Ralf must not rush his return

By Andrew Hooper
July 4 2004

   
Ralf must not rush his return
 
For WilliamsF1 Technical Director Sam Michael it is very important that team diver Ralf Schumacher does not rush his return to a Formula One car. Ralf suffered spinal injuries in a major accident in the running of the UNited States Grand Prix.

At the Magny-Cours circuit Michael said: "I spoke to Ralf on Wednesday and he's okay, in good spirits.

Michael"He realises how lucky he was and that he's got a road back to recovery that has to be monitored by his doctors and neurosurgeons as closely as possible. I think the most important thing that he realises is that he shouldn't get into the car too quickly...he'll be fine in the long run, as long as he recovers properly."

As for Ralf's views on his accident, in an interview for the German Bild newspaper Ralf recognised how close he had come to suffering a serious injury if not losing his life.

Ralf said: "I came very close to a great disaster. The doctors have told me again how lucky I was. If I had hit the wall sideways, I wouldn't be here any more."

As for Ralf's replacement WilliamsF1 test driver Marc Gene Michael added: "I would say he's done as expected, not worse and not better."

As for a decision regarding who would be driving at Silverstone Michael said: "We'll see how he gets on over this weekend and make a decision during next week for what happens at Silverstone. Everything at the moment will be on a race-by-race basis.

"The decision to make everything race by race came initially from our unknown assessment of Ralf...and Ralf's position is still a bit of an unknown at the moment in terms of how long he will be out for.

"We don't want to give away any of our flexibility in case Ralf is available to return."

 
 
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