Thanks Ivanoff!

I have full video from both races, but I don't know how admins will react on such links :\

The admins would love it

Say no more. POST EM UP!

All right, but under yours responsibility

First race http://content.files.mail.ru/DHJONF/ee8ef9...5dc91ccbf12a1d2

Second race http://content.files.mail.ru/A6TK93/386182...1c927e5f9679b5d

Fantastic pics. Thanks!

ditto

Cheers man.

Michael at the Race of Champions at Wembley

You've obviously driven at some of the greatest tracks in the world but what's it like competing in the race of Champions at Wembley, a stadium steeped in sporting tradition.
"It is first of all big fun! It is just weird driving in such a stadium as everything is extremely narrow, but at the same time you look at it and wonder how they managed to build a track with enough space for everything. It is spectacular to drive and to watch, and this is why it works so well since so many years."

Ferrari were desperately unlucky not to win the title with Felippe Massa on the final day of the season at the Brazilian Grand Prix. How do you think they will respond to that defeat?
"The way Ferrari always responds: work even harder, concentrate even harder, compete even harder. This is the basis of our incredible winning streak - don't lose yourself in discussions about the past, join forces for the next steps."

Who do you think will be the main contenders for the F1 title next year?
"Obviously Ferrari, having won the constructors championship and merely the drivers too. Both Felipe and Kimi will be hot. I think in the end the top teams will stay on top, as they have maybe a bigger potential for developments but then one of them might find an advantage you cannot foresee now. This is a question which at the moment probably nobody can answer, given all the changes to come."

You obviously enjoy the Race of Champions after competing in the event last year? What sets it apart from other motorsports events?
"The nice thing about it is that you meet all the guys from the other motorsport areas and can spend some time with them. Usually this is quite impossible, as everybody is either busy or in the middle of a race weekend. The atmosphere is very relaxed, you can hang around with them, and this is just great."

Which of the great competitors who will be on the starting line do you admire the most?
"Well, admire is probably the wrong word but I have a massive respect for all of the guys competing. Everybody is a master of his own, and everybody has a huge passion for our sport. That's what all this is about."

Translated Q&A with Schumacher:

Q: What do you think of the new regulations introduced by the WMSC ?
Schumacher: ''It was something that had to happen, the FIA has given the go-ahead. It seems clear to me that racing cannot close its eyes from what's happening in the whole world on an economic level.''

Q: What kind of Formula 1 will we see ?
Schumacher: ''I think that potentially it could be more exciting. I'm neither an aerodynamicist nor a designer, but the essential thing was reducing aerodynamic downforce and increasing mechanical downforce. The cars will now be able to be closer to each other and perhaps this could be enough to have more spectacle.''

Q: Could there be surprises in the pecking order ?
Schumacher: ''The top teams will remain top teams, they have the best people and organisations. Some team might make a step forward, but the balance of power will not be overthrown just because there will be new regulations.''

Q: Does the crisis put other teams at risk of leaving the sport after Honda ?
Schumacher: ''It's very important being careful in making the right steps. But it seems the FIA and the FOTA are exactly doing that.''

Q: There's talk about the introduction of medals to the first three finishers...
Schumacher: ''In my era they changed the system to make me stop winning, now they want to change to let others win...''

Q: Testing will be very limited: we won't be seeing you anymore driving for Ferrari (F1)...
Schumacher: ''I always prefer races over tests.''

Q: Here at the Race of the Champions your teammate is Vettel in the nation's cup.
Schumacher: ''I like watching him. He's got his own character, he should developed it, then the results will come. He has the genes to become world champion one day, he's demonstrated that this year.''

Q: What do you think of this race ?
Schumacher: ''It's fun, I like racing on a track in a stadium. It makes you want to challenge the many drivers with different specialities.''

Q: It would have been nice if Rossi were here too...
Schumacher: ''Yes, I wouldn't have mind fighting him here, considering he's also fast in a car. But I mysellf could also challenge him on a bike.''

Q: Will we see you racing in the World Superbike Championship in 2009 ?
Schumacher: ''No, I exclude that. I might go and see the races, but I won't be participating.''

