Michael Schumacher Announces Final Retirement From F1

[Iceman]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/formulaone/article-2198761/Lewis-Hamilton-replace-Michael-Schumacher-Mercedes-says-Eddie-Jordan.html

Seems likely.

Schumi still not saying anything (expect hom to announce retirement at this race as he did in 2006)

Bernie saying Schumi is going.

Lewis being **** since world title win.

Lewis leaking private information on twitter this past weekend.

Will be possibly the worst move he could ever make.

[Niamh.]

Lewis Hamilton is an arsehole, he's like a baby having a tantrum when things don't go his way. Way prefer Jenson Button to him, Eddie Jordan annoys the **** out of me too the way he's always fawning over Hamilton and making excuses for him and then trying to take credit away from Jenson when he does well

[Iceman]

There was only one topic of conversation among the paddock motor homes that glinted in the warm Lombardy sunshine this morning: will Lewis Hamilton join Mercedes or stay at McLaren?

There has been so little movement among the drivers in the past two years – at least, at the sharp end of the grid – that when a big name like Hamilton is linked with a monolith like Mercedes it will dominate all other gossip. And, appropriately for a world which is part sport and part showbiz, there is an awful lot of gossip in Formula One.

"He's daft enough to go to Mercedes," said somebody, which may sound like a casual, off-hand remark but which, in fact, was nearer the truth than a lot of other comments.

That is not to insult Hamilton's intelligence. As Martin Brundle told the Guardian at the start of the season F1 drivers – at least, successful F1 drivers – tend to have plenty of intelligence, since there are so many things they have to get their head around.

But in this bizarrely self-obsessed sport Hamilton is the speedster from Neverland. If you go down the bewildering burrows of his recent tweets you encounter not a man of 27 but an adolescent, someone who is still going through the painful process of self-discovery.

Is he really being advised by his agents, XIX Entertainment and employers at McLaren, or is he listening to the spirits of JM Barrie and Lewis Carroll?

It is easy enough to construct a scenario in which Hamilton's heart will switch from Woking to Stuttgart. After all, he's not going to Ferrari, where Fernando Alonso is resident and will be for a long time. And Fernando still has unhappy memories of his time with Hamilton at McLaren in 2007.

And he's not going to Red Bull, where Sebastian Vettel's kingdom is just as powerful as Alonso's, and where important people, while admiring Hamilton's great talent, also wonder if he's more trouble than he's worth.

Mercedes is the only other gig in town for Hamilton, and if Michael Schumacher does decide to quit the British driver would join up with Nico Rosberg. The pair were pals way back in their karting days at Mercedes and the team could give Hamilton both the money and the love for which he craves.

Also, there are people within the McLaren team who have the same sort of reservations about Hamilton that some England cricketers have about Kevin Pietersen. If a lowly mechanic had tweeted confidential information about McLaren's set-up just before a race – as Hamilton did in Belgium a week ago – he would have been fired on the spot.

And the more strangely Hamilton behaves, the greater the contrast between him and his team-mate, the friendly and more grounded Jenson Button. That makes Hamilton feel worse still.

But even in the middle of his daft days, Hamilton must ask himself a serious question. Is he content to go down in history as a one-title wonder, or does he really want more championships, as he says he does? Does he go for the money or does he stay with a team that has sheltered him since he was only 13?

There can only be one answer to this. He will surely remain at McLaren, where negotiations have only just started.

His advisers will be serving him badly if they allow him to go anywhere else. But no one can blame them if they are using Mercedes as a bargaining chip.

If Hamilton really is thinking of joining Mercedes, a team that might even walk away from the sport in the near future, since they are still negotiating the Concorde Agreement, it will be an adventure more surreal than any of his incomprehensible tweets.

IMO he should stay, no team will wrap him up in cotton wool like Mclaren. he just needs to grow up and realise he isn't the world champion and stop acting like one....Schumi grew up. Kimi grew up. Alonso grew up....they all went onto huge things....

[Legend killer]

Lewis is like all British sports stars overated to the max. Nowt special as a driver as we have seen the majority of seasons even though he has one of the best cars and the year he won was EXTREMELY lucky Ferrari kept fuken up things for Massa.

Would loved to have watch prime Michael school this bloody bum

[Iceman]

Lewis is like all British sports stars overated to the max. Nowt special as a driver as we have seen the majority of seasons even though he has one of the best cars and the year he won was EXTREMELY lucky Ferrari kept fuken up things for Massa.

Would loved to have watch prime Michael school this bloody bum

I really thought he'd have lost the hot headed-ness by now......he's no rookie anymore so he should stop behaving like one.

[Legend killer]

He is a spolit brat and he is just like that off the track too. Has a smoken hot girl at home yet is messing round with sloots 24/7

That's the problem when everything is handed to you on a plate sadly

[James]

Can't see this happening. He wants to win races and Mercedes aren't in the best position to deliver that.

If you were to pick a team at the start of the season that is most likely to have the best car you'd pick McLaren, though it might not necessarily work that way.

