Schumacher Looks to Montreal for Ferrari's 150th

Michael Schumacher, the most successful driver in Canadian Grand Prix history, is ready to mark another milestone in Montreal this weekend.

After finishing second in Monaco to McLaren's David Coulthard, Ferrari's four times World Champion is favourite to chalk up the historic 150th win of his team's evocative Formula One history.

The German has always felt at home in Canada and has won a record four times in Montreal - three in the last five years - as well as taking three second places since 1992. In the last eight Grands Prix in Canada, Schumacher has started six on pole position.

He arrives in Quebec with five victories from seven races, a 33-point advantage in the Championship and a car that is the class of the field.

The storm sparked by Ferrari's ordering teammate Rubens Barrichello to let him win in Austria has receded and Schumacher will be relaxed and refreshed after a week's vacation in North America.

"I like the circuit a lot, even if it is not one of my outright favourites," he said. "For whatever reason, I have always gone well in Montreal, even if the circuit does not particularly suit my driving style. I tend to prefer fast corners and there are none of these, so I can't really explain it.

"Monaco went well for us and the most important thing was that we increased our advantage in the Championship," he added. "But nothing is certain. There are too many factors involved and tyres are obviously enormously important on a track like Montreal, which is not a true permanent race track. We saw in Monaco that tyres can be the decisive factor."

Optimistic

"On the other hand, we also did well in Imola, a circuit which did not suit us last year. Therefore I think we can be reasonably optimistic for Montreal," said Schumacher, whose brother Ralf won for Williams last year.

"Last year, we did not go so well in Canada, but hopefully things will be different this time around."

Coulthard's Monaco win ended a run of seven races dominated by the Schumacher siblings, on a circuit where qualifying is paramount and overtaking near impossible. The McLaren was by no means the fastest car on the track but Coulthard did everything right and kept Schumacher's F2002 behind him from start to finish.

The Scot cannot realistically hope for a rerun in Canada, where McLaren last won with Mika Hakkinen in 1999.

"Canada is going to be painful," cautioned team boss Ron Dennis as he celebrated the Monaco win. "Canada is going to be extremely tough for us for a variety of reasons."

Ferrari's main rivals will be Williams, with Ralf and Colombian Juan Pablo Montoya capable of winning at a circuit that should suit their BMW-powered car and Michelin tyres.

"We should look good for this year's race thanks to the BMW engine, which will be able to give its best on the Gilles Villeneuve circuit," said Montoya, who failed to finish in the 2001 Grand Prix.

Local attention will be on Jacques Villeneuve, the 1997 World Champion and son of the late Gilles, who has yet to score a point this season for British American Racing (BAR).

Although Villeneuve came second in Montreal with Williams in 1996, he has finished no higher than 10th there since then and has had a few brushes with the notorious wall before the final corner.

The wall, welcoming the world to Quebec, has been moved back a metre this year but drivers will still be wary.

"I've hit it enough times anyway so I'll stay far away from that one," said Villeneuve.