2006 Monte Carlo Grand Prix - Race 7/18

Schumacher pole triggers Monaco uproar

Ferrari's Michael Schumacher triggered uproar at the Monaco Grand Prix on Saturday by claiming pole after a driving incident that prompted allegations of unsporting behaviour and underhand tactics.

The seven times champion faced pointed questions about his sportsmanship after claiming his 67th career pole ahead of Renault's world champion Fernando Alonso.

The German ran wide and stopped on the exit to the penultimate corner in the closing seconds of the final session, with Alonso and others still to complete their final flying laps behind him.

Alonso said the yellow flags following the Schumacher incident forced him to slow, losing him at least three tenths of a second and possibly robbing him of pole.

"I have my opinion and I won't tell it here," said the 24-year-old Spaniard when asked by reporters whether he considered it a sporting incident.

The governing body could not confirm reports that Renault were protesting in an attempt to have Schumacher stripped of his fastest lap. Pole is particularly important on Monaco's street circuit.

Furious Renault team boss Flavio Briatore said it looked like Schumacher had acted deliberately to make sure others could not beat his time.

"He's just parking the car," Briatore told ITV television. "This is the way Ferrari manage."

Schumacher, looking puzzled in a news conference, denied anything underhand.

"I locked up and just ran out of road," said the 37-year-old, who can equal Brazilian Ayrton Senna's six Monaco wins this weekend. "I tried to get reverse but was hesitant to move and finally I stalled."

He suggested that any critics who doubted him should try to drive the car themselves through the tight and twisty streets.

"Whatever you do in certain moments, your enemies believe one thing and the people who support you believe another," he added. "Some people may not believe it, but unfortunately that's the world we live in.

"I don't care what other teams do. I know Flavio well enough," added Schumacher, who drove for the Italian when he was at Benetton.

Australian Mark Webber was third fastest for Williams with McLaren's Kimi Raikkonen, last year's winner, fourth.

Renault's Giancarlo Fisichella starts on the third row with McLaren's Colombian Juan Pablo Montoya, the 2003 winner.

Ferrari's Felipe Massa will start at the back of the grid after crashing in the first part of qualifying.

The Brazilian speared left into the tyre barrier on the blind crest of Casino Square, briefly stopping the session while the car was removed from the track.
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Symonds: Schumacher error suspicious

Renault's director of engineering Pat Symonds says Michael Schumacher's mistake during qualifying for the Monaco Grand Prix was "suspicious".

The German driver's pole position was put under investigation after he ran wide at the Rascasse corner during the final seconds of qualifying.

Schumacher's incident slowed down several drivers, including Fernando Alonso, who claimed he would have been on pole if not for the Ferrari driver.

Symonds joined the paddock uproar at Monaco, saying Schumacher's mistake was one of a rookie driver.

"We were very pleased with the performance of the cars throughout the session, but extremely surprised to see Michael make a suspicious mistake at the end of the super-pole that looked as if it had come from a novice driver - not a world champion," said Symonds.

"There is no doubt that this cost us pole position, and both our drivers had their fastest laps spoiled.

"Nevertheless, we have Fernando on the front row, and Giancarlo in fifth position. The car has been quick and easy to drive all weekend, and the Michelin tyres seem to be relishing the hot conditions. Everything looks extremely positive for tomorrow's race."
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Ferrari await stewards' decision

Ferrari are awaiting the outcome of a race stewards' meeting after Michael Schumacher's pole position was placed in doubt ahead of the Monaco Grand Prix.

The stewards decided to investigate the incident Schumacher was involved in during the dying seconds of the final qualifying session, after the Ferrari driver made a dubious error at the Rascasse corner.

The incident caused several drivers to slow down on their final flying laps, and Renault's Fernando Alonso claimed he would have grabbed pole position if not for the yellow flags.

Schumacher was at the stewards office following qualifying, and now the German will have to wait to know if he manages to keep his pole postilion.

"We are now waiting to hear the stewards' decision," a Ferrari spokesperson said.

