Ferrari's Crown is Slipping, Says Ralf

Ferrari's domination of Formula One could soon be a thing of the past, Toyota's Ralf Schumacher said on Friday.

Renault and McLaren have both impressed in testing and Schumacher told Reuters that Ferrari will be pushed to the limit in the 2005 season, which begins in Melbourne on March 6.

"By the look of it in the testing season, you would say that Ferrari are not the benchmark any more," said Schumacher, younger brother of Ferrari's seven-times World Champion Michael.

"It could all turn around but for the moment the benchmark seems to be Renault or McLaren. I think it's going to be a tough season for Ferrari. I doubt they are going to win 15 of 18."

Ferrari won 15 races in an all-conquering 2004 season to bring the Italian manufacturer a sixth successive constructors' championship.

Toyota's goals for the new season are less ambitious but drivers Schumacher and Jarno Trulli will be under pressure to produce the team's first podium finish.

"To get on the podium could be a realistic goal for us," said the German, who joined the big-budget Japanese team after winning six races in six years at BMW-powered Williams.

"We have to wait and see how the season develops. In previous years we had only Ferrari up there and the rest pretty weak and inconsistent."

"This year... Renault, McLaren and Ferrari are pretty strong, so it's going to be a real tough season for us," he added.

"I hope from mid-season we can score one or two podium finishes and if we achieve that, it has been a great season."

Race Winners

Trulli, who has joined from Renault, is also a race winner but Toyota have seen little return on their investment after three years in Formula One.

Japan's largest carmaker watched domestic rivals Honda achieve success as engine partners to BAR, who finished second overall in the championship on a smaller budget in 2004.

Toyota finished 10th in their debut year in 2002 and were eighth in 2003 and 2004. From 51 races they have taken just 27 points.

Reliability will be even more of a factor in 2005 with engines now having to last for two races instead of just one but Schumacher still expects Toyota's new TF105 to be competitive.

"I will be listening to my engine because I hope that's going to stay alive for two races," said the 29-year-old.

"For me, it is to just finish the first two races and I'm sure if we achieve that, we're going to score some good points."

However, with an annual budget estimated at $400 million, Toyota's team boss Tsutomu Tomita has been ordered to deliver a podium finish by management bigwigs in Tokyo.

"We have a real chance to improve performance," Tomita told Reuters. "In this F1 racing world, it's very difficult, but we accept that or we wouldn't be in Formula One."