egress

We are approaching the end of an era. The Schumacher era in Formula 1 racing. Last night I watched the F1 race at Monza, Italy which took place this past weekend.

Some memorable moments, and now a historic race since it is Michael Schumacher's last F1 race at Monza with Ferrari. For those of you who didn't catch it, Schumacher took the win, Alonso blew his engine, and now Schuey is only 2 points behind Alonso for the driver's championship with 3 races to go.

And after the race, Schuey announced his retirement after this season. He almost got teary in the interview room afterward. You could definitely see the tension between team director Jean Todt and Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo after he took the checkered flag, Jean Todt wanted nothing to do with Luca. Seems like Todt wanted Schuey to stay on, but upper management in Ferrari wants him out. Looks like Ferrari is going to sign on Kimi Raikkonen to team with Massa next year. Kimi, who races for McLaren Mercedes until the end of this season, finished 2nd in the race and during the celebratory anthems Schuey had some private words with him on the podium ... I wonder what he said. "Good luck filling my shoes", "Watch out for Jean Todt's bear-hugs", or "Be ready to lose some weight, this red outfit makes you look 20 pounds heavier".

For me though, the greatest part of the race was watching 22-yr old Robert Kubica for BMW hold off Felipe Massa and manage to take 3rd place, making it onto the F1 podium for the first time in only his 3rd F1 race. The BMW cars were very fast on the straights but slower in the corners than the Ferraris, and Kubica held his own against much more experienced drivers.

Schumacher has 90 career wins in F1 racing, and holds nearly all the records in the sport. Most wins, most podium finishes, etc. He is generally recognized as the greatest race car driver in the modern era. But he has also been involved in a number of racing controversies, especially in the 2006 season that has caused other drivers like Alonso to call him the "most unsporting driver" ever. But I think I'm going to miss watching him, before, during and after the race. Even after so many race wins, he still looks genuinely thrilled every time he wins. In contrast, his replacement Kimi has the personality of a wood cabinet. I've never seen a more downbeat guy in the post-race interview room. But maybe that's because he's always coming in 2nd or 3rd to Schumacher and Alonso -- maybe next year he'll actually crack a smile when he finishes first.

http://www.speedtv.com/articles/auto/formulaone/32453/