Across the paddock, drivers and team bosses, as well as former F1 stars, were critical of Schumacher, and suggestions are now made that the German will be ousted from the head of the Grand Prix Drivers' Association.

Renault boss Flavio Briatore, who steered Schumacher to his first two titles at Benetton, was very critical of the German.

"I think he is taking everyone for a ride," he told reporters. "Someone who was seven times a world champion wants us to believe that he didn't do it on purpose, it's fairyland.

"And given that we are not Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, I think that what he did was unsporting and against everything...It's really astonishing what he did. Incredible."

A Renault spokesman said however the team had not made a formal protest because an investigation was already in process.
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DreederOcUK said:
I know it might at first seem quite a harsh view, but imo, they should penalize Shuey for the obvious tactic, by firstly disqualifying him from tomorrows race, and then my breaking both of his legs, making him unfit to race again, and finally cutting his bonce off....

As I said it could be a slightly harsh punishment, but no more then he deserves.... pretty much everyone was playing fair for the entire quali session, with so many oppertunites for drivers to block and slow other cars, but all but him put on a fantastic sportsmanship display, he goes and spoils it for Alonso and a few other drivers.... Shuey is a very clever chap, but should be beheaded.
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DreederOcUK for Sports Minister!!
 
Mikol said:
Should Schumacher lose his position, where would he be placed on the grid? Naturally, it only affected those just completing his lap, so would he be placed say, 6th? Or would they drop him to 10th or even last?
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If they take his time away - 10th...

If they punsih him further - the back of the grid/pitlane

Or further - back at the British GP

Or further - 2007

Simon/~Flibster
 
Stewards also summon Fisichella

Monaco Grand Prix stewards summoned Renault's Giancarlo Fisichella after reports that he blocked Red Bull's David Coulthard in qualifying.

"He (Coulthard) looked as if he should have been able to qualify in the top five or six," Red Bull team boss Christian Horner, whose driver also attended the hearing, told Reuters.

"Unfortunately he got blocked by Fisichella on his fast lap and that cost him a great deal of time."

Coulthard, a two times Monaco winner with McLaren, qualified ninth while Fisichella was fifth.

The Scot had ended the second knockout session, when cars are still running on low fuel, as the fourth fastest.

Ferrari's Michael Schumacher, who took pole position, was also summoned by stewards after he stalled on the penultimate corner in the dying seconds of the final qualifying. The obstruction prevented rivals from bettering his time.

The outcome of the stewards' hearings was expected some time after the GP2 support race that followed Formula One qualifying.
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Aaaaaahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha!!!! :D

So who's the blocking SOB now Fisi?
 
goreblast said:
Being a Ferrari nut I dont think Shuey did anything wrong. That being the case Alonso should be penalised his last lap. You cannot set your fastest lap on a lap with waved yellow flags!




....runs for cover....
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You can actually - all you need to do is prove that you eased off and didn't overtake anyone.

Simon/~Flibster
 
speeduk said:
He was loads up on the first and second sectors and ended up being slower after the last corner.
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Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! We have a winner!!!

*Sorry - very silly mood atm...*
 
Whitmarsh amazed at Schumacher incident

McLaren's F1 CEO Martin Whitmarsh said he hopes Michael Schumacher did not deliberately stop on track in the dying moments of qualifying for the Monaco Grand Prix, despite the incident appearing initially as "blatant poor sportsmanship."

Schumacher veered across on the exit to the penultimate corner while his main rival Fernando Alonso as well as others were on their final flying laps behind the German.

The incident caused immediate uproar across the paddock, and the race stewards have put Schumacher under investigation. Their decision is imminent.

But Whitmarsh said the incident raised questions over Schumacher's antics and hoped the Ferrari driver was able to provide a good explanation to the stewards.

"We don't have the data, so we don't know what happened, but it was an extraordinary incident," Whitmarsh told reporters at the Monaco paddock.

