Todt: F2002 'ultimate machine' in Spain

Todt conceded that the Barcelona race, where Michael Schumacher's fastest lap was almost 1.4secs quicker than the nearest opposition, was a walkover.

"Everything came together to make us extremely competitive," he said. "In one grand prix out of 17 it was the ultimate machine. We've already had four [races] in which things have gone relatively well, but there are still another 12 to go and we will judge it at the end of the season. It's a bit early to say now."

The Frenchman rejected the suggestion that Schumacher's success was all the more remarkable because it was achieved in the T-car.

"The T-car, what is the T-car? What does it mean? It's just that you have to give a name to the car, but it's exactly the same as the others. It ran in the morning. There's no magic to this, just hard work," he said.

"It's true that it was a relatively easy race where the combination of car, engine, tyres and driver worked in the right direction and were basically unbeatable."