"Challenge" Rossi on a bike, eh?

I guess they're passing around some pretty strong stuff in the VIP area of the ROC...

givne the type of format the ROC is - he probably could

ROC was a beauty !

Interview with Schumi in "Die Zeit" http://www.zeit.de/2008/52/Schumacher-52?page=1

A cracking good read !

Could any of you guys possibly translate? I know it's quite long


Cooper

+1 Please

I think I'll do it, I hope to finish it this weekend still...

I can't wait the English translation.

Thanks for the pics too, guys!

Translated article/Q&A with Schumacher:

Prince Valiant

Geneva airport, early in the morning. The meeting point obviously isn't the departure lounge where the normal passengers put their luggage on the conveyor belt, where they take their belts off their trousers, and where they shuffle on socks towards a security guard that incommodes them sexually. The meeting point is the little building next door, where the hostess friendly shows you a leather settee arrangement and asks whether you like to have tea or coffee. The aircraft captain holds out a hand as an act of greeting.

So that's what things are like for the rich and famous that have settled around Lake Geneva. Aga Kahn lives here, so do David Bowie, Athina Onassis, Alain Delon and Sophia Loren, as well as people with longer names such as sheik Abdul Aziz Al-Sulaiman. Shop owner Ernesto Bertarelli (fortune: € 9 billion). The Croesus from Ikea: Ingvar Kamprad (€ 25 billion). The list doesn't end.

The clouds in the sky clear away. There's no wind. It's to the delight of those that want to jet to Portugal in a six seater. Are there actually other cars than black Cayennes ? Surely not when you look at the carpark of the terminal. Apperantly the area is a hide-away for the like-minded people.

The waiting is for Michael Schumacher. What kind of person is he ? Is he as withdrawn as they all say ? Seven times worldchampion is what he is. A mythe. A 'brand' that's known worldwide. An egomaniac. Driving in frantic cars he's a man that has been mutated in a machine himself. A man each private question bounces off from. Autistic. Inaccessible. Mysterious. But he has the reputation and that's why we're here. We, reporter and photographer (Christian Kämmerling and Jocelyn Bain Hogg - AFCA), want to cotton on to him. For two days he's allowed us to be with him from very close by. Normally he doesn't do that.

A taxi drives up. Sabine Kehm steps out. She's Schumacher's closest confidante. After his wife Corinna obviously. Michael is never far away from where Sabine is. She's got two blackberry's, one exlusively for HIM. ''Schumacher is on his way'', she says.

Michael Schumacher lives in Gland, a village directly bounded by Lake Geneva, some 15 minutes away from the airport. The newly built house - half a year ago the family moved in - has made headlines: the villa is a combination of a rococo castle and a chalet, has a 30 metre long swimming pool, a garage for two dozen cars and a park with access to the lake. The alleged price: € 40 million. You obviously remove yourself from there reluctantly.

There he is. A black estate car drives up (not a Cayenne). Schumi steps out. He's got the legendary tunnel vision, the pupils only focussed on the goal. In this case that's the boot. In there are many bags, a suitcase and helmets. He helps taking the things out. A second man - that immediately turns out to be his physiotheraphist (Michael Harner - AFCA), always traveling along - helps. The captain of the airplane lends himself to being baggage porter. Over his shirt Schumi wears a crucifix studded with brilliants.

Schumi. That's his name in the vernacular. As if he were a prince to the hearts of the people. Thereby he's Prince Valiant.

The guy from Kerpen, a one-horse town in the Rhenish brown coal mining district, started at the age of four in a go kart with a reconstructed 5 bhp moped engine: a present from his father. As a five-year old he acclaimed his first win. Three decades later, after his 91st Grand Prix victory - he's the most successful racing driver of all time. In 2006 he said goodbye to the world of Formula 1. He has achieved everything that can be achieved in the royal league of four wheeled motorsports.

Of late he's been racing on two wheels as well, Schumi just does what he can't resist. He needs the tyre pressure, the smell in the pitbox, the kick. Life has to go on in some way, and an engine is simply part of that. In January Michael Schumacher will turn 40.

