Don't get me wrong, I'm hopeful that he does well. I just have a bit of a bad feeling about it, don't know exactly, call it gut instinct maybe.

Clearly F1 driver Boxing comparisons can only ever be general and of course F1 isn't Boxing in terms of physical fitness and stamina etc. Anyway I wasn't making a comparison between the sports from that perspective, more of a metaphor/analogy.

However it IS a fact that human responses slow with age and in F1 reaction times are key to driving at the limit. At that level it's all about fractions of a second, that's all that divides the best from the worst in F1 (I'm talking response times not lap times).

I'm not so sure that Schumi himself is the best judge of whether he is capable of a competitive return. Sure, he knows what's needed, no doubts about that. But is he capable of being ruthlesly honest with himself about whether he has it. There is always going to be an element of Ego and self-delusion in such circumstances. Humans aren't too good at honest self appraisal, even when they have every conscious intention of doing so.

Anyway, only time will tell. One thing is certain, 2010 is going to be an interesting season.

Quote from JPeace :

...., and i hope he is at his best ....

He won't be, that's guaranteed. He wasn't at his best in his last season, (arguably last two), so he's definitely not going to be at his best 4 years older and out of practice at this level. He might be 95%, 96%... or even 99% of his best, but that's all that's needed to make such comparisons meaningless at this level of competition.

He won't be the same, but providing he recognises and embraces the changes he will still be able to perform at the highest level. Ryan Giggs is a good example. In his youth he was a fleet footed pacey winger - the type that England have desperately needed for his entire career. As he has aged he has developed into a more rounded attacking midfielder and won Footballer of the Year recently.

The new no refuelling rule change will benefit Schumi in this respect. For the past years a Grand Prix has actually been 2, 3 or 4 sprints glued together by pitstops. Not any more. A more considered approach to tyre management, like we had in the early 80s, will be to his advantage.

Also, although not as old, Lauda took a lengthy break, came back and was competitive.

Quote from gezmoor :

I'm not so sure that Schumi himself is the best judge of whether he is capable of a competitive return. Sure, he knows what's needed, no doubts about that. But is he capable of being ruthlesly honest with himself about whether he has it. There is always going to be an element of Ego and self-delusion in such circumstances. Humans aren't too good at honest self appraisal, even when they have every conscious intention of doing so.

Anyway, only time will tell. One thing is certain, 2010 is going to be an interesting season.

Very good point You make here..
However judging by his 2nd place position in the Race Of Champions, he seemed to be very competitive. But like You say, 2010 is going to be an interesting season.

Quote from Intrepid :

One cracker had him nearly pile some dude into the barriers at 60-70 mph

I call racisms.

I'm so pumped for this season it's not funny...

Quote from JPeace :

baby schumi vs real schumi.

don't forget toddle schumi (rosberg) and embryonic schumi (hulkenberg) if the williams is quick enough.

it will be very interesting with 3 young germans all trying to out do each other and schumi to prove they're the next schumi

all people who use this word-creations like babySchumi should be beaten up badly. :chair: