Michael Schumacher's return to Formula One as a no-win situation, says Jenson Button

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/formula_1/article6733358.ece

Jenson Button has described Michael Schumacher's return to Formula One as a no-win situation for the German.

The seven-times world champion has confirmed he will return to the sport after a three year absence at next month's European Grand Prix in Valencia. Schumacher will replace Felipe Massa after the Brazilian required life-saving surgery to repair a fractured skull following an accident on Saturday in qualifying for the Hungarian Grand Prix.

Button has described Schumacher's decision as a brave one, but also had a word of warning for the 40-year-old. "It will be good to have Michael back out there racing again," Button said. "There are very good people out there racing at the moment, but to have Michael there again will be very special, although I'm sure we all wish Felipe was there also.

"It's an interesting one, though, because if he wins people will say they expected him too, and if he doesn't, they will say he should not have come back. So it's a tough position for him to be in, although I'm happy he has taken up the challenge. It's very brave of him.


"But it's a strange situation because the reason for Michael being there is because another driver can't take part. In a way Ferrari are very lucky because they've someone working in their team who can jump straight into the car and be competitive, and Michael will be.

Button, whose lead in the drivers' standings has been cut to 18.5 points over the last three races in which he has struggled in his Brawn GP, expressed his relief that Massa is on the mend.

"It was a horrible accident, a freak accident," Button said. "But it's a good thing he is up and about now, moving around, and that the operation went well. It's great everything is going well for him, and hopefully he will be back racing soon."

 

"It's an interesting one, though, because if he wins people will say they expected him too, and if he doesn't, they will say he should not have come back. So it's a tough position for him to be in, although I'm happy he has taken up the challenge. It's very brave of him."

+1.

 

I hate freaking spin doctors... no where did Jenson say "it's a no win situation" nor were there any particular "words of warning". Jensen was quite correct in his anaylsis, positive and welcoming. Where do these guys get off twisting some pretty nice statements into an ominous prediction and warning?

 

It's a no win...unless he surprises us and wins.

 

I think it is safe to say that anyone who understands F1 will not expect Michael to win or even podium at Valencia. Not saying impossible, just does not expect him to do so. And I also think it is safe to say that he will not win the title this year either. We all know that Michael is now 40 years of age and has not been testing or racing a F1 car regularly for two years now, and with the in-season testing ban, it will take him more time to get a feel of the F60. However, it is extremly brave and noble of Michael to be willing to step back into a race car and help the team out on the Constructor standings and perhaps help in the development of not only this year's car but more importantly, next year's car. His return will not only help Ferrari but also FIA, as it will generate more fan interest since he is certain to draw more fans to the circuit, which is severely lacking this year as we all know.

Even know Michael may no longer be the best driver on the grid at Valencia, but you can bet that all of the other drivers will be keeping an eye on Michael's pace.

 

Win or no win, MS's presence will definitely boost the sport at every possible angle...

 

I understand that there are exigent circumstances, but I can't help but be reminded of this....
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I see you..and raise you this.
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He doesn't need to prove anything to anybody anymore. So why not?

 

win or not I'm excited to see him race again. even if he scores 1 point thats a win

 

Don't forget this one...................
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Oh, I think quite a lot of people here do expect that!

 

Even if he stinks you can't take away what he has already achieved and what he's trying to do for a friend and the team. And, if he does well then he still has it. I think it's a win/win.

 

I don't, I remember MS saying he will quit when the younger guys start to beat him.

I admire what he is doing he may surprise, but in general I think he is doing to help Massa and Ferrari out and I like that aspect.

 

+1

 

Indeed. I think Button's comments were spot on.

 

Who cares what others think. Mike is now a legend in everyones eyes. Does he care what others think? I doubt it as he will hold the records for ever and ever as far as im concered. He loves the sport of speed and may have been thinking of coming back and now the circumstances fell into place and made it easier for him to decide. He has probably been watching F1 go down the drain in the last few years and now he can come back and do something about it.
Howe's love of the game brought him back to play with the Detroit Vipers in 1997 at age 69.
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Are all the UK papers a rag or what!

 

I disagree with this assessment. Let's think through the possible outcomes.
If he grinds around in the back, than yes, it will look bad, but it will be said, "look, the F60 is crap, he has been away for 2 years, there is no testing and the dude is 40. This is a young mans game".
If he is in the top ten and behind KR, people will say "MS, a little rusty, but not bad for a 40 year old".
If he is in the top ten and/or ahead of KR, people will say "yeah that F60 is a crap car, but boy can he still drive the wheels off of it".
If he starts off slow and ends the season strong, you will hear about how he came in mid season and turned Ferrari's development around.
If he spanks that field from the get go, he re-immortalizes his status as the very top of F1 and should make several of the current drivers reconsider their chossen profession.
He gets to take on KR head to head, putting to rest that theory that he was afraid to drive with KR as a team mate and he may get to show Ferrari (LdM) the error of their ways. I am going to guess that Corinna has insisted on a handsome pay package for stepping in mid season, and it makes Willy Weber look like a smacked *ss. ("I am 200% certain that Michael will not fill in for Massa").
All in all, I do not see it as a no-win situation.

 

The fix is in its all about the show..... Help Ted where are you.....

 

That would be awesome!

 

Look at the other thread where half the posters suggest he's going to kick ass, win every race (or maybe every race but one), etc, etc. He's certainly in a no win situation in relation to the expectations of those folks.

 

They are just being over exuberant from exitement. No-one expected him to win every time when the dream team was on song. They don't now.
I admire his loyalty and could care little for any blitzkrieg scenario. Felipe and the scuderia are fortunate to have him as a friend.

 

I think that Jenson Button is spot on in his analysis and I will add that I personally wholeheartedly disagree with MS returning to F1. It is not because of his age as at 40 I think he can still be WC, not because the Ferrari is uncompetitive, and not because he has been away from racing F1 for 3 seasons. The reason is that I believe in retiring once and at the top of your game. Jackie Stewart did it best and never raced again and very very few others resisted the temptation to return to something they have chosen to not be a part of any more. Regardless of how he does, the luster of his retirement is not the same any more. That said his return does not surprise me as I have always thought that Schumacher would have trouble in adjusting to life away from F1 and that the lure would be too great for him to try again. I always hoped he would resist the urge but this week those hopes were dashed.

Mike Hawthore said it best: "Why did you retire? sounds much more pleasent than Why don't you retire?"

 

If it was a full scale comeback, I'd agree with you, but I think his return is a bit special, as it is clear that he only drives as long as Massa isn't able to do so.