So he's a private citizen that flies to his private leisure activities in his private plane. And that's bike racing, his new hobby. Is it really an alternative to Ferrari's cockpit ?

Michael Schumacher is surprisingly chicly dressed for a bloke that flies to Portugal to test bikes. He's wearing black trousers from Dolce & Gabbana, with that a floral white shirt and a dark sports jacket.

The luggage has been loaded on board. Oh well, there are the reporters. A short handshake. A motorial smile. He would now rather be alone. What else would you be having a private plane for ? He's the most peculiar bike rider in the world. He's the most cryptical private man in the world. The fact the world wonders about that is clear to him also.

''Everything's ready for takeoff'', the captain says. We're walking over the landing field to the Hawker, which engines have already been started. The machine takes off. The Hawker is a flying living room. Firstly Schumi takes a little nap. A power-nap. After a few minutes he's wide awake again.

Q: How do you fall fast-asleep on command like that ?
Schumacher: ''I've only been able to really do that in the last ten years of my career. I was too tense for that at the very start. To sleep for two or three minutes gives me a lot of energy.''

Q: Did you use to sleep shortly before the Grand Prix' ? No coffee or something to adrenalise yourself ?
Schumacher: ''I'm not a coffee drinker. Coffee has a contrary effect for me, it makes me feel unwell. You have to be wide awake during a race. I best recuperate by sleeping.''

Q: A great sight from up here. Can you recognise certain mountains from their shape ?
Schumacher: ''Over there is the Montblanc. That one's easy to recognise when it's not covered in clouds. But normally in an airplane I do something different than looking through the window. I only have a quick look after the start whether or not I see our house.''

Q: Do you have country-bound feelings when you recognise Lake Geneva down there ?
Schumacher: ''Each time it's a nice feeling, yes. The area is simply wonderful. Therefore we decided to settle ourselves close to the lake. The landscape. This is where we feel at home. Despite my non-existent knowledge of French.''

Q: What criteria did you have looking for a house ?
Schumacher: ''Privacy and safety. They had to be guaranteed. And the cleanliness of course.''

Q: Cleanliness ?
Schumacher: ''When I come back from an international trip I always find it extremely eye-catching how clean everything is here. There are no plastic bags on the side of the street. Everything's tidy, the streets are clean.''

Q: What do you miss when you think about Germany ?
Schumacher: ''What I miss most is that I can't quickly pay a visit my father. Or that my old mates are no longer always around me.''

Q: Any homesickness for the high rate of taxes ?
Schumacher: ''Not really.''

Q: Do you miss proper bread ?
Schumacher: ''I like having sturdy multi-grain bread. But by now you can get that here as well. There are even Aldi's.''

Q: Why are you actually not sitting in the cockpit ? A pilot's license is still missing in your portfolio.
Schumacher: ''Very simple: sitting there at the front is too boring for me. The start and the landing are interesting, the rest is routine. Moreover: I often fly over long distances, I need a pretty big plane for that, and to then sit in the narrow cockpit while no one's sitting in the big passenger area in the back doesn't really make sense.''

Q: But have you tried it once ?
Schumacher: ''I like to try everything, yes. I think helicopters are more exciting. But even that is not that thrilling. I'd rather jump out of the airplane.''

Q: With or without parachute ?
Schumacher: ''With one obviously. Standing there in front of the open door of the plane is really intensive. The first time I also really suffered from fear of heights. But once you're out there in the sky it's unbelievably beautiful.''

(Schumi points his finger to a banana in the fruit basket) ''Chiquita was one of my first sponsors.''

Q: Really ?
Schumacher: ''Yes. That was around 1989. The whole team always had to eat bananas. Banana compote for breakfast, for lunch and for supper.''

Q: Bananas out of all things...
Schumacher: ''Before each race I went to the merchant and picked up the bananas. Two boxes. We didn't want them to decay.''

Q: Back then did you think you would become a seven times Formula 1 worldchampion ?
Schumacher: ''No. Financially we didn't have the possibility to really enter motorsport. I was dependent on other people that have supported me. I was always happy to have come as far I was. If things would continue, good, if not then I've had a great time.''

