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[racechick]

Massa the reason I retired - Schumacher
http://en.f1-live.com/f1/en/headlines/news/detail/080715101556.shtml
Nearly two years after announcing his retirement as a Formula One driver, Michael Schumacher has cited his former team-mate Felipe Massa as a primary reason for hanging up his racing helmet.
"I stopped because I didn't want my friend Felipe Massa to be unemployed," the Swiss newspaper Blick quotes the seven time world champion as saying.
"I would have had no problem going up against Kimi Raikkonen," Schumacher adds, refuting the common claim that he objected to having the Finn as his 2007 team-mate.
Massa and Raikkonen, currently equal on points along with Lewis Hamilton in the 2008 championship standings, make up Ferrari's current race line-up.

That dosen't sound like a very good reason to retire to me.
If it's true and that's all it was, could we possible see him back ?

I agree Mikey, not too good a reason. Schuey, "now about next year mmmm, not sure, what to do, I might retire. Why am I thinking that?? Well either I dont want to go up against kimi, or I want to give little Felippe a fair shot (Im that sensitive kind of a guy,always considering my fellow competitors-I did it all the time with Barichello )Errr, its because i want to be nice to Felippe

[scotty]

Erm, he retired cause Alonso turned up and started winning titles.

[deMuRe]

Bud and Mclaren Fan, you're looking at the relationship as purely linear, team makes car, driver drives car.

Every now and again, a driver comes a long that does a lot more then just drive the car.

Schumacher was a team leader. He demanded certain standards, worked harder then anybody else and applied himself like no other. He possibly tried too hard sometimes which lead him to make the mistakes he's so famous for.

His presence in the teams he drove for had many follow on effects, the results speak for themselves.

I agree that every now and again a driver comes along who is more than a driver. Schumacher was very definitely one of those. He motivated Ferrari, worked extremely hard and got the team geared around him. That, however, does not change the fact that Schumacher was only one component of the Ferrari dream team and that, no matter how good a driver you are, you need to have an competitive car. Ayrton Senna showed at Lotus and in 1992 and 1993 at McLaren that there is only so much a genius can do: Yes he can win races occasionally, but you won't be a serious title contender. Schumacher also showed that in 1992 and 1993 at Benetton and 1996 at Ferrari.

My point is, look at the levels of success of those teams before and after Schumacher arrived. He had a good car because he was enjoying the fruits of his own hard work and success.

I admit, if Schumacher had rocked up and joined Minardi, even with Schumacher in the team they would have never won a race. However he took a car capable of winning and turned it into a regular winner. The team didn't give him a good car, he made it good by doing a whole lot more then driving it.

[McLaren Fan]

My point is, look at the levels of success of those teams before and after Schumacher arrived. He had a good car because he was enjoying the fruits of his own hard work and success.

I admit, if Schumacher had rocked up and joined Minardi, even with Schumacher in the team they would have never won a race. However he took a car capable of winning and turned it into a regular winner. The team didn't give him a good car, he made it good by doing a whole lot more then driving it.

There is a slight contradiction in your post. Schumacher extracted the most out of the gear he was given, we know that. But, as you say, you need to be backed by quality personnel and a reasonable amount of cash. Alonso is a good example to use at this point in time. In 2001, he was able to race a Minardi in the low teens when the car was the second-worst car on the grid. When he came to Renault, a team with more money and better staff, he won two world titles. A driver can add a little extra magic for sure (as I said, you can see that with Senna, Schumacher and Alonso), but the key to winning drivers' championships in Formula One is getting yourself into a competitive car.

[bud]

If Schumacher had rocked up at Ferrari without half of his Benetton comfort zone and turned them into the unstoppable force they are this century then yeah i agree with you.

for example 1996 was Schumachers first year at Ferrari and while they had their usual strong performance they werent fast enough to challenge for the title 1997 rolls on and Rory Byrne and co get their hands on the car and Schumi is challenging for the title

[przemo]

It seems that Schumi doesn't think well of Massa. Was he so bad that he couldn't find a job and needed help? Isn't it a bit stupid reason to quit your job. Either you want to race or not, no point in looking at others.

