Will Michael Schumacher continue to race beyond 2012?
Michael Schumacher is in a sort of limbo over his future in the game. He is unsure whether he wants to or will continue beyond 2012.
Schumacher retired after he ended his stint with Ferrari and after a sojourn of a few years decided to make a return to the sport and joined Mercedes. He had a torrid return to the sport, and has not been able to conjure performances that would normally
be linked to Schumacher.
Schumacher has been one of the major exponents of the sport, and easily the most recognized driver in the sport for the last decade. He put Ferrari back on the map of Formula 1 and maintained his dominance over the sport for several years.
Schumacher's team-mate Nico Rosberg has already signed his contract with Mercedes and that move has also caused even more speculation over the former champions head as he moves into 2012 season.
Since Schumacher returned to the sport, he has not been able to get a single podium finish in the last two seasons. He did manage to improve on his performances since he returned but they are not viable enough for him to be satisfied with his achievement.
The former champion wants to be better than he has been and has required some time to sort a few things to understand the nature of where he wants his career to head into.
“I need a little bit more time to see about myself and how we are heading, and some input to see if that is what I want or not,” Schumacher is quoted by Autosport.com.
“It is more about how we maximise the potential of what we have made. It took some while to do, talking about our general performance. You have to assess where you are and what needs to be done, and then to transform it. You would rather do this early than
late, but we have to understand that we were later than we hoped to be,” he further added.
The main question mark over the Germans head is whether he will have a car that is going to make him compete with the leaders of the sport, like Red Bull and McLaren. He earlier mentioned that he would like to know whether Mercedes wants to move ahead on
the same tract to improvement as he or are they going to remain the underdogs they have been over the span of last two seasons.
Unlike Schumacher Rubens Barrichello another veteran of the sport has been on the lookout for a race seat for 2012 and has not been able to find a team or a sponsor to back him for one. Barrichello was Schumacher’s team-mate at Ferrari for almost six years,
and although Schumacher took his retirement earlier, Barrichello remained in the sport. If Barrichello finally gets a race seat for 2012 it will mark the 20th season for him. The longest any driver would have driven in the sport.
The Brazilian unlike Schumacher is certain that he wants to continue regardless whether he gets a competitive car or not and his former team-mate has suggested that he would only want to continue if he can get a winning car to compete in.
It would be a shame if Schumacher leaves Formula 1 with a bitter taste in his mouth over his performances, and as a fan it would be best for him to continue beyond 2012 work towards a faster car with Mercedes and end his career on a high.
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