| Michael Schumacher
was on great form as he
faced the media during a press conference at the
International Press Ski Meeting
at Madonna di Campiglio. |
| Question :
Michael, how are you feeling
about the new season? And
what did you get up to after the Japanese
GP and over Christmas? |
| M.Schumacher
:I had a very quiet time over the winter break.
As usual I spent a lot
of time with my family and I have recharged
my batteries for the new season, which will
be a tough one.The successes I have achieved have not
diminished my motivation and I
still enjoy my work. It is difficult
to achieve success, but even harder
to stay at the top. Next week, I
will be back at the wheel in Barcelona;
I am very motivated and I am ready for a new challenge.
|
| Question :
What do you make of the changes announced this week
by the FIA?Will they force you to change your driving
style?Will it make driving the cars more difficult without
all the electronic gizmos? |
| M.Schumacher
: During my career, I have driven cars, which
were not very sophisticated and some with active
suspension, traction control and other features.
As for the driving style, without the aids,
the drivers will have to
learn to drive making many compromises,
while with electronic aids, one can optimise
the car. However, it is very difficult to find the right
set-up and drive the car
perfectly. It i s more of a technical
challenge to get the most out of it. You need a team
of very good engineers around you and you must
have a 100 per cent understanding of all the systems.
I would say it is harder to drive
constantly on the limit with electronic
aids than without them. It is a different
challenge, but I admit it is the one I prefer. |
| Question :
How will things change now then? |
| M.Schumacher
: Things will be very
different in the wet, where without traction control,
we will not have the level of grip we are used
to. It's possible that the younger
drivers will encounter problems. In
any case, I will go along with the regulations,
whatever they are. The important thing
is that it's the same for everyone. |
| Question :
In light of the economic climate, do you think
F1 had to change before any more teams were lost? |
| M.Schumacher
: Formula 1 must take account
of what is happening in
the outside world, just as happens
in other sports. At the
moment, some teams are
experiencing difficulties and I
understand that it is necessary
to try and change the situation. The costs are
too high, both for the private
teams and for those who
have the backing of constructors. Nevertheless, I
am not convinced that one can introduce changes like
this from one day to the next. |
| Question :
Do you think the new rules
will close the gap between Ferrari and the other teams?
|
| M.Schumacher
: Honestly, I don't think so. A good team
will always be a good team. The success of a team
does not stem from just one element.
There are several reasons. It is like a
puzzle where you need to know how
to put all the pieces together. I think
we have the best team and that means we will be
able to react better than the others to the changes.
As for the cost reduction element, Ferrari and the other
top teams will continue to use all the resources
at their disposal to get the most
out of their package. The teams can
only spend what they have and
the important thing is to manage that spending properly.
I think Formula 1 will sort itself out on its
own. |
| Question :
What do you think of the new points system, is it an
anti-Ferrari move? |
| M.Schumacher
: At the moment, we are the team to beat,
but in the future it could
be another team, which is
in that situation. I don't think the new points system
was introduced to penalise anyone. In fact, I
think it favours the smaller
teams who will now be able to score points more
often. It is a change, which therefore improves
the show. |