Q: You've never been a dreamer ?
Schumacher: ''I dream at nighttime, but during the day I'm a realist.''

Q: What kind of crucifix is that around your neck ?
Schumacher: ''It's a gift from Jean Todt. I believe his wife Michelle has designed it.''

Q: Are you superstitious ?
Schumacher: ''A little bit, yes.''

Q: Did you have a talisman in the car ?
Schumacher: ''Yes, an amulet from Corinna. Also, I always stepped into the car from the left side. That has brought me fortune.''

Q: Clearly you like jewellery. There's also shiny chain around your wrist.
Schumacher: ''Yes, I accidentally came across it in Dubai. I then bargained for it and got the chain for half the price.''

Q: How would you describe your dress style ?
Schumacher: ''I'm pretty much on the casual side. And then like to set my own trends. Corinna gives me advice and prevents me for the worst.''

Q: Would you like to look like George Clooney ?
Schumacher: ''I mean everyone has something he'd like to do without, right ? If I could change certain parts of the body then perhaps I would. On the other hand I tell myself: I am who I am.''

Q: What's your take on Obama ?
Schumacher: ''A good man I believe. But when I hear what my American friends say, then he should watch out. The arms lobby doesn't like people that are in favour for more peace in the world.''

Q: Are you interested in politics ?
Schumacher: ''I don't care a great deal about it.'' (Looks out of the window) Right, we'll be there presently. Wow, there are so many lakes in Portugal.''

At night in the hotel. Something incredible has happened. Not here in Faro, in Sao Paolo. The last Grand Prix of the season: Massa wins the race, he's bascially worldchampion already but then Hamilton makes up ground and grabs the title at the very last moment. Nerve-racking. Initially we wanted to see the race together in the hotel, where RTL is broadcasted, but the biggest racing driver of all time wasn't able to leave the trackside in time. He had to watch the historic moment in the paddock on an incomprehensible Portugese channel. Annoyingly.

21:00. Schumi knocks on my door. Watching the race together, at least the highlights. The 'Simpsons' are on now. We open up a bottle of red wine. Schumi switches to DSF. Football. He doesn't like the Simpsons. He does like the wine though.

Finally: CNN shows the showdown of the Brasilian GP. It's not the first race Michael Schumacher witnesses without a helmet on. But it's definately my first race in a Portugese hotelroom - with Michael Schumacher.

Q: What a tragedy for Ferrari !
Schumacher: ''Massa has done everything right. He was simply unlucky. On the last lap it suddenly started to rain more heavily, Timo Glock got problems: his tyres were already thirty laps old. To keep on track with worn off tyres in the rain deserves praise on its own. In one corner shortly before the end Hamilton overtook Glock and became worldchampion. Massa would have been worldchampion had Glock stayed in front. Yes, that's how it is.''

Q: How do you deal with such a situation ? Massa had the title in his bag and then suddenly he lost it...
Schumacher: ''The most important thing is time. He should process it.''

Q: Did you phone Massa after the race ?
Schumacher: ''No. I'll see him next week. He'd rather be left alone. I would want to be alone in this situation.''

Q: Whilst watching the race did you feel the urge of stepping in the car again ?
Schumacher: ''No. I have achieved everything what you can achieve in this business. I always cheer along. But it's no longer appealing to me.''

Q: Really ?
Schumacher: ''Really. For me this chapter has come to an end.''

Q: Incredible that you've been able to say goodbye so easily ?
Schumacher: ''Yes, I wouldn't have thought that myself either. And it was a big question mark: how would my life develop after my retirement ? How would I deal with such situations if I were to watch a race on television. But I believe I retired at the right time. My batteries were already pretty empty. (Schumi stands up.) It's late already. We will continue tomorrow, alright ?''

Q: ''One more question. Why do you not like the Simpsons ?
Schumacher: ''There are other things I think are more funny. Lately we've gone to a live show from Paul Panzer (stand up comedian - AFCA) for instance. Witty ! A real Colognian guy. We've already spent some nights listening to his radio interviews we have on the computer. Corinna can imitate him brilliantly. I doubled up with laughter.''

