Michael Schumacher returns to Formula One this year with the new Mercedes team after three years out of the limelight.
Few thought Schumacher would ever return to the sport he once dominated, let alone with a team other than Ferrari. However, the combination of Mercedes, Ross Brawn and the championship success of the team in 2009 was enough to lure the seven-time champion out of retirement.
“To drive a car like this again, it was just that great old feeling I know so well,” he told the official Formula One website after testing the MGP W01 last week at Jerez. “Nothing comes close. I love that sensation, I always did. It was just that my batteries were empty at the end of 2006 that I retired. I would not have wanted to go on. Now my batteries are fully loaded again.”
Pre-season testing has been fairly hard to gauge in terms of pure performance, with Toro Rosso topping the timesheets one day and McLaren the next. Schumacher believes however that he can fight for the championship with Mercedes.
“I am fully convinced that we have a car that is able to fight for the championship,” he said. “Where we are exactly is hard to say. I believe in this team, and this belief in the challenge is enough for me. I love the competition, and I look forward to taking the chance.”