Michael Schumacher has echoed WRC champion Marcus Gronholm’s statement that the FIA’s new points system fails to adequately reward drivers who win races.
Michael Schumacher has echoed WRC champion Marcus Gronholm’s statement that the FIA’s new points system fails to adequately reward drivers who win races.
Ferrari’s five-time world champion claimed his fourth Grand Prix victory of the season in Canada to move ahead of McLaren-Mercedes pilot Kimi Raikkonen in the drivers’ standings.
But the German is frustrated that he now leads the Finn by just three points, even though Raikkonen has won only one of the eight races so far this year.
“It’s obviously good (to gain the lead of the championship standings) and strange at the same time,” said Schumacher, whose career points tally moved up to 999 on Sunday.
“If you imagine that one wins one race and the other wins four races and there’s only three points difference you think whether that’s right or wrong. I’m probably not so pleased with it,” he added.
CARtoday.com reported in April that WRC champion Gronholm was unhappy with the new points system, which gives 10 points for a victory and eight for second place. Gronholm’s Peugeot team-mate, Richard Burns, currently leads the WRC championship standings even though he has not won a rally this year.
Either way, Schumacher was relieved to hold off brother Ralf’s Williams in Montreal after taking advantage of Ferrari’s slightly heavier race fuel load to move into the lead after the pitstops.
“That was the ideal result. It was a tight and tough race and I wasn’t able to push all the way through and drove the pace I needed to,” the German said. “We had just a bit more fuel and that’s what got us the win. I opened the gap in the pit-stop windows.
“It is always good to go into the championship lead but I think it will be a tough fight to the end,” he added.
Ferrari technical chief Ross Brawn said it was one of the best Grands Prix he had ever witnessed.
“I am delighted with Michael’s win. He did a great job of controlling the race despite brake wear problems right from the early stages,” said Brawn.
“We breathed a sigh of relief when we got to the chequered flag. The strategy worked well, but the deciding factor was the way Michael drove.”
Ferrari sporting director Jean Todt warned his team not to get carried away with being on top of the standings.
“We have reached the halfway point of the season, leading both championships,” said Todt. “We can expect the second half of the season to be very tough because the opposition is very strong”.