Analysis: Advantage Shifts to Ferrari

Michael Schumacher and Ferrari could reclaim the Formula One Championship lead at the very track where they triggered world wide outrage last year.

Austria, venue for a race which became instantly notorious last season when Ferrari issued team orders to ensure that Schumacher won, is next up after the five times champion's triumph in Spain on Sunday.

Such orders are now banned and Schumacher, mocked only a month ago as he reeled from his worst ever start to a season, will be ready to put the record straight in two weeks' time.

The German is on a roll and cashed in on Sunday as McLaren and Championship leader Kimi Raikkonen, who crashed out on the starting grid in Barcelona before teammate David Coulthard also retired, fell apart. Spain marked a key stage in the season.

Ferrari's new F2003-GA car won on its debut as Schumacher collected his second successive victory after failing to make the podium in the opening three rounds.

The champion, a winner 11 times last year, left Spain second overall and just four points behind Raikkonen as they head for Spielberg and what is expected to be Austria's last appearance on the calendar. Ferrari are now just three points adrift of McLaren in the Constructors' Championship.

"Today was the day," Schumacher said as he celebrated victory and contemplated McLaren's misfortune. "It's a perfect day in both directions, for the Championship and the new car. We can be very, very happy,"

Happy Todt

Ferrari sporting director Jean Todt was content and relieved that the new Ferrari had proved its reliability and closed the gap at the top.

"I was more nervous, of course, having a new car and not knowing exactly during the race the reliability potential," he said. "For the first race it was a great result; pole, first and second position with more fuel than our direct competitors behind so it shows the potential of the car."

Despite Renault's strong showing, with Spaniard Fernando Alonso splitting the Ferraris with a memorable second for his third podium of the year, Todt said McLaren remained the World Champions' major rivals.

"We will see McLaren with a new car and we know that McLaren is strong on all the circuits," he said. "If you see the start of the season, without having problems, Renault was not as consistent as McLaren was. But still they are in the game."

McLaren, winners of the first two races of the season with their old car still in service, will not want a repeat of what team boss Ron Dennis called a "catalogue of problems".

"This was not our weekend," said Mercedes motorsport boss Norbert Haug. "Our plan was to have a long first stint but the crashes prevented this. In two weeks it's the Austrian Grand Prix and we are looking forward to this."