Schumi to be Todt's Assistant

At the 2006 Ferrari World Finals at Monza Michael Schumacher and Jean Todt announced the German's plans for the future. Seven-time world champion Michael Schumacher will scout for young talented drivers for the Italian team.

"Michael (Schumacher) has always been interested to follow some of the young drivers," said Ferrari F1 team boss Jean Todt in Monza today. "Actually, I have one of those young talents here next to me. I remember very well when Michael came to me and talked about Felipe when he was racing in a lower series. He also talked to me about Raikkonen before he entered F1 with Sauber so I believe he has a good eye for young talent. He can become important for Ferrari when it comes to choosing our future drivers."

Apart from helping the team with searching new young talents in lower series Schumacher will also remain involved with the development of Ferrari's road cars. "Michael will continue his involvement in developing our road cars too in the upcoming years."

Schumacher is glad he can remain involved with Ferrari in the future. Speaking at Monza he said: "I am glad Ferrari will give me this chance to stay involved with the team. The team will give me the freedom of what I will have to do. They don't expect me to be at my desk at any time for example. I believe it is a unique opportunity for me, but I will first need a few months off to clear up my mind and then we'll be getting back to work."

Grazie Michael !!!

Schumi receives an island as a gift

Michael Schumacher received an unique and unprecedented parting gift after his last grand prix in Brazil - an island.
Dubai's crown prince - Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum - reportedly decided to give the retiring German a piece of the man-made island paradise The World. located off the coast of the United Arab Emirates.
The World is 300 islands clustered together in a nine kilometre zone to resemble Earth from an aerial photo.
Schumacher's island, apparently part of "Antarctica" on the artificial globe, is worth about $7 million.
Schumacher's manager Willi Weber confirmed: "In a couple of years it will be finished. Then Michael and Corinna will have their own holiday island!
"Perhaps he will build a kart track on it."

Grazie Michael

Thank You Michael !

Thank you Michael for 15 years of magic, F1 will never be the same without you! You are in every way everything Formula 1 is about.

Massa Wins, Schumi Shines in last race despite bad luck

Felipe Massa dominated the Brazilian Grand Prix to take an emotional home victory, the first for a Brazilian on home soil since the late Ayrton Senna won in 1993. Fernando Alonso took the chequered flag in second position and clinched his second straight title while Renault wrapped up the constructors’ championship.

It was a thrilling conclusion to the year with Michael Schumacher putting in a stunning final drive to work his way back from flat last following a left rear cut tyre, to a fighting fourth position less than five seconds behind Jenson Button who also put in a fine drive for Honda.

It was a dramatic finale but out front, Massa dominated his home event from Pole Position and Schumacher aside, no one else could have beaten him to the victory today.

Fourth position for Michael Schumacher does not tell the take of his final Grand Prix. Starting tenth Schumacher was quickly up with Fisichella in sixth position. A daring pass around the outside into turn one and suddenly the Ferrari jinked as the left rear Bridgestone deflated.

Schumacher made it back to the pits and with a fresh set of tyres was soon back underway in 17th position a full 20s behind next man Tiago Monteiro. The fastest man lap after lap Schumacher left his second and final stop until late in the race and exited the pits for the final time ahead of Pedro de la Rosa who would go on to finish eighth.

Schumacher made short work of former Ferrari team-mate and then homed in on Fisichella once again. The Renault driver held Schumacher back for some time but finally the Italian made a mistake as he locked his front left wheel on the approach to turn one and ran wide. Next Schumacher homed in on Raikkonen and again fought hard to gain the position with a handful of laps remaining. Schumacher would set the fastest lap on his penultimate tour and take the chequered flag five seconds behind Button.

Back at the front and a well-deserved win from Felipe Massa who maintains his third place in the championship ahead of Giancarlo Fisichella. A great final race in what was a great season and a stunning career from Michael Schumacher. Roll on 2007...

Schumi calm despite last race of his career

Michael Schumacher was the calmest man in town here on Thursday when he faced his final pre-race news conference before the end of the most successful career in Formula One history.

As a typical media scrum descended on the Hotel Trans-America, close to both the Interlagos race circuit which hosts Sunday's Brazilian Grand Prix and the Morumbi graveyard in which Ayrton Senna is buried, the seven-time drivers' World Champion was the embodiment of cool behaviour.

Questions flew, cameras clicked, pens scribbled and microphones twitched towards him, but the 37-year-old German, who is heading into retirement after winning 91 of his 248 Grand Prix and claiming 68 pole positions, and delivering five drivers' titles for Ferrari and two for Benetton, barely moved a muscle.

