Michael Schumacher and his Mercedes drive....

[Greig]

Ok this is not a thread to drag up the past, but the BBC today were saying there was rumours about Kubica going to Mercedes to replace MS, who they said was being pushed into retiring again, they said the rumours were probably not very true but still, will Mercedes stick with MS or will they and he both decide it's just not working out as they hoped?

[FerrariF60]

i think they'll come to realization that the old schumi is NOT what they really expected him to be....so the rumors may be true that Kubica may come to mercedes....
i mean anyone that follows F1 knows that it takes quite some talent, speed and BALLS to drive an F1 car super fast....and looking at Kubica wrestle that Renault around is not just luck...is quite some talent....
so Merc would make a huge mistake by not signing him on...

but that's just my .02 cents opinion

[DBXdarkangel]

Hope they are true. MS is a laughable has been. He is worse than a sunday driver!! The man is a joke and an embaressment. Please please QUIT

[Julie B]

Hope they are true. MS is a laughable has been. He is worse than a sunday driver!! The man is a joke and an embaressment. Please please QUIT

Bit over the top don't you think ?

He maybe not as good as everyone expected him to be at this point in the season but he certainly isn't a joke or an embarassment

[m schumy]

The 3 year break didn`t help him at all, a lot of things have changed in F1. It`s clear it`s difficult for him to regain past form and his car isn`t helping him too much either I`m afraid.

[FerrariF60]

Hope they are true. MS is a laughable has been. He is worse than a sunday driver!! The man is a joke and an embaressment. Please please QUIT

yeah that is a BOT, but in all seriousness he doesn't have a chance against these FAST young drivers that today's grid is made of...
don't get me wrong, i like schumi, he's brought valuable chanpionships to Ferrari and good knowledge over the years he was driving for us....but "someone" should know when to draw the line
we can't say that the car is a total dog and that's why he's not doing that good, because Rosberg is driving the same car with same updates and always seem to do better then him

[Suzie]

Kubica's said that he hasn't decided his future yet. With the top 6 seats gone, you'd wonder why he just hasn't re-signed for Renault (assuming he hasn't already, of course.)

I wouldn't blame Mercedes for looking elsewhere - Kubica's in the form of his life right now. Whether these rumours are true or not, I just feel very sad for Michael. It's horrible seeing him struggling - they can say that it's the car all they like, but Michael's main strength was always dragging a bad car to where it shouldn't be, and he seems to have lost that. I think it's getting to the point where this could start to tarnish all the amazing things he accomplished throughout his career - the BBC went on and on about him today not doing well, and it's pretty grim to listen to I don't even see him as the same person that drove for us. I know we take the pee about him being old and having a dodgy neck, but it's not nice seeing someone who you used to look up to having a bad time of it. If Michael is just back to have a bit of fun then fair enough, but Mercedes are going to be wanting results.

Having said all that, given where Renault were today and where Merc were, maybe Kubica wouldn't even WANT to go there.

[Agron]

The time when aged drivers could come back from retirement and be competitive is gone. First because the cars are closer now, they won't get lucky jumping on a car 1 second a lap faster than anyone else, and second and most important, nowadays drivers are not only more talented than in the past, having to compete in lower categories with a far larger amount of people, but they also far more fit to cope with 2 hours driving on the edge with forces up to 5 gs. A rusty, not as fit guy just doesn't have a chance against his teammate or those in equal or faster cars, even if it's as fitness obsessed and insanely talented as Michael.

[REDARMYSOJA]

I would think they will give Schumi at least 2 seasons .

[fanformula1]

Schumi has been a joke for sure this season. However the chips are completely down and he has not given up at all. Just look at his comments from today. He is taking this beating on his stride.

I agree that Rosberg has humbled him this year. Question is can he get back to beating his teammate and more importantly pulling his team back from the doldrums ??

Let see what happens..

[Rob]

I read thatKubica has signed too stay with Renault. Wouldnt be good interest for him too go Merc, just look at the car. Renault are fast improving, Kubica nows that.

