Photoshop my Mercedes!
Nah, I don't actually have one, but all the major motor sport mags seem to have one. You know which one I mean, the Brawn car that has been cleverly photo-shopped to look as though it's a Mercedes in all it's glory. Ok, it does look a bit fake and it seems that commercial reality will dictate that not even ze mighty German giant can keep it's car all silver. This premise that outside investments are needed, appears to have been proven right, as the Mercedes Grand Prix team have just signed a long term deal with Petronas, according to Autosport. Needless to say, the photoshoppers have been at it again, slapping the Malaysian companies logo all over the image I mentioned above. Personally, I'm waiting for Durex to be announced as a sponsor (By the way, for people who lack a funny bone, that was a joke).
Brace yourself...
It looks like Michael Schumacher may well be back and driving a Silver Arrows. Now, the greatest living German divides opinion like no other racing driver in recent history. To some, he is the finest man to have ever turned a wheel in an F1 car. To others he is an outrageously talented, yet flawed individual who would do anything to maintain an advantage, such as ramming people off the road or parking his car on the racing line.
Despite his fantastic talent, I find it hard to place him with the likes of Prost, Senna, Clark, Stewart etc in the pantheon of the greats. This is for two reasons really:
1. In 1994, he deliberately rammed Damon Hill off the road in order to take the championship. This was so obviously a cynical foul, yet it went completely unpunished.
2. Blocking the road at Rascasse in Monaco to block Fernando Alonso on his flying lap in 2006. Another example of blatant cheating, which this time he got punished for.
There are several more examples but these are the ones that really stick in the authors head. I know that others would say that Senna's punting off of Prost in 1990 was as low, but the Brazilian only resorted to such measures once, whereas Schumacher made obvious and often dangerous transgressions on a regular basis.
This aside, it will be interesting to see whether Schumacher can be a success the second time around. Only Niki Lauda has made a successful comeback in sport, winning the championship for a 3rd time in 1984. Things move on quickly in F1, and drivers that make a return often find themselves unable to adapt, tarnishing great reputations in the process.
