(eca110) Don't write off Ferrari (yet), says Schumacher interview with German Press Agency dpa (News Feature)

By Jens Marx Apr 22, 2009, 12:28 GMT

Givrins, Switzerland - Don't write off Ferrari even though they have zero points from the first three 22009 Formula One races.

That is the verdict of the team's star driver-turned advisor Michael Schumacher, made in an interview with German Press Agency dpa ahead of Sunday's Bahrain Grand Prix.

But the record seven-time world champion Schumacher also said that Ferrari may kiss the season goodbye and look ahead at 2010 if that makes more sense for the famed Italian team.

Schumacher named the reliability of the Brawn GP team astonishing and countryman Sebastian Vettel a title contender, but also said that the formerly small teams have caught up rapidly as the F1 pecking order is turned upside down for the moment.

While Brawn's Jenson Button leads the way after three races, the Ferrari duo of 2007 world champion Kimi Raikkonen and 2008 runner-up Felipe Massa are yet to earn a point in Ferrari's worst season start in many years.

'We know about the situation, but we are not giving up. Ferrari has never done that in the past. You can never write off Ferrari,' insisted the German Schumacher in the interview in Switzerland.

'Of course the situation doesn't look good at the moment, but the gaps are not that big that it wouldn't allow the team to establish itself in the upper tiers again.'

The Ferrari lacks speed and reliability, and Schumacher admitted that he has to be included in the blame for some tactical mistakes committed on the first races and that success won't return overnight.

'You must be realistic and say that a lot of components must come together to put us on the podium again. But it is also clear that we we are working with all our might to make this happen,' Schumacher told dpa.

Schumacher named 'various reasons' for Ferrari's problems.

He said that 'the so-called small teams are not really that much smaller any more' and that they had a head start over Ferrari and McLaren as well to design the 2009 car because the two heavyweights were engaged in the 2008 title fight until the last race.

The various rule changes for the new season also worked in the favour of those who started development early.

Schumacher said that part of his advisor job was to see how these issues can be improved in the future, which includes the difficult decision of possibly having to be content witha poor season for the sake of early 2010 developments.

'At some stage you must think about what you want to do, where you want to go ... It is not us alone. Other teams are in the same situation. It will be one of my tasks to be advise in this area,' Schumacher said.

Looking at others, Schumacher had plenty of praise for his former Ferrari technical director Ross Brawn and his work at the Brawn team, and for Vettel who on Sunday claimed his second career win at a rainy race in China.

'Ross has an extreme knowledge. he is a great man ... It is stunning to see who quickly the transition from a Honda to a Mercedes engine was achieved.

'On the first day of testing shortly before the season they went a full race distance and have been reliable at a top level from then on. This reliability is the most astonishing thing I have ever seen. I would have liked that in my active days but it didn't always work out,' Schumacher said.

Schumacher added he nonetheless expects Brawn to stagnate later in the season while for instance the Red Bulll team with Vettel - who in Germany is frequently named the new Schumacher - poses a serious threat.

'He definitely has a chance to fight for the title ... His talent is undisputed and the way he does it is astonishing. It is a joy to watch him conquer the Formula One world,' said Schumacher.