Schumacher gives Hakkinen cause for concern

He voiced his concerns after finishing third at the Monaco Grand Prix on Sunday, behind Schumacher and his Ferrari team mate Eddie Irvine.

The McLaren driver now lies 12 points behind Schumacher in the title race.

Asked if he was surprised that Ferrari has an advantage and if he is worried about it, Hakkinen said, 'No I'm not, and yes I am.

'The good thing is there is a long way to go. There are many races coming up on a lot of different types of track. I look at the future with optimism.'

The Monaco track flattered Ferrari, according to Irvine. That may not be the case at the forthcoming Spanish GP.
'I don't think we made a lot of progress for here,' said Irvine.

'It's a very specific circuit where [lack of] straight-line speed doesn't cost you so much.

'McLaren still has a huge straight-line advantage over us. Here we didn't pay the price. Barcelona is different. We have some things coming before then to make the car better.

'What you have seen here is that we have a really well-balanced car. We need to work a little more on the aerodynamics.'

McLaren boss Ron Dennis said, 'We're not going to go away from here too cheerful, but we'll go to Barcelona and try to turn the tables.'