Schumacher on Rubens in today's Press Conference

I liked Schumacher's reply in the Thursday Press Conference about Rubens (see Atlas F1 news):

Q: What do you think of your new teammate? Is his situation inside Ferrari different from Eddie's last year?

Schumacher: I reckon him ... quite fast. When I talk of Ferrari and McLaren, I include all four of the drivers. I don't think his situation is different from Eddie's. But honestly, you can't make someone slower by contract. If he's faster, he's faster. And whoever is faster is going to be the number 1 driver. It's as simple as that.

Well, Schumacher must feel very confident about himself being faster than Rubens to actually proclaim such a statement at the beginning of the season.... it's going to be interesting!

Regards,

Rainstorm

One can´t be 100% sure about that...


unless...

schu's comment basically sums up the situation at ferrari very well.

the faster driver will be no. 1.

schumacher WILL be the faster driver (because he is faster / because of better parts / better support / whatever).

hence rubens situation will be the same as eddie's.

schu is convinced of this, and i don't think he's wrong. we'll just have to wait and see.

Rubens is not going to be in the position for a serious challenge for the title this year. Schumacher is going to beat Barrichello this year, not due to superior machinery, more testing etc etc, but due to the fact that Schuey has been at Ferrari for 5 years now, and the team is built around his specific needs. Rubens is still an outsider, albeit a highly rated one, but with less of a reputation and results of the guy he replaced.

I'm sure Rubens will, by the end of the year, or maybe in '01, be a serious title contender, but it will take him some time to ajust to the team and the car. It's the same as expecting DC to come out and beat Mika. Sure, David is capable of it, but we all know Mika is a more complete driver and has the record to prove it, whereas DC doesn't.

If you were to put yourself in Jean Todts shoes though, and just say Rubens was slightly ahead in points by the 4th race of the season, then you'd still bank of Schuey bringing home the bacon by seasons end. Nothing to do with favouritism, just going by the score cards. It does seem like favouritism, but who would you put your money on?