Breakfast time. Schumacher takes muesli from the hotel buffet. A long day is awaiting him. A day with the helmet on again, finally. In the morning he will test the Yamaha of the Superbike team, in the afternoon he'll be riding the Ducati. The Portimão track, near Faro, is not without danger. To be at the front you have to enter the corners at 150 km/h. Topspeed is 340 km/h. The fastest muesly from Portugal.

Q: The motorbike fascination. When did that start ?
Schumacher: ''Around 1994 the first Harley came into play. Willi, my manager, gave it to me. I had a lot of fun with it, Corinna had too. Together we've travelled the various parts of the globe, enjoying nature. Two years ago I had the feeling we've seen the best of the Harley. I asked a friend at KTM whether he not had something a little different. Shortly after I rode to Fiorano with a friend, and there we've been doing laps on various KTM models.''

Q: What are your aims ?
Schumacher: ''There are no aims. I can't win serious championships, I started at a too old age for that. My professional career is behind me, now I look for things that are fun.''

Q: When you enter a corner at 150 km/h then that looks like danger rather than fun.
Schumacher: ''You have to know at which point the risk is no longer calculable. I always drive exactly on the limit. But then there are obviously moments of fate in which you're powerless, as happened to me at Silverstone where the brakes failed.''

Q: Most readers are no racing drivers. Please explain what it's like sitting in a Formula 1 cockpit.
Schumacher: ''Let's take Malaysia, the track is very challenging there because the air is extremely hot and humid. Measured temperature in the cockpit: 60°C. There's a long straight, one half is in the sun, the other is in the shade. I can well remember one race, I kept driving in the shade because it was one or two degrees cooler. Some colleagues almost fainted. You quickly dehydrate. And you're continuously occupied switching buttons for fine-tuning. At the same time you're communicating with the team, react to traffic and think about the strategy as quick as a flash. And then you're also driving the car. Possibly at the limit.''

Q: Which skills have predestinated you to become the best racing driver of all times ?
Schumacher: ''I quarrel with that description. It sounds so arrogantly. Talent, discipline and experience are basic premises. At the end of the day many details decide, like the fine-tuning of the engine.''

Q: How hard do you have to be to be successful ? Shortly before the race in Imola 2003 you heard your mother had passed away. Nevertheless you stepped in car and won the race.
Schumacher: ''That certainly wasn't easy, not for me and not for my brother. Nevertheless it wasn't really a point of discussion whether I would drive or not. You have your obligations. And it may sound harsh but that's how life is, everyone leaves the planet at some stage. That's the normal course of things. We knew our mother's situation, we'd already dealt with it (in our minds - AFCA). But that doesn't mean I weren't to fight in the race. Although I have to admit that in this situation the cockpit probably would have been the best place for me. I was absolutely on my own there. I really craved for it.''

Q: Were you able to concentrate ?
Schumacher: ''Yes. But that was probably the only race in which there virtually was hardly any radio traffic. The team was very considerate there. That was obviously related to me having a very close friendship with Jean Todt. The team was my family.''

Q: What was the most difficult moment of your career ?
Schumacher ''Senna's fatal incident in 1994 was another such extreme moment. I was completely shocked that such tragedies could happen in our sport. That has completely shaken me up.

Q: How does your family go about this issue. Daddy goes away on a business trip and perhaps never comes back.
Schumacher: ''Our fate hits all of us somehow, somwhere. I'd have a problem if I were afraid of that. I've never left home with the fear of perhaps not coming back, instead I left with the feeling of hopefully winning the race. And my children cheered for me.''

Q: Have you already made your testament ?
Schumacher: ''Of course. By the way, I would also reccomend that to anyone not driving in Formula 1.''

Q: How do you drive in normal road traffic ?
Schumacher: ''If you want to keep your driving license in Switserland you have to wear your belt. I obviously like a bit of speed and it happened a few time that I've been flashed. Sometimes I was only stopped by policemen because they wanted an autograph.''