[darwin dali]

I admit, if Schumacher had rocked up and joined Minardi, even with Schumacher in the team they would have never won a race. However he took a car capable of winning and turned it into a regular winner. The team didn't give him a good car, he made it good by doing a whole lot more then driving it.

I disagree. At the time, MS was already a double champion and had clout as a Wunderkind. He would have brought lots of cash to Minardi if he'd moved there. Lots of cash means better team personnel and resources, i.e., better cars, thus race wins.

[darwin dali]

i.e. Schumacher would only have won a couple of titles and Hakkinen a baker's dozen.

A baker's dozen = 13! I sure hope you weren't being serious!

[TechniqueFreak]

Massa the reason I retired - Schumacher
http://en.f1-live.com/f1/en/headlines/news/detail/080715101556.shtml
Nearly two years after announcing his retirement as a Formula One driver, Michael Schumacher has cited his former team-mate Felipe Massa as a primary reason for hanging up his racing helmet.
"I stopped because I didn't want my friend Felipe Massa to be unemployed," the Swiss newspaper Blick quotes the seven time world champion as saying.
"I would have had no problem going up against Kimi Raikkonen," Schumacher adds, refuting the common claim that he objected to having the Finn as his 2007 team-mate.
Massa and Raikkonen, currently equal on points along with Lewis Hamilton in the 2008 championship standings, make up Ferrari's current race line-up.

I'm surprised nobody picked up Schumi's subtext here. He's saying, in the sweeted possible way, that he's a better driver than both Massa and Raikkonen!

I.e., "If I had've stayed, it would have been me vs Raikkonen, because the team would have booted Massa, because I'm better than Massa. And if it had've been me vs Raikkonen, I would've booted him so bad he'd start bringing his Dad along the pits to have a shoulder to cry on." (OK, that last bit was gratuitous, but going on with Schuey's meta-message:) "But I'm such a nice guy, I didn't want to ruin Philipe's career, and Jesus, I've done it seven times now anyway, so I'll retire. Just don't go thinking it was anything close to my being scared of Raikkonen." All of which is true, IMHO.

And by the way, I can't believe some people are still pulling the line that the guy won 7 (SEVEN) titles because he somehow lucked into good cars. Please, can we have some intellectual integrity? Of course the car is important, but how do you end up in a good car? By being a good driver, in terms of skill and psychology. And anyway, with the possible exception of Senna, the guy won more poles and races in a 2nd or 3rd best car than anyone - in particular every race he won in 1992, 1993, 1994, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999 and arguably many in 2000 and 2003.

[McLaren Fan]

i.e. Schumacher would only have won a couple of titles and Hakkinen a baker's dozen.

A baker's dozen = 13! I sure hope you weren't being serious!

Yeah, Hakkinen was really that good. No, seriously, I made a mistake. I don't know why I typed that! I shall go back and change it now.

And by the way, I can't believe some people are still pulling the line that the guy won 7 (SEVEN) titles because he somehow lucked into good cars.

I don't think anybody is saying that Schumacher lucked his way into good cars. The guy clearly had a lot of talent, but the idea that Schumacher was single-handedly responsible for Ferrari's upturn in form is equally nonsense. As I've said before on this thread, the very best drivers can work their magic and achieve some great results, but won't be a serious title contender without a good team. Finally, although I generally agree with you that Schumacher did win a lot of races with inferior cars, I would dispute some of your dates, namely 1994 and 2003. I would also say that in 1998 to 2000 Schumacher was a bit little lucky, for the McLarens, although fast, were dreadfully unreliable. The Ferraris, meanwhile, were perhaps not quite as quick, but were built like tanks and able to mop up the points and wins when the McLarens packed in!

[darwin dali]

i.e. Schumacher would only have won a couple of titles and Hakkinen a baker's dozen.

A baker's dozen = 13! I sure hope you weren't being serious!