Yeah Schuey hasnt been, Schuey that we all know from the past. But say a joke, really? No im sorry that isnt right. F1 has moved on so so so much from 3 years ago. Got young hungry drivers who dont care about seeing him in mirrors or in front and go for it and fight him. Secondly he and we (Ferrari) back in 1999-2004 had 1 big advantage. BRIDGESTONE tyres. Back then they just made the tyres to our specifacations (spelt wrong, sorry) All the other teams using them back then aswell, struggled with them. Plus he was a sprint driver, used to running low fuel stints, loads of revs and torque. He isnt up to it. Sooner he realises that the better for him.

Simply, he hasnt got that spark anymore. F1 is a different sport now to what he knew and used too.

[Suzie]

I wish he would bow out gracefully, I can't even believe he would want to carry on next season. Just let him do Spa, and let that be it.

[ferrari4life]

I dont see why they would stick with him. He is not bring them any advantage and it doesnt seem like he is helping develop the car of pull things together. Frankly he is being beaten by Nico and should just retire and same himself the blushes

[ferrari4life]

I think he probably saw an easy title after what Brawn did last year with the car. Also the testing ban is probably not helping him

[Rob]

I wish he would bow out gracefully, I can't even believe he would want to carry on next season. Just let him do Spa, and let that be it.

yeah too right. Just be good if he would just put his hands up and say.. im leaving f1, im not where i used to be, and finding it hard to push as i did. But i reckon, as i said before there will be something long lines of his neck giving him lot of pain and been adviced to stop racing.

[Red Rocket]

I think they will give Schu what Shu wants if he wants to stay 2 or 20 years more, Mercedes will ok it.

[fanformula1]

I would be quite happy if he can just start beating Rosberg. But at the moment he is getting his butt kicked. Hence I called it a joke..He is almost .5 second slower each time. However he seems to have more fighting ability in races than Rosberg.

Honestly the car really sux and there is nothin anybody can do. Remember Alonso last year drove so badly in crap Renault. Same goes for Lewis last year in first half. This is same for Schumi or any other driver.

[Greig]

I think they will give Schu what Shu wants if he wants to stay 2 or 20 years more, Mercedes will ok it.

Would be silly to think that, Mercedes are there for results at the end of the day.

The car is not the best, but we were always told MS did not need the best car to shine, sadly that seems to have long gone.

[Suzie]

Depends whether Merc want him for PR purposes/cash or not. And if they prioritise that over results, that's kinda sad.

[epiclyaddicted]

I've said it from the beginning of this year that, for Michael's sake, I hoped and prayed that he wouldn't go through with this comeback. Like some other people have said, including our very own Luca di Montezemolo, I don't see this as the same Michael that retired at the end of 2006 after winning 7 world titles and 91 grands prix. He has broken pretty much every single record there is for a Formula 1 driver, I personally can't see any driver come even close to Michael's statistical achievements at least within the next decade or so, he is easily one of the greatest drivers ever, a living legend - but he risks tarnishing all of that with this comeback IMO.

Michael had his time, he should have moved on. He should have just let the young pretenders - Sebastian, Lewis, Fernando, etc. - get on with it and see how they come up in their respective careers, safe in the knowledge that with so much competition, none of them would realistically challenge his ultimate crown. Why did he have to get back into it? Just the adrenaline? Sunday thrills? Just for fun? Then I would have rather seen him in GT racing, Le Mans for instance. But why come back and tackle a full season (may be more) of Formula 1 at this age, after being away for 3 years when he had nothing more to prove or achieve at this category of motorsport?

As for the thread topic, surely as a racing team, what Mercedes would ultimately want is a driver who can deliver consistent results? As a German team, signing Michael Schumacher was obviously a huge PR success. But merchandise sales and fandom can only get so far! In Formula 1, ultimately it's only lap times that count, irrespective of who delivers those lap times. If that's Kubica for Mercedes, then why not?

