Ferrari chiefs have no plans to quit

Ferrari’s top brass insist they will carry on for as long as Michael Schumacher does – and plan on being as strong as ever next season.

After winning his record sixth drivers’ crown in Japan on Sunday, Schumacher vowed he had no intention of retiring despite being physically and emotionally shattered.

And technical director Ross Brawn and sporting chief Jean Todt have both said they – and the key group of personnel who have already agreed deals until the end of the 2006 season – see no reason to quit.

“Michael says he was empty and exhausted after the race and I think we all were,” admitted Manchester-born Brawn.

“I was totally drained on the pit wall because you are involved and you see things evolve, you try to make decisions and when it finishes you just look at each other and say ‘did that really happen?’. It was a draining experience. I said to Jean ’We’re getting too old for this!’

“This will stop one day, and I think for all of us it’s going to be very painful and we don’t want to face that pain any earlier than we have to.

“We still enjoy winning races as I said after Indianapolis. Michael was choked after Indy and the guy’s won 70 races or whatever, and there’s still a passion there for all of us, and while the passion’s there, we’ll carry on doing it.

“One day it will stop. It’s not going to be next year. I don’t know when it will be but I guess we will all know when it comes, but I don’t think it will be in the next few years.”

Todt revealed that chief designer Rory Byrne and engine boss Paulo Martinelli were working on next year’s Ferrari while the celebrations were going on in Suzuka where Schumacher finished eighth to clinch a hard-fought title.

“We are all focussed, we all love being together and probably one of the reasons why none of us want to go is because we feel that in a way we will be betraying part of the group and we feel that we are not yet ready for that,” said the Frenchman.

“Ferrari is a great company, great team, probably more pressure, but more emotion and more reward to the effort that we make and that’s the end of it.”

Brawn said the Italian team planned an intensive test programme this winter, particularly with tyre suppliers Bridgestone, in a bid to ensure they can meet the challenge of Michelin-shod Williams and McLaren who pushed them so close this year.

“Bridgestone have realised they are facing much stronger competition and in the last few months we’ve been spending a lot of time with them to make sure of our winter test programme,” he added.

“It’s a key element for next year and we are going to be busy on the tyre front. To me it’s one-third car, one-third tyres, one-third driver. All those have to be at the highest level or else you won’t succeed.”