I am sure Vettel or even Hamilton in the current mercedes will outpace both Nico and Schumi and that says a lot about a driver.

[myavu]

Source : autosport.com - F1 News: Schumacher has full Mercedes support

Schumacher has full Mercedes support

Michael Schumacher has received the full backing from his Mercedes GP team, which says it has no doubts the German can help deliver strong results despite his difficult race in Turkey last weekend.

Schumacher missed out on the points in Istanbul after losing time early on in a collision with Vitaly Petrov which required him to make an unscheduled stop for a new front wing.

That left him too far down the order to join the fight for points, even though analysis of his pace over the full race distance showed it was better than many of the cars that finished in the top ten.

After stating in the immediate aftermath of the grand prix that the race had not delivered him 'big joy', speculation swirled that Schumacher was not enjoying F1 and that Mercedes GP could be forced to rethink the German's place in the team.

However, Mercedes GP said on Tuesday that it remains firmly behind Schumacher, and it is convinced the seven-time world champion is ready to produce the form that the team believes he is capable of.

Mercedes-Benz motorsport boss Norbert Haug told AUTOSPORT: "When success is missing, then criticism is a fact of life. When a seven-time world champion like Michael Schumacher doesn't achieve success, criticism rains down upon him.

"I understand why: people expect the very highest level of performance from Michael and Mercedes, which is fully in line with our own targets.
"An analysis of Michael's laptimes from practice and the race in Istanbul shows that he had good pace. Without the contact on lap two, and the time he subsequently lost having the front wing changed, he was quick enough to finish in sixth or seventh position.

"That speed isn't wishful thinking; it's a fact. With that kind of potential, results will follow of their own accord."

Haug said he was not surprised that Schumacher told the media he did not get much joy out of the Turkish GP, but believed that was to be fully expected from a man who has achieved such great success in the past.
"I can understand that Michael didn't have much fun on Sunday, racing so hard for 12th position knowing that, without his clash, he could have done better. I'm convinced he will [have fun] in Barcelona.

"We believe in our team, we believe in our drivers and we are working with calm and focus to achieve our targets."

Haug added that Mercedes GP never believed it would achieve instant success in F1, but thinks the progress the outfit has made already this season is evidence that it eventually will reach its target.

"We started 18 months ago in our new configuration, and we're competing in a very challenging environment. Like every other successful team before us, we need time to learn and develop," he said.

"This process is going in the right way and we've seen Nico [Rosberg] start from the second row in both of the last races. The fact that the 14 laps he led in China also currently put him equal second in this ranking, illustrates how dominant Sebastian Vettel in his Red Bull has been so far this year."