Schumacher has always been a supreme example of Teutonic reliability, supreme athleticism, great fitness and concentrated effort and a certain 'hauteur' that comes with his knowledge that he is a born winner.

So another room, full of reporters and admirers, in one of Latin America's biggest cities far away from the wet Ardennes circuit at Spa in Belgium where his career began 15 years ago, was no great concern. After all, at this stage of his career, with one race remaining, he knows what he has achieved and what he kind of miracle he needs if he is to defy the odds, and a ten-point deficit, and claim an unprecedented eighth world title.

Asked if he felt emotional now he had arrived on the threshold of the last race of his great career, he said: "I am not thinking so much about it. Occasionally it comes up and you feel a bit strange about it, but in general I am pretty relaxed and it is pretty much business as usual so far."

Pressed further to say that he is treating this Brazilian Grand Prix like any other race, he admitted: "Well, yes, until now. But we will see if it changes!"

Schumacher reiterated that his retirement decision was final and not likely to be followed by a u-turn. "My decision has been taken, so there is no reason to change that decision. What is going to be my life afterwards? I don't know. I have said many times that I don't feel like I should know."

He added: "I am in a fortunate position that I can retire and don't have to have a vision for my life afterwards. I have plenty of time to make my vision, to live a life where something will come up that will interest me."

"First of all, there was a Ferrari without Schumacher and there will be a Ferrari without me," he said.

He is also trying not to think too much about achieving what seems the impossible on Sunday - he needs to win and see rival Fernando Alonso fail to score a point.

"I am not coming here to think too much about my own title (challenge)," he said. "I'm coming here for the constructors' title. I expressed after the Suzuka race that the title fight for the drivers' championship is finished. I don't want to build up my hopes on someone retiring. So I am here to do a good race and try to win the race.

"From our point of view we can only do the maximum job to be one and two at the end of the race and then we have to see what the others do, and if that is enough for us to win the constructors' championship or not."

Finally, Schumacher was asked, what was he going to miss when he leaves Formula One? "You have to see things as a total," he replied. "In general, I have had a good life here, as well as you guys. There is nothing to regret."

Then it was over. No tears, no melodramas. In all probability, Schumacher will give further news conferences on Saturday and Sunday if he is among the top three in qualifying and then the race. But, if not, that may have been the last public statement by the greatest race-winner in the history of Formula One motor racing.

Farewell party planned for Schumi's home town

When Michael Schumacher drives his 250th and final Grand Prix on Sunday, 750 fans will gather in the star's small hometown of Krepen, to celebrate his 16-year career. The town, near Cologne, already has a street named after him and plans its first 'Schumi' day in November.

The party will take place in the town hall and feature live music from band Seven Season. Regardless of the result at Interlagos, the town will give its hero a proper farewell party in honour of the man they say put the town on the map.

"Michael is a Kerpen kid and has been a brilliant representative of our town," the town-mayor Marlies Siegberg told RTL. "Schumi has made us world famous."

248 F1 and Statue For Schumi

Michael Schumacher can keep the Brazil-spec single-seater - the 248 F1 - that he will race for the last time in his sixteen year career at Interlagos this Sunday, according to Luca di Montezemolo. "I cannot think of a better parting gift for him," the Ferrari President is quoted as saying by AZ.

Schumacher can also expect a fitting send-off by staff at the 'Montana' restaurant, which is located next to Ferrari's Fiorano test circuit. Express reports that restaurant staff intend to collect money to commission a bronze statue of the multiple world champion.

Schumacher, however, is believed to have rejected the offer for a monument to be erected in his honour near his kart track, on the basis that statues should be reserved for dead people.

Ferrari solve case of mystery engine failure

Ferrari has now determined the cause of Michael Schumacher's championship-denting engine failure at Suzuka.

It is understood that the German rarely smoked to a halt in Japan due to a failed intake valve.

Engineers at the Maranello based squad, however, have put the failure down to an isolated materials defect, meaning that a significant change or remedy in Brazil is unlikely.

Felipe Massa's pre-race engine glitch in Shanghai is also believed to have involved a damaged valve, but it was apparently a different failure.

Ferrari sources, meanwhile, ruled out the theory that Schumacher's final pit stop at Suzuka - including overheating - could be linked to his failure.

Ferrari crack 20,000 RPM

Ferrari, with Michael Schumacher at the wheel, cracked the elusive 20,000 RPM barrier with its Brazil-only engine specification whilst testing at Jerez last week.

