Analysis: Seven Up for Unstoppable Schumacher

Germany's Ralf Schumacher said it all before he was disqualified from Sunday's Canadian Grand Prix.

"We are not as consistent so far as the Ferraris, obviously," said Michael's younger brother, who lost second place after his Williams failed a post-race inspection.

"We have seen that. That's the reason they have won the Championship, or are on the way to winning the Championship, and we are not."

In fact, Schumacher and Ferrari still have a way to go before they can claim more Formula One crowns but Sunday's race rammed home once again that the game is over. It is just a matter of when rather than if.

The red cars are not only more reliable, they are also in a class of their own when it comes to race pace. The headlines will tell that Schumacher is in seventh heaven, going seven up in Montreal as his rivals watched the Red Baron produce another commanding performance.

If he were a slot machine player, all the sevens would have rung up in a row - a record seventh win in Canada, seventh win in eight races this season, 77th victory of his career. A seventh Championship is inevitable.

"This was an amazing race," said Ferrari boss Jean Todt. "For the team it was a battle from the first to the last lap. There is still a long way to go given that only after Indianapolis will we have passed the mid-point of the season and that we are up against strong and well-organised opponents."

The comments, in the light of Williams and Toyota's subsequent disqualification, were charitable. BAR suffered another exploding engine and McLaren were once again uncompetitive.

Richards Realistic

Sunday's race showed that last month's Monaco race, won by Renault's Jarno Trulli, was a blip. Next weekend's US Grand Prix should also favour Ferrari.

"We've got a good car in general for all the circuits. We don't have anything to hide," said Schumacher.

The team, with Ross Brawn ever the strategy mastermind, can win even when most of Schumacher's competitors are ahead of him on the grid. On Sunday he started sixth, his lowest position of the season.

"I think we've all still got a lot of work to do," said BAR boss David Richards.

"The realistic situation for this year is that nobody is going to close the performance gap but that doesn't mean there won't be opportunities to beat Ferrari."

"They lost Monaco under very strange circumstances, so you have to consider that was not a normal situation and there will be other situations that are not normal during the course of the year, I'm sure of that," said Richards.

"We just have to wait and make sure that when it happens, we are in a position to take advantage of it. That's the key."

Ralf's disqualification, apart from handing Ferrari their fifth one-two in eight races, also lifted BAR's Jenson Button to third place - his sixth podium from the last seven starts. The Briton is third in the Championship, now 26 points behind Schumacher.

Toyota also had both their cars excluded for similar problems with the brake ducts giving some of the sport's struggling teams a welcome windfall. Once mighty McLaren, with just five points before Sunday's race, doubled their tally at a stroke.

Jordan, limping along at the back, were suddenly handed three more precious points with Germany's Timo Glock - a stand in for Italian Giorgio Pantano - scoring on a race debut he had not expected to make.