"Visually, it appears to be very unusual and strange. But maybe he has a good explanation, and he can convince the stewards otherwise...

"It would be very very sad to believe that this was a deliberate act, but I think plenty of people are looking at it, based upon only that information and none of the data... It looked very strange, it looked very extraordinary.

"I think the best comment I've heard on it since it happened was Kimi [Raikkonen]'s own view that in fact he should've taken one hand off the steering wheel, covered the camera with one hand, and done it with the other..."

Whitmarsh suggested, however, that should Schumacher be found to have acted deliberately, his punishment should be heavy and reflect the damage done to the sport's image.

"The stewards are investigating, and I hope they look at all the data and make a proper judgement as to what happened," the Briton said.

"If it is as cynical as I guess many people suspect, then it's a very, very sad day for Formula One, to see that level of blatant poor sportsmanship."
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Webber: only Schumacher knows

Mark Webber has said that Michael Schumacher is the only one who can know whether his incident at Rascasse in the dying moments of qualifying at Monaco was genuine or fake.

Webber, who was one of the drivers to lose a chance to improve his time because of the incident, held back from casting a damning judgement on Schumacher on Saturday afternoon. He had yet to watch a video replay.

"I understand the second sector was well down," said Webber. "You could say he was trying very, very hard in the last sector, but it looks like there's been two moves on the steering wheel from what I've heard.

"Obviously if it is intentional it is childish, isn't it? It looks a bit tricky to be honest."

Webber has made no secret of his admiration for Schumacher, although he admitted the seven-time champion had let him down before.

"Personally I was a bit disappointed in Michael last year at Indianapolis, which is why I haven't done much with the Grand Prix Drivers' Association since then," he said. "I still hold him in very high regard, but who knows what happened?

"I just feel you don't have to do this stuff. Why does it always have to happen? It's like Mike Tyson biting someone's ear off, isn't it?

"I crashed here at Rascasse in F3000 when I was on pole, but I was trying to improve.

"I'm a huge sports fan and we've seen that sometimes people do things that they shouldn't. Senna did some pretty wild things because he believed that was right. But will Michael sleep well tonight. Who knows?

"If it's deliberate it's absolutely rubbish. It's massively below the belt and if that's the case he should definitely lose all his qualifying."

Webber played down speculation that Schumacher will be asked to resign as president of the GPDA, saying it was too early to make such a judgement.
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Arc said:
The old Hakkinen "wave at the marshalls tactic" and keep it planted, very risky and very dangerous ;).
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Raikkonen has done the same in the past too - most famously in Germany when someone's engine expired and he just waved at the marshalls and went into the smoke which obscured the whole track at 200mph. :eek:

Some big huge brass ones in that car to do that tbh.

Simon/~Flibster
 
Fisichella punished for impeding Coulthard

Giancarlo Fisichella has been penalised by race stewards of the Monaco Grand Prix for blocking David Coulthard during qualifying on Saturday.

The Italian Renault driver will lose his three fastest laps from qualifying after stewards ruled Fisichella, who had qualified fifth, had impeded Red Bull driver Coulthard during one of his qualifying runs.

The stewards said Fisichella's actions may not have been deliberate, but penalised him nonetheless.

"He (Coulthard) looked as if he should have been able to qualify in the top five or six," Red Bull team boss Christian Horner told Reuters.

"Unfortunately he got blocked by Fisichella on his fast lap and that cost him a great deal of time."

Ferrari's Michael Schumacher, who took pole position, was also summoned by stewards after he stalled on the penultimate corner in the dying seconds of the final qualifying. The obstruction prevented rivals from bettering his time.
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Brawn retaliates at Schumacher critics

Ferrari technical director Ross Brawn has defended Michael Schumacher and retaliated to criticism across the paddock following the German's controversial incident in qualifying for the Monaco Grand Prix.

The Ferrari driver stopped on track in the dying moments of the session, ruining the efforts of his rivals who were challenging Schumacher's pole time.

But Brawn said the paddock reaction was ill-informed and emotional, the Briton rejecting claims that Schumacher acted deliberately.