[Iceman]

Literally everything depends on Michael....if he stays its a risk....but Merc are on the cusp of something good. Theyve shown flashes of this...

[Mystic Mock]

McLaren always mess up his car though so know wonder he wants to leave, I would suggest the same thing to Button aswell.

Hamilton is the best though what an entertaining driver in a period where robots like Vettel have taken over the Sport.

[James]

With these big car manufacturers in F1 it is always questionable how committed they are to the sport.

That's why the FIA wanted to get the costs down with the spending limit, a while back.

[Iceman]

McLaren always mess up his car though so know wonder he wants to leave, I would suggest the same thing to Button aswell.

Hamilton is the best though what an entertaining driver in a period where robots like Vettel have taken over the Sport.

fair enough but when he's had a competitive car he couldnt hold his nerve and made stupid decisions....

[Iceman]

When asked in the Press Conference today does he know where he'll be driving he replied simply :No

[Iceman]

Amid all the hype about Lewis Hamilton's supposed move to Mercedes, the German squad appears to be preparing to extend Michael Schumacher's career.

The major German daily Bild said 43-year-old Schumacher's negotiations about 2013 and beyond are now "in full swing."

The report claims Mercedes is offering the seven-time World Champion a new contract for 2013, while Schumacher is apparently pushing for a unilateral option that would allow him to decide to keep racing in 2014, as well.

The carmaker's motor racing president Norbert Haug said: "There is still no decision. We are continuing to negotiate."

With Nico Rosberg already under contract for 2013, a new deal for Schumacher would appear to lock out McLaren's Hamilton, who according to Bild is demanding EUR 25 million per year from his next employer.

But Rosberg's name has also been connected with McLaren in recent days, raising the prospect of a Schumacher-Hamilton driver lineup at Mercedes in 2013.

YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES

oh holy **** yes, i hope this happens

[Iceman]

Amid all the hype about Lewis Hamilton's supposed move to Mercedes, the German squad appears to be preparing to extend Michael Schumacher's career.

The major German daily Bild said 43-year-old Schumacher's negotiations about 2013 and beyond are now "in full swing."

The report claims Mercedes is offering the seven-time World Champion a new contract for 2013, while Schumacher is apparently pushing for a unilateral option that would allow him to decide to keep racing in 2014, as well.

The carmaker's motor racing president Norbert Haug said: "There is still no decision. We are continuing to negotiate."

With Nico Rosberg already under contract for 2013, a new deal for Schumacher would appear to lock out McLaren's Hamilton, who according to Bild is demanding EUR 25 million per year from his next employer.

But Rosberg's name has also been connected with McLaren in recent days, raising the prospect of a Schumacher-Hamilton driver lineup at Mercedes in 2013.

YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES YES

oh holy **** yes, i hope this happens

[Niamh.]

I'd love to see Kimi replace Hamilton at Mclaren

[Iceman]

No I cant support Mclaren so id have to go back to ignoring his existence.

[Niamh.]

haha, aw why do you hate Mclaren?

[Iceman]

http://www.formula1.com/photos/teams_and_drivers/hall_of_fame_profile/top_right/hof_profile_right_40.jpg

because of this guy!

I wouldnt mind if he went and won a world title but we'll see if Schumi hangs it up and I have nobody then i'll support him.

[King Gizzard]

Rumours have resurfaced, looks like it's got a bit of substance this time, announcement tommorow

[Shaun]

Eoin why do you hate Mika :nono:

(He was never one of my favourites either but that was just because he kept winning races on the N64 game... my poor old Fisichella never got his time to shine)

[King Gizzard]

I remember him being that bastard I spent ages trying to figure out in Shaun's pub quiz sports round

so he's a dick

[Iceman]

Eoin why do you hate Mika :nono:

(He was never one of my favourites either but that was just because he kept winning races on the N64 game... my poor old Fisichella never got his time to shine)

because he cost Schumi 2 titles. :laugh:

[Iceman]

Aw I'm actually gutted Michael is leaving, bit teary eyed too :(

[Iceman]

Lewis Hamilton will cut ties with his boyhood team McLaren and replace Michael Schumacher at Mercedes, Sportsmail can reveal.
Sources in Germany indicated that the car giants will announce Schumacher’s second retirement at their headquarters in Stuttgart on Friday morning, leaving the way clear for Hamilton to accept a deal worth up to £60million, including win bonuses, over three years.
It will bring to an end the Briton’s 14-year association with McLaren, the team who sponsored him from when he was a 13-year-old karting prodigy.

Decision to make: McLaren star Lewis Hamilton's future remains unclear
Hamilton’s critics will say he is leaving for money but it is understood the offers on the table were similar. His basic Mercedes salary of around £15m — the same figure he is on at McLaren — will maintain his status as one of the grid’s top earners alongside Ferrari’s Fernando Alonso and possibly Red Bull’s Sebastian Vettel.
That said, Mercedes will offer greater freedom than McLaren in letting Hamilton’s management company, Simon Fuller’s XIX Entertainment, to strike personal endorsements for their man.
More important than money — and Hamilton is known to be cautious with his finances — is his desire to improve on a return of one title in five completed seasons, a disappointing statistic for a driver who envisaged himself as a serial champion on his much-heralded arrival in Formula One.