Cosworth and Honda are believed to have also surpassed the impressive figure at one time or another, but - in pursuit of the constructors' championship and a final Grand Prix win for the retiring German racer - the red team reportedly intend to regularly run the V8 past 20,000 revs in Sao Paulo this weekend.

"Because their engine must only last for one race, I can imagine that 20,000 is a realistic figure," Toyota's former engine boss, Norbert Kreyer, said.

Spain's Marca newspaper, meanwhile, applauded Schumacher after he dominated proceedings last week in testing at Jerez.

"It is a good job for Alonso that the championship is basically decided," the newspaper wrote, "because if it was not, every alarm bell at Renault would now be ringing."

Michael is not blaming anyone

Sunday, October 8th 2006: “Our team is great. These lads are the best. So all that can be said after a race like today's is: there is no-one to blame. The engine just gave out suddenly and everything went up in smoke - among other things our hopes of winning the drivers' championship. That is pretty much decided upon now. But that's the way it goes in racing, things like this can happen. It's part of the sport and a part of life. All I can say is that I'm extremely proud of this team. The way we fought back in the championship after being 25 points behind after Canada was amazing. But it wasn't meant to be. We did everything right, because when the engine blew up we were first in the field.

To hope that Fernando will have to retire during the Brazil race is not something that I will base my race on. I don't want to hope that an opponent will have to retire, I want to fight for the championship. And that's exactly what we will do in Brazil now, we'll fight for the constructors' championship. We are nine points behind in that right now, but we'll see. We'll definitely try to do it."

Nightmare In Japan

Alonso took a championship stranglehold fighting up from fifth on the grid to take victory in the Japanese Grand Prix from Felipe Massa and Giancarlo Fisichella. Under pressure from Alonso, Schumi suffered his first engine failure since 2001 and slips ten points behind in the championship. Alonso needs just a single point in Brazil to be sure of his second drivers' crown. Schumi's only chance of winning his 8th title will happen if he wins in Brazil and Alonso finishes out of the points. Ferrari are now 9 pts behind in the constructor's battle.

Pele to honour Schumacher Finale

Football legend Pele will this month help to mark Michael Schumacher's last ever Grand Prix, to be staged in Sao Paulo.

Pele, the Brazilian 65-year-old who some regard as the greatest ever soccer player, will reportedly present Ferrari's retiring Schumacher in the Brazilian city with a trophy to mark his F1 exit.

37-year-old Schumacher's seven world crowns and more than 90 wins have been compared to Pele's tally of 1281 career goals.

But Pele is nonetheless a Schumacher fan.


"This is a big honour for me," he reportedly said.

Schumi's Shanghai Shindig

F1's retiring Chinese Grand Prix winner and new championship leader Michael Schumacher threw a huge party after his Shanghai win, according to Bild-Zeitung.

The popular German newspaper said Ferrari's 37-year-old star - albeit sticking to coca-cola - partied until six in the morning in the city's Marriott hotel.

The party was reportedly also attended by 2007 Ferrari driver Kimi Raikkonen, Schumacher's current team-mate Felipe Massa, Renault rival Giancarlo Fisichella and personal press officer Sabine Kehm.


Predictably, championship rival Fernando Alonso was not spotted.

Amazing Win

Sunday, October 1st: "What a race! Honestly, I would never have expected that. This morning during the briefing the windows were open and it rained and rained outside and all of us thought: oh dear, what's gonna happen here... And then I won, that's amazing. I was quite surprised that I could keep up with the pace of the cars in front of me right from the start, we hadn't expected that. But then I started to close the gap bit by bit. It was important that we didn't switch tyres during the first pit-stop, that was a good decision on our part. And the second stop and the change to slicks was perfect, it had just started to be dry enough. When Fisico switched his and came back onto the track on slicks I knew that he would have some problems taking the first turn. Everybody more or less had some problems there because in the beginning the tyres are cold and there is not very much grip. I knew I had to seize the opportunity and I drove onto the grass a little bit to avoid a collision. It worked out great. It was a fantastic race and winning was fabulous because I hadn't expected to. Because I had gone into the race thinking all I could do was try and keep the damage to a minimum..."

Schumi takes championship lead in China

Michael Schumacher scooped his seventh win of the season, his first points in the Chinese Grand Prix ever, and crucially the lead in the drivers' championship in a completely unpredictable Chinese Grand Prix at Shanghai. Alonso and he are now tied at 116 pts with 2 races to go. It was schumi's 91st victory.