Brawn returns to paddock, praising Schu 'quality'
May 23 (GMM) Ross Brawn should be firing on all cylinders as he returns to the pitwall in Monaco this weekend.
Mercedes' team principal sat out the recent Spanish Grand Prix due to illness, but a scarcity of extra information triggered speculation.
One rumour was that he is seriously ill, whilst another was that his absence may in fact be due to his German employer's high-stakes spat with Bernie Ecclestone.
The latter theory gained traction since Barcelona, with acting team boss Nick Fry taking a much higher than usual profile, including naming Paul di Resta as a possible 2013 successor for Michael Schumacher.
Explaining his absence, Brawn told Bild newspaper: "On the Tuesday before Barcelona I felt unwell so I went to the doctor and then stayed a night in hospital for some tests.
"When I got home, I decided on the advice of doctors to give myself a weekend off, to be sure that I am fit for Monaco," the Briton said.
Partly because of Brawn's deputy Fry's recent comments, and also due to his paltry points tally and his crash with Bruno Senna, rumours about Schumacher's future have intensified since Spain.
"A lot has been said and written," acknowledged Brawn, "but we should not forget that we - the team - have let him down in three of the fives races, not delivering the job we should have.
"We must do better," Brawn, who worked closely with Schumacher during the seven time world champion's ultra successful Ferrari era, added.
"We saw Michael's real quality again in the first race, so it's for that reason that I believe we will see him on the podium this year."
As for a possible contract extension for the 43-year-old, Brawn insisted: "When the time comes, we will sit down together and talk about the future.
"I'm sure it will become clear very quickly in what direction we will go."
Be part of Motorsport community
Join the conversationShare Or Save This Story
Jules Bianchi's father speaks of family's continued hopes
Sauber under no illusions about constructors' position
Pirelli chief calls for radical F1 overhaul
How Senna’s early Pacific GP exit raised his Benetton suspicions
Schumacher F1 watch collection could top $4 million in auction
The contrasting fortunes of F1's big-name moves to Ferrari
Sainz will have to "survive with what we have" in China F1 sprint
2024 F1 Chinese GP sprint qualifying results: Lando Norris takes pole
What's been going wrong for Leclerc in F1's tiny margins qualifying game
Why Herbert prefers a car he had to wrestle above his F1 winners
Oliveira reckons MotoGP “looks too easy” on TV now
Ocon wants set-up changes after China F1 sprint as "performance left on the side"
Honda MotoGP boss "confused" by "good improvements" not working
The short-term pain that hides a very real Williams improvement
How a Shanghai to Sheffield journey paved the way for China’s F1 hero
Why F1 2026 worst-case fears could be key to new rules success
How the F1 driver market situation sits for each team with 2025 openings
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
Top Comments