"They should all cool down a bit and let the facts come out, then they can have an opinion," Brawn told British broadcaster ITV.

"There are a lot of emotions running round at the moment, but the stewards have to take an objective look at the facts and make a decision then."

Brawn further insisted that Schumacher made a mistake and not a calculated move.

"He lost control of the car," Brawn continued. "He locked the brakes and lost it in that corner. We've still got to talk to him and find out exactly what happened. There was a lot of cursing on the radio.

"We wouldn't do that sort of thing on purpose. Michael clearly had a very good lap, and he was on another lap with low fuel, so it was not a deliberate act... Not the Michael I know."
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Stewart: Schumacher incident avoidable

Former world champion Jackie Stewart believes Michael Schumacher could have avoided leaving his Ferrari in the middle of the Rascasse corner during qualifying for the Monaco Grand Prix.

"I have to say that I felt that it was an avoidable set of circumstances," Stewart said after qualifying.

"Having seen the slow motion of the car and its motion, as he was going in and at the middle and the end of Rascasse, I have to believe that he could have avoided leaving the car where it was."

Schumacher has been summoned by the race stewards after he stopped his car with just seconds of qualifying left.

The move, which Schumacher claimed was a genuine error, made the marshalls wave the yellow flags, costing several drivers valuable time on their final laps. World champion Fernando Alonso claimed Schumacher's incident cost him pole.

Stewart agreed with the Renault driver.

"I would be feeling very upset," Stewart said of Alonso. "I think it was a good lap, I think he would have been on pole position and I think one or two other people might have put in some fast laps as well.

"It's the first time I've actually seen something with that quality of mind management."
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Villeneuve blasts old rival Schumacher

Jacques Villeneuve has made a scathing attack on Michael Schumacher following the controversial end to qualifying at Monaco today.

The 1997 world champion, who survived an assault from Schumacher's Ferrari to win his title, says that if the incident that caused the session to finish under yellow flags was deliberate, the FIA should throw the book at the German.

"I hope it was deliberate, because if that was a mistake he should not even have a F1 superlicence," the Canadian said. "If you can make a mistake like that, you shouldn't drive a race car. There's no way you could make a mistake like that."

"It's the kind of thing I couldn't dream of doing myself. I don't know what goes through your mind when you decide to do that, when you know that the rest of the world can see. I don't understand it, it's stupid."

"It shows that you can only give the benefit of the doubt to someone so many times. Sometimes it makes you realise that every time it happens there is a reason behind it."

"He didn't need to do that, he's a seven times world champion, he was on pole position. Why do that? It's only going to make him look bad."

Schumacher and Ferrari are waiting for a verdict from the stewards who are considering whether to punish the seven-time champion who has denied the incident at Rascasse was intentional.

Villeneuve believes there is nothing stopping the stewards from finding him guilty.

"They were able to prove I blocked Fisichella at the Nurburgring, and I didn't," he said. "This is so obvious. When you do something on purpose like that it is very extreme. You should not be allowed to drive a race car when you do stuff like that."

When asked whether he thought the FIA would punish Schumacher, Villeneuve said: "Well, it's Ferrari, so..."

As for Schumacher's position as president of the Grand Prix Drivers' Association, Villeneuve said: "I'm sure we'll discuss it, but I don't know about that yet.

"This is embarrassing. Embarrassing for a world champion. It would even be embarrassing for [Yuji] Ide."
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Just checked my inbox for the Press releases for Qualifying...

I've got 12 of 13... *11 teams and the 2 tyre companies*

Guess whose release is missing?

Simon/~Flibster
 
Stellios said:
Oh for..... ;)

Somehow i thought id be a bit late, your too fast for news, how do you do it?

REPLAY OF THE FAULTproviding im nto too late already
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I have very nimble and talented fingers. *So the other half claims anyway.. ;)*

I think the video has been done already as well.. ;) That one wasn't me though.

Simon/~Flibster
 
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