Rollercoaster: Hamilton has had an up-and-down season at McLaren
The will-he-won’t-he saga has captivated the sport for months but in the end the attraction of a fresh start, away from a team where he has always been treated with parental care, appears to have been too hard for the 27-year-old to resist.
The other governing factor was his desire for a championship-winning car. McLaren team principal Martin Whitmarsh always claimed that staying put represented the best chance of success, but the evidence for that assertion is patchy: though they are regular race winners, McLaren have won just a single drivers’ title since 1999.
The question is whether Mercedes, who have support at board level in Germany but are run from Brackley, Northamptonshire, are better equipped to deliver. They have only been back in the sport as manufacturers since 2010, though in their previous guise as Brawn won the title through Jenson Button.

Flashing the cash: Mercedes have tried to tempt Hamilton to their team
Ross Brawn, the engineering svengali behind all seven of Schumacher’s titles, remains team principal and his presence is sure to have been a major lure for Hamilton with significant changes to the engine regulations due for the 2014 season.
Brawn exploited a previous revamping of the technical blueprint in 2009, allowing Hamilton’s McLaren team-mate Button to waltz to his championship success. With Mercedes as engine makers, Brawn is well placed to conjure another trick.
Conversely, McLaren, who get their engines free from Mercedes as part of a long-term association, will have to pay for their supply from next year. That will put a strain on their budget.

End of the road: Michael Schumacher will announce his retirement from F1 for the second time
Mercedes have won one race this season to McLaren’s five but it is probable that Hamilton would extract more from even this existing car than the 43-year-old Schumacher and his team-mate Nico Rosberg.
Hamilton is close to Norbert Haug, Mercedes’ head of motor sport, who often acted as an avuncular supporter of the young Briton back when the German manufacturers were in full partnership with McLaren.
As for Schumacher, he has been a shadow of his formerly dominant self since coming out of his first retirement in 2010. He has managed just one podium, this year in Valencia.
McLaren are likely to turn their attention to Sauber’s Mexican Sergio Perez. Another conceivable contender is Scotland’s Paul di Resta, of Force India.


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/formulaone/article-2209707/Lewis-Hamilton-replaces-Michael-Schumacher-Mercedes.html#ixzz27k2sAz5E
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cuntish

[Iceman]

Iceman is sad

[thesheriff443]

it dont matter if you like them as a person all f1 drivers put their lifes on the line everytime they get into a car.
if you have not seen it yet you must watch the docu film senna.
it shows senna knowing he was going to die but still raceing.

[Iceman]

Schumacher will apparently announce his switch to Sauber by the end of October. :sad: he's killing me, not only have I ditched ferrari for mercedes im now ditching both for Sauber :crazy:

[Iceman]

6 races left from Michael and he's gone, im gonna be a wreck on his last race (again)

[Iceman]

Michael Schumacher’s fellow Mercedes team members have been quick to express their gratitude to the seven-time world champion after he announced his retirement from Formula One racing at Suzuka on Thursday.

Schumacher began his professional racing career in 1989 as a member of the Mercedes Junior Team in sportcars, and he will conclude it at the end of this season after three years with the German marque’s Formula One team.

“This is a big loss for our sport,” said team mate Nico Rosberg. “Michael did a huge amount to make Formula One so popular in Germany, and lots of fans switched on their TV sets because of him. He achieved so much. It has been and continues to be something special and a great experience for me to drive with him and against him. In the last three years we pushed the team hard together which will help us in the years to come. I wish him all the best for the future.”

Team principal Ross Brawn admitted it was an emotional day for him, having enjoyed so much success with Schumacher during their time together at Benetton, Ferrari and Mercedes, and said he felt ‘proud, honoured and privileged’ to have had the opportunity to work so closely with the German.

“In my opinion, he is the greatest Formula One driver, and the records which he holds in our sport speak volumes for his success and commitment,” commented Brawn. “On behalf of everyone at our Silver Arrows team, we wish Michael all the best with his future plans and extend our sincere thanks to him for his commitment, passion and hard work during our three years together.

“We have not achieved the results that we would have wished during this time; however Michael's contribution to our development and the future of our team has been significant. Whatever Michael decides to do next, I am sure that he will be keeping a close eye on our progress in the years to come.”

Norbert Haug, Vice President of Mercedes-Benz Motorsport, added: “Michael did a fantastic job during the build-up phase of our still-young Silver Arrows works team and, although we have not yet achieved our targets in our third season, Michael's invaluable hard work has established the foundations for future success.

“For this, we give him our thanks and recognition. All of us in the team - and first and foremost Michael - are working hard to have six more races in which we can show a respectable level of performance together. Thank you, Michael, for everything: it was, and is, a pleasure to work with you.”

:bawling:

[Iceman]

Schumacher just hit the wall in Japan Practice 2. :(