Q: Are you a good fellow passenger ?
Schumacher: ''Corinna drives very well. She also used to drive karts in the past. But I basically like to be behind the wheel myself.''

Q: Tell us a little about Corinna.
Schumacher: ''Corinna is an open and loveable woman. She cares about harmony, like me. Family is the most important thing for her, but she's not a homely girl. I can thank god that I have Corinna. We simply match together. After 18 years we're still happy chatting with each other. Or to fall into each other's arms.''

Q: What should one imagine thinking about your home ?
Schumacher: ''It's very cosy and warmly. There's a lot of wood. The house of course isn't small and therefore it wasn't easy to create a good atmosphere. It's completely in the hands of Corinna, I give her free rein in that.''

Q: How many dogs do you have at the moment ?
Schumacher: ''Five. Two big ones, a guard dog and a dog two play with. The third one is an Australian Shepherd. Then there are two crossbreeds from Mallorca. Corinna is someone that would like to save the world. Especially animals that can't care for themselves. Our plane is like Noah's Ark each time we come back from Mallorca.''

Q: You have an interesting ring tone on your mobile.
Schumacher: ''I have no idea what kind of melody it is. I simply like it. A mate of mine downloaded it for me.''

Q: The whistling with orchestra sounds like Once Upon a Time in the West.
Schumacher: ''Yes, could be.''

Q: Do you sometimes feel like a lonely cowboy ?
Schumacher: ''A cowboy, yes. I like that atmosphere, ridings horses to then drink beer and smoke cigars at the campfire. We've done that plenty of times. But lonely ? No. Life is only really beautiful when you can enjoy it in company.''

Q: One wouldn't think you're such a companionable type.
Schumacher: ''If I want to play football then that's difficult on my own, right ? The same goes for playing cards. I don't sit down in front of the window and open a bottle of wine for myself. Okay, sometimes perhaps, but surely it's more nicer if I can share that with friends. Or riding bikes. To work on bikes with friends, to chat and have a beer in the evening. I like to have a little group of friends like that.''

Q: Are you also available for your friends at three in the morning ?
Schumacher: ''Sure. That has happened often enough.''

Q: If your life were a film what theme melody would it have ?
Schumacher: ''Spontaneously Eye of the Tiger from Survivor comes to mind.''

Nightime at the bar of the hotel. Two beers please. Schumi is satisfied. Today he's gone faster than Randy Mamola, four time worldchampion. Not bad. Cheers. Time for a good cigar. The waiter carefully cuts it and serves it one a silver tray. Schumi prepares for smoking but then the waiter tells him: ''You're not allowed to smoke at the bar'', and points his finger towards the terrace. Homesickness emerges. In Switerserland you can smoke unhamperedly.

Where has the man with the tunnelvision gone ? Where's the inaccessible autist every question, that doesn't at least have 600 bhp, bounces off from ? He now also reacts laughingly to questions that only have 2 bhp. He's even revealed some about his private life. He's nonchalant. He has humor. In short: he's a man you like to drink a beer with. A Colognian guy. Although he always maintains the aura of a living legend.

And now ? It belongs to stories like these that sometimes odd things happen in them. Two mates pop up at the bar. Schumi embraces them cordially. The one is a mechanic, the other an engineer from the Holzhauer team. Michael Schumacher, the seven time Formula 1 worldchampion rides one of the bikes of the Holzhauer Team from Wittenberge in the Prignitz. He's doesn't feel too good for anything that has an engine and makes you have fun. Both men have driven for 3,000 km at a stretch, without pause, to transport Schumi's bike from Wittenberge to Portimão for a tyre test. And now they're thristy. Let's leave the three of them alone. Schumi and his little group of friends.''

thanks AFCA

what a great interview

eye of the tiger

One thinks some should try real sex with real dates instead of virtual sex with former German drivers...

However his ring tone is cool (in the original German version it's mentioned, it is this music from "Once upon a time in the West": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XlbB1pD3y0A - hence the cowboy question).

Thanks AFCA for the effort, as always!

