Ralf made up future F1 claims

The German, who has just announced that he is switching to the DTM, repeatedly told the media at the end of last year that he was adamant he would stay in F1.

But despite testing for Force India at the end of the season, Schumacher never had any options to race - and has revealed that he made up the claims about his future.

Speaking to this week's Autosport about his claims, Schumacher said: "I did make those comments, but the situation never changed for me.

"I just said that (I would remain in F1) because there were a lot of people talking, and the situation was difficult at Toyota, so I just wanted to finish the season in peace."

Schumacher said that he never set his sights on racing for Force India this year, claiming his test with them at Jerez was just a favour to team owner Vijay Mallya.

"I did test over the winter, but that was just something for a friend. I did not really look at it as an option for this year. It may be the case that they can do something good over the next few years, but it was not something I considered."