450SEL6.9

Schumacher should have won the WDC without his driving, tactical errors. Here's a rundown on his list in '06:

Australian GP - Crash, was in 4th place.
Result - 5 lost points.

Monaco GP - Blocking the track sent to back of grid, finishes 5th
Result - Perhaps 6 lost pt., he had race winning pace, gets 4 pts.

Hungarian GP - Alonso out, Schu crashes and gets 8th courtesy of a Williams car DQ
Result - 4 lost pts, could settled for 4th

Turkish GP - Qualifying error, queue in pitlane, Ferrari doesn't do swith-a-roo
Result - 4 lost pts, should have won the race, Ferrari really let the ball slip here

Japanese GP - Again out-qualified, forces Massa to lose out to Alonso during 1st pitstop
Result - Not his fault, but 10 goes up in smoke!

I reckon he's lost 19 pts. He should be +9 and Alonso would be the one needing a win and Schu to have a DNF. Schu blew it this year with his gaggle of errors.

RikfromBelgium

I can only agree with Hungary, the other things can't really be blamed on schumacher.

450SEL6.9

Why only Hungary? Australia was a blatant driver error. I believe he made that decision in Monaco and he was sloppy in Turkey and Japan not to win pole and compromise himself.

I think Schu is a great driver and it really hurt to see him blow up in Japan, but he still should have had this year's WDC bagged away.

bum-man

Amazing the luck Renault has had these past two seasons.

RikfromBelgium

I'm sorry? Not to win Pole in Japan? He may not have had pole, but he drove nr1 all the time. I don't think you can blame engine faillure on him, especially since it seems to be a structural mistake with wrong components. It's not like he didn't give it his all. And sometimes not having pole is because he was heaving a different strategy, more heavy and longer runs, something that has brought Ferrari MANY victories. I repeat, he should have played safe at hungary, but that's it

450SEL6.9

Rik, I'm not blaming him for Japan. Massa and the engine let him down. In the first post, I said that the Japan result was not his fault. Having said that, I think everyone will agree that the wrong Ferrari was on pole. He had the pace to win pole, but he didn't do it.

I also don't put as much blame on him for Hungary, but he did lose points. He drove aggressively and that's what makes him 7-times (not 8-times) WDC. The rest of the races were his errors. He wasn't bothered in Australia and just flung the car off the road, inexplicably. The Monaco stunt cost him. Turkey should have been a win.

I don't agree with what Ferrari did in Turkey. The banana man, Ross Brawn, didn't do his job. Massa should have been ordered to slow down during the last few laps and obstruct Alonso at a tight section of the track to give Schu a run. If Alonso got by Massa, he would let Schu by as well.

C.Charles

Thats racing...

450SEL6.9

But a driver of his calibre and salary should have avoided those mistakes. It's racing, but Schu's shown himself capable of going an entire year without making a mistake that costs him. He's cost himself 19 pts. this year.

In the process, I think he's set Alonso up to break most of his records! If Alonso did not win this year, I think he'd only win 2 WDC for his entire career. Since he will win this year, I think he'll take out Senna's three, Prost's four, Fangio's five and, possibly, surpass Schu. Do I sense a poll coming?

Alonso is my pick to win WDC next year. Mclaren could spring a huge surprise and until Kimi proves me otherwise, I attribute some of his bad luck and car unreliability to him.