Michael Schumacher's private test session

[hacksaw2828]

It didn't take Schumacher long to get up to speed. See below. Doesn't look like he forgot much. If you watch the video, he locked up the brakes a couple of times trying to find his rhythm but the shifting is in rhythm. He will finish in the top 5 at the next GP.

 

[PCLoadLetter]

I suspect that's video from when he was still active. They likely wouldn't put him in a three year old car, and they wouldn't release the video.

 

[Bubbler]

Holy living ****! A stand-alone Formula One thread on SJ! Never thought I'd see the day. Well done, Hacksaw.

 

[mb]

Well done, Hacksaw.

With the small exception of everything about the post being incorrect.

 

[Knighthawk]

There's a testing ban in F1. Schumacher won't be allowed in a F1 car until practice starts for the next race. So, if this video were real, which it obviously isn't, Ferrari would have just joined Renault on the sidelines for the European GP.

 

[PCLoadLetter]

I think - and I may be wrong on this - that Schumacher may be allowed to practice in last year's car, as it would be of no technical advantage to the team.

Then again, the cars have changed enough that it would probably just screw him up to do that.

I'll predict a low points finish in Valencia and Spa and a podium at Monza.

 

[hacksaw2828]

It's still a very cool video to watch whether it is recent or not so on the basis of the fact that we love the sport, it's not an irrelevant post. Considering the reports which say he hasn't tested in over a year before now and has been riding bikes, I wonder how weird it feels to him to be strapped back into a race car with all the g-forces. I bet his body will be sore no doubt for a couple of days after his first race. Just to hear Hobbs' commentary during the next race as he watches Schumacher dart in and out of traffic, should be enough to keep us entertained for a change.

 

[PCLoadLetter]

And to follow up, it looks like Schumacher will be getting in a 2007 car for practice.

One thing I did not realize -- he injured his neck in a motorcycle accident earlier this year, so his fitness for a comeback is not a slam dunk. I don't think Valencia or Spa are necessarily that hard on the neck, though, at least compared to a place like Turkey.

 

[HejiraHenry]

ROME (AP) — Michael Schumacher drove an old Ferrari in a practice test for his Formula One comeback as a replacement for the injured Felipe Massa.
The team says Friday that the 40-year-old took the wheel of a privately owned Ferrari used in the 2007 season and raced it around the Mugello circuit in Tuscany.
Ferrari spokesman Luca Colajanni says Schumacher had organized the test to check his physical condition. He could not drive the current Ferrari car because of F1’s ban on in-season testing.

 

[2muchcoffeeman]

ROME (AP) — Michael Schumacher drove an old Ferrari in a practice test for his Formula One comeback as a replacement for the injured Felipe Massa.
The team says Friday that the 40-year-old took the wheel of a privately owned Ferrari used in the 2007 season and raced it around the Mugello circuit in Tuscany.
Ferrari spokesman Luca Colajanni says Schumacher had organized the test to check his physical condition. He could not drive the current Ferrari car because of F1’s ban on in-season testing.

Coming soon ... the beep-beep-beep sound of multiple SportsJournalists.com reversals. :D

 

[Football_Bat]

I saw the thread title and thought it was a euphemism.

 

[Knighthawk]

There's a testing ban in F1. Schumacher won't be allowed in a F1 car until practice starts for the next race. So, if this video were real, which it obviously isn't, Ferrari would have just joined Renault on the sidelines for the European GP.

Ahem. I appear to be an idiot. Sorry, Hacksaw.

(That said, I'm still confused as to why this is legal, but Jaime Alguersuari wasn't allowed to get any track time in any F1 car before the last race. Toro Rossi must have had an old car lying about somewhere.)

 

[PCLoadLetter]

There's a testing ban in F1. Schumacher won't be allowed in a F1 car until practice starts for the next race. So, if this video were real, which it obviously isn't, Ferrari would have just joined Renault on the sidelines for the European GP.

Ahem. I appear to be an idiot. Sorry, Hacksaw.

(That said, I'm still confused as to why this is legal, but Jaime Alguersuari wasn't allowed to get any track time in any F1 car before the last race. Toro Rossi must have had an old car lying about somewhere.)

I don't know if they would or not. Ferrari has a wing of the business that maintains old F1 cars for people to drive, so Michael got one from that fleet.

Toro Rosso operates on the cheap, so I'm not sure they would maintain an old car enough for Alguersauri to drive it. I assume he would have been allowed to, just as Michael was. The expense may also be a factor, particularly since they have no expectations for Alguersauri -- though they did do a straight line test with him. I don't know how those expenses would compare.

 

[Marcus Michelson]

FIA is looking at whether Schumi's ride violated the test ban:

http://www.planet-f1.com/story/0,18954,3213_5466849,00.html

Apparently it's the GP2 slick tires that most concern them.

 

[murphyc]

Ferrari is asking teams to allow it to skirt around the in-year testing ban, but not everyone is on board.

http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/03082009/58/red-bull-join-williams-against-schumacher.html

Personally I think it would be interesting to see how quickly Schumi could get up to pace race weekend without prior testing in this year's car. How much of a team player would Kimi be?

 

[hacksaw2828]

Schumacher only reports minor neck pain after testing session. So if that's the case, he should be good to go. The man has suffered a broken leg in the past. Neck pain isn't going to faze him. This is a good deal for Spa too. A couple of years ago they were rumored to be off the circuit and now they are expecting 70,000 fans. Good for them. Great track.