Is MS thinking about having a go at Hamilton?

[Hut49]

No reason to suppose that MS is not capable of running among the front runners (in the right car). And knowing how competitive / proud he is, surely he must be thinking he'd like to have a chance to show the young whipper-snapper (LH not FA ) exactly who is the boss of modern day F1.

Even if MS fails in that challenge there's no taking away his probably-never-to-be-repeated achievements and, in defeat, acknowledging LH as his natural successor could be done graciously with delightful dismissal of FA's pretence to his crown (which I'm sure would give MS great pleasure).

So assuming he could pull rank and have Massa's place - leaving Massa to go to McLaren or Toyota and Alonso to Renault - would MS in a 2008 Ferrari be competitive with LH in a McLaren, both w/o traction control? Or could Flavio see the (promotional) opportunity to reunite with his protégé leaving FA out in the cold, assuming FA's days at McLaren are numbered?

[Baldylocks]

Hut49 said:

So assuming he could pull rank and have Massa's place

Are'nt you forgetting that Raikonnen's arrival at Ferrari was at least part of the reason he retired?

Personally I'd love to see him back in F1 as a yardstick for LH/FA/KR.

Edited by Baldylocks on Wednesday 3rd October 20:42

[andyps]

MS himself said he would retire when he could no longer beat the younger drivers. He retired, therefore his actions answer the question.

[SimonY]

I reckon if he was still at Ferrari he would be a lot closer (in points) to the McLarens than the current drivers are, not necessarily because he is much faster but more because of consistency and experience. But things have to move on.

I'd like to see him move to sportscars, I don't think it should be seen as a backward step, more just a bit of fun.

[belleair302]

Simple answer is NO. Why, because technology moves on, motivation decreases and Michael Schumacher lost the hunger to continue. Why do athlete's retire, same reason.

Next year with no electronics it will be even harder for certain drivers....the younger ones pick up changes so much more quickly than seasoned professionals.

Quite simply Schumacher will never return and if he did he would be bown away by the current crop of top racers.

[jules_s]

SimonY said:

I reckon if he was still at Ferrari he would be a lot closer (in points) to the McLarens than the current drivers are, not necessarily because he is much faster but more because of consistency and experience. But things have to move on.

I'd like to see him move to sportscars, I don't think it should be seen as a backward step, more just a bit of fun.

Absolutley no chance of that.

MS has been quoted (on tv and papers) that he knew Kimi was joining Ferrari...and he still retired.

MS would want #1 status in the team and Kimi wouldn't accept second fiddle IMO.

[rupert the dog]

Michael Scumacher is not my favourite person. But he is without doubt the best racing driver there has been since Senna died. He would still be at the top if he came back, even next year, and although Lewis, Kimi and Fernando are all very, very good, he would give them all a run for their money. Wouldn't he?

[s3200h]

[quote=SimonY]I reckon if he was still at Ferrari he would be a lot closer (in points) to the McLarens than the current drivers are, not necessarily because he is much faster but more because of consistency and experience. But things have to move on.

quote]

your right but it would be because he is faster than the current line up, Love him or hate him, he is undoubtedly the best driver in F1 for many years and we have been Lucky to witness it. Was a sad day when he left the sport, would have loved to see what would have happened this season against LH and FA, i suspect a different name would be at the top of the table

It is fantastic to see LH doing so well, and long may it continue

[s3200h]

sorry forgot to add KR to the list

[Baldylocks]

andyps said:

MS himself said he would retire when he could no longer beat the younger drivers. He retired, therefore his actions answer the question.

Pah! He may have said that but theres no way he had lost his edge. He had some cracking races in '06 (the last race in Brazil was particularly impressive if my memory serves me right).

[kevin ritson]

It would have been interesting to see Schuey in the McLaren alongside Hamilton. I reckon he'd have been a lot dirtier in his tactics...

[s3200h]

jules_s said:

SimonY said:

I reckon if he was still at Ferrari he would be a lot closer (in points) to the McLarens than the current drivers are, not necessarily because he is much faster but more because of consistency and experience. But things have to move on.

I'd like to see him move to sportscars, I don't think it should be seen as a backward step, more just a bit of fun.

Absolutley no chance of that.

MS has been quoted (on tv and papers) that he knew Kimi was joining Ferrari...and he still retired.

MS would want #1 status in the team and Kimi wouldn't accept second fiddle IMO.

was probably more to do with Ross Brawn leaving and the man in charge of the team IMO

[Hut49]

OK - good comments. So on balance the view is that MS would be competitive but there's no space in Ferrari so it's unlikely that we will see him in F1 2008 (no one fancied the idea that Flavio might fancy a bit of mischief and tempt MS into Renault rather than suffer the awkwardness of a returning Alonso??).

So let's add another dimension in here. Let's say that Ross Brawn concludes his sabbatical and wants to get back into F1 but he will only accept a chef d'equip position within a team on the proviso that MS is his number one driver. Any chance at all that this could be at another team - say Toyota, Honda or ProDrive? - since re-inserting Brawn alone into Ferrari would seem to be a very difficult and risky situation (for both parties), especially if the chemistry between Brawn and Kimi doesn't work out. The Ross Brawn and Michael Schumacher partnership seems to provide a synergy that if split might not equal the sum of the two parts. Perhaps this fantasy is destined to happen outside of Ferrari?

[kevin ritson]

It won't happen. Alonso succeeded Schumacher and Hamilton has the upper hand over Alonso. To return, regardless of the team would mean getting back in the routine, learning to drive the next generation of cars (minus traction control, for example), gelling with the team...and that's before digging deep enough to beat at least two drivers who are as good and are nearer their peak.

Why risk a reputation for that? What would he be proving?

[andyps]

Baldylocks said:

andyps said:

MS himself said he would retire when he could no longer beat the younger drivers. He retired, therefore his actions answer the question.

Pah! He may have said that but theres no way he had lost his edge. He had some cracking races in '06 (the last race in Brazil was particularly impressive if my memory serves me right).

He may have had some good races in 06, but he was also in the fastest car most of the time (at least once Ferrari got the Renault mass dampers banned). It is quite likely that even Ferrari recognised that he was not going to maintain the edge he maybe had as they seem to have signed Kimi without MS agreeing to it where previously he had choice of team mate (and never allowed anyone who would really challenge him).

I doubt he would be interested in going through a team regeneration with RB now as by the time they got the car right (say a couple of seasons for either of the Japanese teams) he would probably be too old to be really competitive.

[Baldylocks]

s3200h said:

jules_s said:

SimonY said:

I reckon if he was still at Ferrari he would be a lot closer (in points) to the McLarens than the current drivers are, not necessarily because he is much faster but more because of consistency and experience. But things have to move on.

I'd like to see him move to sportscars, I don't think it should be seen as a backward step, more just a bit of fun.

Absolutley no chance of that.

MS has been quoted (on tv and papers) that he knew Kimi was joining Ferrari...and he still retired.

MS would want #1 status in the team and Kimi wouldn't accept second fiddle IMO.

was probably more to do with Ross Brawn leaving and the man in charge of the team IMO

Ferrari is not the same team this year without Brawn.