The Hindu : Sport : Michael Schumacher impressive

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Saturday, Apr 02, 2005

Sport

Sport

Michael Schumacher impressive

By Vijay Parthasarathy

FERRARI'S SLEEK NEW BEAST: Michael Schumacher and Ferrari will hope that the new car, which will be launched in Bahrain, will propel the German past his rivals again. — AP

MANAMA, APRIL 1. The thing about young blood in sport is that it's supposed to be electrifying. As sport begins to throw up more and more adolescent champions, it has progressively grown more and more aggressive. And, that works fine for the spectators, which is transported to a different level of passion.

For novices, risk-taking is naturally more the norm than the exception. But bafflingly Formula One appears to contradict that fundamental truth. This is a sport where rookies are taught to exercise utmost caution, and permission to take risks is granted only when a driver has earned a reasonable amount of experience. Mainly, of course, that's because you are risking your life here; and a certain amount of conservatism is demanded under such circumstances.

On the other hand, this sport can convert sprightly young men in the pink of their lives into doddering philosophers. Narain Karthikeyan has only competed in two F-1 races; but already he is beginning to sound like a jaded thinker. The Bahrain circuit, Narain sighs a little gloomily, won't push him as much as the Sepang track did, a couple of weeks ago.

Life suddenly seems a lot less exciting for the 28-year old. It simply doesn't hold the same kind of challenge. It's as if he's stuck on a treadmill for the moment. Repetition remains the only challenge, the only reward. (Ah, woe is me.)

Same plan

Narain's race plan remains the same as before, which is to finish the race and subsequently, to try and attract attention as the best rookie on the grid. Although the circuit looks tempting enough there remains no space for flashy moves; and that's fair enough. Fancy manoeuvres might get the crowd cheering but they are of no use if, in the end, they cannot win you points. Consequently so far Narain has repeatedly passed up the opportunity to overtake; he has waved on Fernando Alonso and Michael Schumacher as they lapped him, with the alacrity of a boy scout.

Still it's particularly frustrating for Narain since he's been compelled to curb his naturally aggressive instincts, and instead adopt the docile tactics of a baa-lamb.

The Sakhir track stretches out along some lazy straights, and the quickest in Friday's practice sessions consistently peaked at 330 kmph. Such speeds make this one of the faster F-1 circuits, and a potential paradise for speed bullies like Kimi Raikkonen. Indeed, bullets are known to travel a tad slower than some of these chaps. Tinker around a little more with the aerodynamics and downforce laws, and drivers will soon need a commercial flying licence.

In particular Michael Schumacher, who finished the morning laps in second place (behind Toyota's test driver Ricardo Zonta), looks a whole lot quicker now. His teammate Rubens Barrichello wasn't far behind either. The F2005 shaved off more than just a few seconds from Melbourne and Sepang, and clearly Ferrari can expect a lot from its sleek new beast this weekend. With Renault displaying impressive form at the start of the season, the race weekend in Sakhir promises to be competitive.

The main problem every driver will face is sand on the track: braking and not sliding simultaneously will be hard to manage and it's a factor that's largely out of the drivers' hands; although every team will look to set up its car for heavy under steering. To some extent, this reduces the gap that exists between the pros and the rookies — between the Renaults and the Ferraris and the Jordans and the Minardis.

A realist

At the same time Narain is a realist. He has had a good start to the season, but he's certainly not the kind to say winning a race is the next step. And it isn't, too. After all, to aspire to greatness is a fine thing; but lacking in the basic ingredients — in this case, a car that can race marginally faster than a speeding tractor — does impose constraints.

"I hope to finish around 15th," he says, and as usual his estimates are modest and conservative. "Tomorrow, in qualifying, I expect I'll be three seconds behind pole. We'll take it from there."

First free practice: 1. Ricardo Zonta (Bra) 1min 31.449sec; 2. Michael Schumacher (Ger) 1:32.120; 3. Vitantonio Liuzzi (Ita) 1:32.509; 4. Alexander Wurz (Aut) 1:33.106; 5. Rubens Barrichello (Bra) 1:33.111; 6. Pedro de la Rosa (Esp) 1:33.270; 7. Mark Webber (Aus) 1:33.427; 8. Kimi Raikkonen (Fin) 1:33.836; 9. Jenson Button (GBr) 1:34.002; 10. Nick Heidfeld (Ger) 1:34.722; 11. Christian Klien (Aut) 1:34.722; 12. David Coulthard (GBr) 1:34.984; 13. Robert Doornbos (Ned) 1:35.432; 14. Felipe Massa (Bra) 1:35.531; 15. Narain Karthikeyan (Ind) 1:35.766; 16. Tiago Monteiro (Por) 1:36.534; 17. Jacques Villeneuve (Can) 1:37.112; 18. Christijan Albers (Ned) 1:37.778; 19. Patrick Friesacher (Aut) 1:38.603.

Second free practice: 1. Alexander Wurz (Aut) 1:30.695; 2. Fernando Alonso (Esp) 1:31.969; 3. Vitantonio Liuzzi (Ita) 1:32.319; 4. Pedro de la Rosa (Esp) 1:32.333; 5. Michael Schumacher (Ger) 1:32.431; 6. Jarno Trulli (Ita) 1:32.595; 7. Giancarlo Fisichella (Ita) 1:32.708; 8. Kimi Raikkonen (Fin) 1:32.988; 9. Jenson Button (GBr) 1:33.037; 10. Ralf Schumacher (Ger) 1:33.077; 11. Nick Heidfeld (Ger) 1:33.152; 12. Takuma Sato (Jpn) 1:33.205; 13. Christian Klien (Aut) 1:33.436; 14. Ricardo Zonta (Bra) 1:33.443; 15. Mark Webber (Aus) 1:33.563; 16. David Coulthard (GBr) 1:33.708; 17. Felipe Massa (Bra) 1:33.726; 18. Narain Karthikeyan (Ind) 1:33.981; 19. Robert Doornbos (Ned) 1:34.222.

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