Yeah, Hakkinen was really that good. No, seriously, I made a mistake. I don't know why I typed that! I shall go back and change it now.

I could rationalize it for ya: a baker's half dozen could be viewed as 6+1 (doubt it exists actually), so 7, the magic MS number

[Mikep99]

Schumacher upsets jobless
http://www.itv-f1.com/Feature.aspx?Type=Gravel_Trap&id=43357&PO=43357
Following a recent interview in Swiss newspaper Blick, Michael Schumacher has managed to upset some of Germany’s long-term unemployed.

In the article, Schuey says that he stopped racing “because I didn’t want my friend Felipe Massa to be unemployed”.

How thoughtful – and of course retirement had nothing at all to do with the prospect of having Kimi Raikkonen in the team on an equal status.

However, the comment has not gone down well with some of Germany’s 5.2 million jobless, who feel that Schumacher could have thought of one of their number rather than Massa.

Speaking from a cardboard box outside Munich train station, Hans Gruber, 43, said: “I think this is an unfair move of Schumacher – with his influence at Ferrari he could have had one less on the German dole queue rather than one less on the Brazilian…”

I fell in love with my new life - Schumi

http://www.f1technical.net/news/9838
Seven times World Champion Michael Schumacher is happy with his life after Formula One. In the magazine 'Stern', Schumi said: "I fell in love with my new life, it's such a freedom, as I always wanted to have. I don't have secret thoughts of a comeback in Formula One."
Still, Schumacher had to get used to life at home. "In the first months when I lay on the sofa, I was surprised by me: What? You? Today I say to myself at such moments: putting your legs up is ok, you have earned it."

Although Schumacher has retired, he remains closely involved in the Ferrari team as special advisor and occasionally he can be seen in action during the test sessions. This weekend, the popular driver will attend the German Grand Prix at Hockenheim and this in his function as advisor.

[Big Azza]

There is only one reason why I want to see Schumacher come back: To race Hamilton so we know the truth. Is Hamilton really lucky? Or really skilled?

[deMuRe]

My point is, look at the levels of success of those teams before and after Schumacher arrived. He had a good car because he was enjoying the fruits of his own hard work and success.

I admit, if Schumacher had rocked up and joined Minardi, even with Schumacher in the team they would have never won a race. However he took a car capable of winning and turned it into a regular winner. The team didn't give him a good car, he made it good by doing a whole lot more then driving it.

There is a slight contradiction in your post. Schumacher extracted the most out of the gear he was given, we know that. But, as you say, you need to be backed by quality personnel and a reasonable amount of cash. Alonso is a good example to use at this point in time. In 2001, he was able to race a Minardi in the low teens when the car was the second-worst car on the grid. When he came to Renault, a team with more money and better staff, he won two world titles. A driver can add a little extra magic for sure (as I said, you can see that with Senna, Schumacher and Alonso), but the key to winning drivers' championships in Formula One is getting yourself into a competitive car.

Granted, in modern F1 where the cars are so mechanically reliant a driver can't win in a shopping trolley, no matter how good he is.

However you cannot deny the fact that whatever team Schumacher joined they became a success.

Ferrari enjoyed a period of domination never seen before in Formula One, this was mostly down to Schumacher...

Sure other drivers have joined teams and made a difference, but never so much as Schumacher. That's why he's the most successful driver in the history of the sport, because he was the greatest of all time.

Yeah Yeah bla bla Senna died, Fangio was better, I've heard it all before. We can argue until the cows come home. At the end of the day only one person got the job done. No excuses, no what ifs, no buts.

[Mikep99]

There is only one reason why I want to see Schumacher come back: To race Hamilton so we know the truth. Is Hamilton really lucky? Or really skilled?

Hammy is a very skilled driver no question about it but he is also in one of the best if not the best car on the grid.
There are a few drivers out their who are very skilled but they don't have the second component which is the most important part of the equation.

So you could say he is also very lucky

But his skill warrants the drive I suppose, even though he has had a silver carpet ride to it.