Schumacher quitting at end of season

SEVEN-TIMES world champion Michael Schumacher of Germany will retire at the end of the current season, his Ferrari team announced after his victory at Monza yesterday.

Schumacher sensationally kept in contention for an eighth world drivers’ title by closing the gap to Spain’s Fernando Alonso to two points in what was his 90th career victory in Formula One.

The retirement of the 37-year-old German, in emotional scenes at the old Autodromo Nazionale, was announced as he crossed the line in triumph.

Fans flooded the circuit as he stood atop the podium for the 90th time having cut Alonso’s lead in the drivers championship and creating another potential down-to-the-wire finale.

In a statement, Ferrari said: “Michael Schumacher will retire from race driving at the end of the 2006 world championship.”

His place at Ferrari next season will be taken by Finn Kimi Raikkonen, who finished second for McLaren Mercedes-Benz behind him in yesterday’s dramatic race.

There are three Grands Prix still left in the current season — in China on October 1, Japan on October 8 and Brazil on October 22.

The German, who has courted controversy throughout his career, will now prepare to bring the curtain down on 15 years of almost unrivalled statistical domination of the sport and unprecedented controversy.

Sunday’s achievement was his fifth win at the famed Italian circuit and an emotional but controlled Schumacher said afterwards: “There has been a lot of discussion for a long time about my decision to retire and all the motor sport people have a right to have an explanation of what will happen.

“You have to find the moment, and we feel this is the right moment. It’s going to be my last Monza race. I have decided with the team that I’m going to retire from racing. I have loved all the good times and the bad moments which make life so special. I cannot thank my family enough, but also to all my mates at (former team) Benetton and at Ferrari and I have so many great friends there.

“It has been so great but the day had to come and I felt that this was the moment. Now I would like to concentrate on the three races and finish it in style with the championship.”

The German’s final season has been one which has seen a resurgence in his driving, and after Alonso’s domination last year it appears that, as Schumacher has predicted, the title will go right down to the wire. “It’s a championship which started difficult in the beginning, and now we’re only two points behind (Alonso) with three races to go. We are 100% focused on the constructors and the drivers’ championship.”

Ferrari president Montezemolo, who stood on the pit wall during the race, said: “I always said his decision to retire would be his alone, but now that decision has been taken, I feel a sense of sadness. We have lived through some unforgettable times together, some good, some bad, achieving results that will be hard to equal.”Team chief Jean Todt said: “Michael has been the author of an unique chapter in Formula One and for Ferrari in particular. It has yet to reach its conclusion and what he has achieved extends over and above results obtained.”

Even yesterday, however, when Schumacher was supposed to retire in glory, his victory was tainted by controversy. On Saturday, title rival Alonso was demoted to tenth place on the grid from his fifth place qualifying position after allegedly blocking Schumacher’s team-mate, Felipe Massa, on a quick lap, raising allegations that darker forces were in operation to ensure Schumacher’s eighth title.

The incident led to a very vocal outburst by Renault team boss Flavio Briatore, who compared Formula One to Italian football’s match-fixing scandal and said that the outcome of the championship had been decided “around a table“.

Briatore’s comments on Italian television followed Renault’s world champion Fernando Alonso declaring that Formula One was “no longer a sport”. Alonso’s race effort was thwarted by a blown engine 10 laps from the end.

“What happened isn’t the problem,” said Briatore. “It is what happened before the race which is strange. This is a world championship which has already been decided at the table.

“We have understood how things go . . . it has all been decided . . . they have decided to give the world championship to Schumacher and that is what will be,” he said on Italy’s RAI television. “Compared to what is happening in Formula One, ‘calciopoli’ just makes me smile,” added Briatore, referring to the football scandal which resulted in leading club Juventus, owned like Ferrari by the Fiat group, being demoted to the second division.