Schumacher confident on reliability

A taciturn Schumacher, who leads Mclaren's David Coulthard by 12 points, said: "We have worked out what happened and we have solved the problem."

The engine failure cost Schumacher an almost guaranteed six points for second place in France.

The double world champion has also denied Coulthard's claims that McLaren-Mercedes will have a performance advantage on the high downforce A1-Ring after the Scot's battling victory over the German in Magny-Cours.

Coulthard received a further boost when he and test driver Olivier Panis outperformed Schumacher at testing in Ferrari's own backyard at their Mugello test track last week. But Schumacher still believes the scrap for supremacy between the rival teams is too close to call.

"I think things will be completely equal between us and McLaren," he said, "because the A1-Ring is a track that suits both teams. It will be down to what happens on the day and I am confident. I have a good team and a good car."

The A1-Ring is one of only two tracks on the current calendar, excluding newcomer Indianapolis, that Schumacher has failed to win on. He believes, however, that he can add it to his trophy shelf on Sunday.

"I have never managed to win in Austria," he said, "and now would be a good time to change that. After what happened in the French Grand Prix, we have to try once again to increase our lead. We have to concentrate hard on the job at hand."