Ralf Schumacher’s excellent run this season ended at Silverstone where he finished in ninth place after he was forced to make an extra pit stop.
Ralf Schumacher’s excellent run this season ended at Silverstone where he finished in ninth place after he was forced to make an extra pit stop.
He had to come in after loose bodywork ruined the handling of his FW25. The German dropped back to fourth place in the standings, with team-mate Juan-Pablo Montoya moving ahead of him after finishing in second place.
“This was not what I expected from this race, and the result was obviously disappointing. The extra stop cost me a decent finish, and after it had happened, the race was more or less over for me. It was just bad luck,” said Schumacher, who won the past two races.
BMW motorsport director Mario Thiessen said Schumacher’s car was in danger of overheating. “Ralf’s race was good until a guidevane was torn off and blocked the airflow,” he said. “This caused the water temperature to rise and Ralf had to undertake an additional stop to remove the debris.
“We witnessed a very dangerous situation today when a person ran onto the track during the race, but fortunately no-one was hurt. Juan Pablo had a very god performance today, driving from 7th to 2nd and making the most of the circumstances,” said Theissen.
Montoya managed to move ahead of Kimi Raikkonen after the Finn made a mistake with 12 laps remaining. “This was the most exciting race of the year, and I really enjoyed it. I was pleased with the pace we showed today as we were able to keep up with the Ferraris.
“The main difficulty I had during the race was when the safety car came out for the second time, and after pitting I found myself back in 13th place. But I was able to catch up quickly, and the fact that I was just behind Rubens made it even easier as he was helping to clear traffic for me. My car was strong and I cannot be anything but happy as I managed to move up from thirteenth to second at the finish. These points will certainly help for both Championships.”