Brawn Doubtful for Italian Grand Prix

Ferrari technical director Ross Brawn is in danger of being sidelined for what the Formula One World Champions hope will be a triumphant Italian Grand Prix homecoming this weekend.

A team spokesman said the Briton was recovering from a slipped disc and hoped he would be well enough to return to work before Sunday's race. Brazilian Rubens Barrichello told a news conference that Brawn, a key man in formulating Ferrari's pit wall strategy during races, had been suffering from back pains for some time.

"I guess there's a lot of work and there came a time when Ross couldn't move any more. It was last week when he felt it was really painful," the driver said. "He's feeling a lot better now and we hope that he's going to be here for the weekend sometime."

Barrichello said Luca Baldisseri would be taking over Brawn's role in his absence and another engineer would run World Champion Michael Schumacher's car.

Ferrari have won 12 of the 14 races so far this season, with Schumacher triumphant a record 10 times. The German took his fifth world title in France in July and Monza is the final European race of the year.