I forgot that question, added it now.

Thanks D.

Q: How would you describe your dress style ?
Schumacher: ''I'm pretty much on the casual side. And then like to set my own trends. Corinna gives me advice and prevents me for the worst.''

:\

Thank you, AFCA

Thanks, AFCA !

Prince Valiant

The photo fits very well to the header

18 minutes interview for ZDF
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R02GLQLAB9M

thanks AFCA ...

Can somebody translate this?

http://ricerca.repubblica.it/repubblica/ar...ora-voglio.html

Looks like a compilation of the interview that AFCA has translated earlier here. But I'm not sure.

But there is something about Maradona here and other things which weren't in that interview.

Michael turns 40 today. Happy birthday to him!

Happy Birthday indeed. Shame he's not still in Formula One. If Mansell could still be winning F1 races at 40, I'm sure Schumacher could take titles.

Happy birthday Michael

Thanks, spilled coffee on my keyboard!

Congratulations Michael ! From me and from...

Di Montezemolo:
''Dear Michael,

Many congratulations and a happy birthday ! The years go by quickly but you continue to be in an extraordinary form. I always have in mind the many moments we've spent together, the beautiful ones but above all the difficult ones that have made our relationship ever stronger. I miss you a bit but I know you're always close to us and that your advice will still be precious both for the road cars as well as the new Formula 1 car, that will soon see the light. Between one bike race and another I remember you !''

Todt:
''Dear Michael,

All the best for your 40th birthday. You've had the nicest career a passionate of motorsports could wish for and now you can enjoy life together with your loved ones. Eventhough we will see each other in a different setting compared to that of the period from 1996 to now, I hope to stay with you for a long time to come.''

Domenicali:
''Dear Michael,

Welcome to the club of fourty-year olds ! We've almost got the same age and we've shared many years together in Maranello. You've given us a lot and I think we've given a lot to you also. We still have to cover some mileage together and your experience will be useful to us, especially in a moment like this: characterised by big changes.''

Brawn:
''Fourty years...oh well, you'll stay younger than me. I think you've been the best driver I've had the fortune to work with and one of the strongest emotions is related to you: bringing back the title to Ferrari in 2000. By looking for new challenges you've brilliantly overcome your retirement, which is certainly a shocking moment for each racing driver.''

Weber:
''It seems incredible to me that you turn fourty today when I think about the fact we've been working together for twenty years now, half the time of your life in other words. But I'm really happy for you because you can celebrate this birthday in complete serenity. And it's clear that I wish you many healthy years to come, which is the most important thing apart from the success and the joy.''

Briatore:
''I wish you all the best. I've always considered you as a champion, on and off track. The secret behind your success is that you put passion in everything you do. Thanks to your skills you've made my Benetton successful and then you've brought back Ferrari to the top. So I'm sure that in the coming fourty years there will be plenty of satisfaction.''

Massa:
''Dear Michael,

Happy birthday ! You've been an example to follow for your career and for your working method with the team but you will also be an example when it comes to retiring. When I saw you with karts in Floranopolis you had the enthusiasm of a boy: is it this secret that keeps you young ?

A hug,

Felipe.''

Happy Birthday, Michael!

AFCA, where are these quotes from? They are so nice it is almost hard to believe they are real!

Gazzetta had them.

Kehm denies silly rumours about Schumacher and Brawn relaunching the Honda Formula 1 project: ''Ross and Michael are still friends, that's right, but Michael's cooperation with Honda will be limited to races in the Internationalen Deutschen Motorrad-Meisterschaft (IDM).''

Happy Birthday to Michael the Greatest!

Thank you AFCA for such a nice quotes.

There will be a huge interview with Schumi on the ZDF today. The programm is called "Johannes B. Kerner ", but the live stream translation is closed for non-German viewers

Some photos:

Here is a short cut from this interview http://ru.youtube.com/watch?v=kK0KpqacEU4

Too bad we can't get it outside of Germany. I hope to get to see it anyway. Thanks Ivanoff, for the info. And nice pics.

Thanks Ivanoff, nice clip and photos