Michael Schumacher can win eighth Formula One world title this year

Date published : 26 Jan 2010 - 06:07:02

He looked in fantastic shape and, as I spoke afterwards with him and his wife, Corinna, he struck me as so relaxed, so smiley. In fact, so unlike the Michael who I competed against for almost my entire career. Here is a guy who in my experience never gave one inch. Even if he sometimes crossed the line between what was deemed technically legal and what was not, he was driven by a blind faith in himself. If the stewards did not pull him up on it, then it was fair game. He raced on the edge and for me he defined Formula One in the 1990s.  Related ArticlesBrawn prepares for 'tough' yearFormula One top 10 of 2009Schumacher's Mercedes move breaks Ferrari heartsBranson launches F1 teamFerrari stars on the pisteSport on televisionI don't think he could continue like that the relentless grind of it all and that is why he stopped when he did three years ago. But these are different times. Drivers now have a mid-season break in August. They have most of the winter to themselves with the ban on testing. He can make the schedule work with his family commitments. The Michael I saw on Monday was a new man. I don't mean that he has lost his intensity, I just feel that he is going into this with his eyes wide open. He is not a teenager in the first flush of youth. He knows that there are no guarantees of success. He is just back racing for the pure enjoyment of it. I think he has realised how privileged he was to be racing in F1. The level of support and dynamism within the industry is simply extraordinary, something you don't properly appreciate until you have left. Everyday life is so mundane in its response time. You want a plumber? You can get one next week. In F1, if you have an idea, brilliant minds will work through the night to make it happen. He, in turn, is in the privileged position of being so good that he can choose to come back. Very few people get to make that happen; the Michael Jordans and Muhammad Alis of this world. What I am curious to see is how he interacts with the other drivers on the grid. One of the reasons I became slightly jaded towards the end of my career was because I wasn't a part of the PlayStation generation. I didn't care that they had reached level five of whatever game they were playing. I had other priorities in my life. I don't mean that I didn't like them or get on with them, I just had less in common with them. Physically, I don't think it will be a problem. Michael's fitness is legendary and I don't believe racing instincts will have deserted him. I don't think he'll be as strong as he was in his pomp but then that isn't important. He just needs to be the best out there. I have a number of framed pictures from my career and the ones I prize most feature Michael in second place behind me. You knew that if you beat him, you had beaten the best. Now the likes of Lewis Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel will have the chance to validate themselves against a legend. I have some sympathy for Nico Rosberg, his team-mate, but then this is a chance for him to really step up and be the hero himself. I have no doubts that he will receive equal treatment Mercedes used to flip a coin when I raced alongside Mika Hakkinen to decide which of us got the fresh engine I just don't think he will be able to match Michael's levels of consistency. In fact, I look at Mercedes and I see all the ingredients for success. Plenty of money; one of the best, if not the best engine on the grid; a brilliant tactician and leader in Ross Brawn; and one hell of a driver in a revitalised Michael Schumacher.