Mosley: Schumacher Nearly Lost 'Fair' Title

FIA president Max Mosley says it would have been an "unfair result" had World Champion Michael Schumacher lost the World Championship last year, at the final round in Suzuka, Japan.

Schumacher went into the Japanese Grand Prix with nine points lead in the World Championship, ahead of McLaren's Kimi Raikkonen. Following a change in the points system in 2003, the German - who won six races of 16 rounds, compared to Raikkonen's one win that year - needed to finish at least eighth while Raikkonen needed to win. The race ended with Schumacher in eighth and his teammate Rubens Barrichello in first, securing the Ferrari driver's record sixth title.

"If there had been a rain shower at Suzuka [during the race], and everybody thought there was going to be one, that would have changed the Championship," Mosley told Press Association. "The way the tyres were, I think it is very doubtful Barrichello could have held onto first place if it had rained and very doubtful that Michael could have held onto eighth.

"I think we would have seen a different World Champion. I don't think it would have been a fair result."

The new points system, which awards points to the first eight finishers with only two points gap between the first and second place, has played well into Raikkonen's hands, with the Finn consistently finishing on the podium on nine of the 16 races. But Mosley belives the contributing factor to the close Championship finish was primarily the tyre war between Japanese suppliers Bridgestone and French Michelin.

"Once or twice last year it looked as though Ferrari had had it, particularly towards the latter part of the season," Mosley stated. "This year it looks as though it is going to be very competitive but nobody can tell because if Bridgestone come out with a magic tyre, which can happen, then it changes everything again.

"That's the problem with tyres, they are the biggest single factor."