Those of you that read my journal regularly will know how passionate I am about Formula 1, today we have seen Michael Schumacher win a fantastic race in Monza in front of the tifosi ( ferrari's diehard legion of fans ). All weekend we have known that an announcement would be made after the race about next years driver line up, well the expected announcement has been made - Michael Schumacher is to retire from racing at the end of this year.
Although we have all seen this coming for some time it is still a shock to actually hear the announcement from him today. I have watched him win the first of his amazing 7 championships & every race since, through all the bad times as well as the good. When he finally won the championship for Ferrari in 2000 I cried, I had watched for four years as he built the Ferrari team into the winning outfit they are today, I watched as he nearly won the title more than once but not once did my support & believe ever waiver. Schumi is not loved by everyone, for sure the british have given him a hard time after he beat Damon Hill back in 1994 but what no one can take away is the 7 world titles he has, the 90 race wins, all the points, fastest laps & the entertainment he has given eople like myself.
There are other great drivers out there such as Button, Raikkonen, Alonso, Massa, Kubica etc, but at this time there is no one I can follow with such passion & loyal support that I have been able show following Schumacher. He is undoubtedly the most complete driver ever in formula 1 & I don't think we will see anyone break his records in my lifetime. Schumi has now closed to within 2 points of Alonso in this years championship with only 3 races to go, Alonso has seemed to be rattled & cracking under the pressure over the last couple of months. The bad news for Alonso is that Schumi has eaten into his lead while wrestling with the decision of wether or not to retire, now that the announcement has been made I think we will see Schumacher stepping up a gear over the next 3 races so Alonso could be in trouble. Either way, wether Alonos or Schumacher wins this year it is great to see Schumi retiring at the top of his game rather than keep going until he is no longer competitive.
The Ferrari press release states that they will announce at the end of the year what Michael's role will be within Ferrari next year so looks like he will still be around at the races, probably in an advisory role. Whatever he does end up doing it is going to take a lot to fill the space left by his retirement from racing. He has raced since he was a little kid with his go kart so he only knows racing.
I feel sort of empty at the moment because I don't know wether formula 1 will ever be the same for me again, I guess I will keep watching & will probably lend my support to a number of drivers, Ferrari will always have a place in my heart as the greatest team. To be honest next year my energies will be given to looking after L'il Vamp ( will have to get him/her interested in F1!! )but there is going to be a big hole in my life. I nkow there are people out there who will think me sad but if you do not have a passion for a particular sport/sports person i guess it is difficult to understand.
Right I'm off to find something to occupy my mind as I really do feel quite sad. But just wait for the next F1 installment in 3 weeks......its gonna be fun.
Take care all... Vamp x
ps. just checked out itv's F1 website & they ahve a list of Schumi's records, check this out, this is why he will be missed by so many:
Most world titles: 7 (1994, 1995, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004)
Most consecutive titles: 5 (2000-2004)
Most wins: 90
Most wins in a single season: 13 (2004)
Most consecutive wins in single season: 7 (2004)
Most wins at the same race: 8 (French GP)
Most wins from pole: 40
Most wins with one team: 71
Most pole positions: 68
Most front-row starts: 114
Most second place finishes: 43
Most podium finishes: 153
Most points scored: 1,354
Most points finishes: 188
Most points in a single season: 148 (from a maximum of 180, in 2004)
Most fastest laps: 75
Most races led: 139
Most consecutive podiums: 19 (USA 2001 – Japan 2002)
Most consecutive points finishes: 24 (Hungary 2001 – Malaysia 2003)
Most consecutive seasons with a win: 15
Most ‘clean sweeps’ (pole, win, fastest lap): 22
Largest points gap between champion and runner-up: 67 (2002)
Earliest titlewinner: 2002 (in July, with 6 races remaining)
Longest spell with one team: 11 seasons (Ferrari – 1996-2006)
Most time between first and last race wins: 13 years, 11 months and 3 days
Never outqualified in 1992, 1993 or 1994
Only driver to have finished every race on the podium: 2002
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