Schumacher “really sad” at cancelling comeback

Michael Schumacher has spoken in Geneva about his disappointment at having to cancel his much-anticipated Formula One comeback.

He had wanted to help his former Ferrari team by replacing injured driver Felipe Massa but was unable to do so because of lingering pain from a motorcycle crash six months ago.

“It’s a really sad moment,” Schumacher said. “Probably one of the toughest that I’ve faced in my career, although I’m retired for the moment. I felt alive again and now I had to cancel all this.”

The 40-year-old German, who retired at the end of the 2006 season after a 15-year career in which he won 91 races in 250 starts, said any talk of later returning to F1 was speculation.

“From a purely medical point of view, there are no reasons why that couldn’t be the case. But it’s certainly not a topic that I’m considering right now,” he said.

The seven-time world champion, visibly subdued sitting between his doctor Johannes Peil and manager Willi Weber, said the euphoria surrounding his possible return was “extreme, and so of course the disappointment is extreme, too”.

The decision for Schumacher to pull out came after he tested an old Ferrari at the Mugello circuit in Italy last week. Ferrari will now promote test driver Luca Badoer, who Schumacher said was well-prepared to replace Massa.

Schumacher has lived for years in Switzerland – like the majority of Formula One drivers. His home at Gland in canton Vaud has a villa with access to Lake Geneva, stables, a helicopter landing pad and a cinema.

swissinfo.ch and agencies