Grapevine: Prost Willing to Drive Schumacher's Ferrari

Alain Prost wants to try Michael Schumacher's Ferrari now that the German has beaten his Formula One record of 52 wins as well as equalling his four titles.

"A period in my career is tied to Maranello, I have so many beautiful memories, despite everything," the French team owner told Italy's Gazzetta dello Sport newspaper on Tuesday. "I would really like to try out a modern day Ferrari. As something personal and also to understand what has changed since my day."

The paper said Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo had offered some time ago to give Prost a test at Fiorano when Schumacher broke his record, and the 46-year-old Frenchman was waiting for the call. Prost won five races with the Italian team in 1990 when he finished runner-up in the Championship but he was sacked the following year after comparing that year's car to a truck.

The Frenchman had accepted some time ago that Schumacher would beat the record of 51 wins he set in his last season in 1993.

"Schumacher has overtaken me but what could I do about it," said Prost, who was far more preoccupied at Sunday's Belgian Grand Prix with the state of his crashed driver Luciano Burti. The Brazilian is still recovering in hospital.

"It is the age, one era succeeding another. For my part, I think it is right to pay tribute to my rival: Michael is the best there is today," said Prost. "I must admit I was more attached to the record victories than the four world titles," he said.

Schumacher could have broken the records some time ago but broke his leg in a crash at Silverstone in 1999, ending his title challenge that year. The German has also raced in seasons of 16 and 17 Grands Prix compared to the considerably shorter championships of the 1960s.

Prost has suggested before that the Ferrari driver could now go on to win as many as six titles and possibly 60 or 70 wins before he retires.

"One factor in his favour is that there are fewer really top teams, so he will probably hang on at Ferrari, and the cars as a whole are generally more reliable," he told the Guardian newspaper.

He recalled in the English paper how Jackie Stewart had once predicted Prost might even win 40 races and he had thought 'no way, I never can'.

"When I retired at the end of 1993, Ayrton Senna had 41 wins and, had he lived, I think he would have quite obviously beaten my record first. I was convinced at the time that it was Ayrton who would threaten my record rather than Michael but either way it doesn't really matter because it was going to be beaten by a top guy."