P.S. For all Schumacher fans, I might be appearing too harsh on Michael, but like I said, I just didn't want him to come back from retirement. During his time at Ferrari, I worshipped him like a god, but he has already lost that god-like status for me. How much longer before he tarnishes everything completely?

[RedRebel40]

Michael has a hard time, if they give him some time he will recover I think. He should use 2010 as a year to get used to F1 again and be competitive in 2011 again. Next year there will be new tyres so everything can change again.

[Tommy_F]

I think he will stay at Merc this year, but after that, who knows? I mean it's almost halfway through the season, and he just isn't up to par. If he were a rookie, yes, the situation would be normal. But not with MS. He's not the driver he used to be, and if he doesn't improve to at least 1-2 tenths to Rosberg, it's not looking good for him. Kubica, Sutil and who knows who else is waiting to take his place @ Merc.

Or it may be that MS can't fully adapt his style to the new regs. Yes, he went through a lot of rule changes but all of them were gradual and he tested as much as he wanted. Maybe things are too different now, but ultimately, only he knows.

For comparison, look at Alguersuari. Thrown in and F1 car at age 19 @ Friday practice, in 1 year he defends against MS for half a race in an inferior car.

p.s. I still have bitter feelings towards him but I hope I was objective enough in this post.

[brembo man]

Why doen't Ross just tell Nico to let Mikey pass him? That would surely help. And it always worked for them before. MS certainly deserves that much respect.

[eriknaa]

If you guys think for a second, that the worlds most winning F1 driver will quit while he and his team is down on performance you are clarly mistaken.
Michael himself said today that his comeback is a long term plan and he will stick to that.
And since the spanish gp in may, he have beaten nico 3 out of 4 races, so please dont blame this on him, it is the team that need to provide both of them with a good car.

Remember us last year, did we blame the drives? no and rightly so it was the car wish was bad not our drivers.
I am 100% certian that pepole who are bashing michael now, will eat their words later.

[NJB13]

He was an excellent driver and should be remembered that way. It was a massive mistake to come back. His record, friendship and relationship with and through Ferrari would never be able to be replaced or reproduced - as he is probably realizing now.
I wish there was a way for him to bow out as gracefully as possible because I'm embarrassed watching him getting pants'ed by his team mate every race.
As for Kubica, for sure he'd do a better job than Shumy, but, I'm not sure it would be a good move by him. I think Merc made an opportunistic jump into F1 - they thought they could buy success and they thought having an advantage with their donk would bring them "instant coffee" success. They are being reminded how hard it is to succeed in F1. Bottom line, I'm not sure how long Merc will be around, it wouldn't surprise to see ownership changes there - and maybe that will be sooner rather than later.

[Agron]

Depends whether Merc want him for PR purposes/cash or not. And if they prioritise that over results, that's kinda sad.

The problem is that even if they prioritize PR, a guy that is almost always slower than his not so awesome teammate as the face of the company is quite a disaster.
If they fire him it will be a disaster as people will see them not sticking with their drivers, and if they keep him and continues these mediocre performances it will be a wasted seat.
And of course the same happens for Michael, each race behind his teammate further ruins his image and helps raise questions from his revisionists.

[Schumiklub]

Well, in this article Ross Brawn says that there were no talks with Kubica since Mercedes took over the team. He only talked to him last year because Kubica lives near Brawn in Italy.

http://www.motorsport-magazin.com/fo...esprochen.html

[Ste]

Its on Autosport, Schumacher stating that he is here for 3 years and will be here at the end of those 3 years. brawn denies Kubica rumours, as did Kubica.

[Greig]

Schumacher can off course state that, but maybe the decision is not fully up to him, I am sure Mercedes were clever enough to think about get out clauses if performances were important to them.

[NJB13]

Its on Autosport, Schumacher stating that he is here for 3 years and will be here at the end of those 3 years. brawn denies Kubica rumours, as did Kubica.

All this denying - any similarity to Fernando's coming?
Don't clubs deny they are looking to replace managers and say they have "full confidence" .... just before they are fired