Toyota: No Special Treatment for Ralf

Ralf Schumacher will get no special treatment from Toyota when he joins the Formula One team next season, technical director Mike Gascoyne said on Friday.

"I run the team at the circuit and in any team...I've never had a number one driver or a number two driver," he told a news conference at the British Grand Prix.

"Despite many claims to the contrary, both drivers have always received exactly the same equipment and that will continue to be the case in Toyota," added the Briton. "We only have two drivers out there and we need the best from them at all times.

"So no matter who the second driver is, there will not be a number one or a number two. They will be treated exactly the same."

Ralf's older brother Michael, Ferrari's record-breaking six times World Champion, has had a team built around him and Gascoyne was asked for a reassurance that Toyota would not follow that model.

Although so-called 'team orders' are banned by Formula One's governing body and Ferrari insist their drivers can fight on equal terms, Schumacher is the clear number one with Brazilian Rubens Barrichello cast in a supporting role.

Three-Year Deal

The German has won nine of 10 races so far this year.

Germany-based Toyota announced on Wednesday that Ralf, winner of six Grands Prix, was joining them from Williams on a three-year deal. The 29-year-old German is recovering from a fractured spine suffered during last month's US Grand Prix and is expected to be sidelined until September.

Brazilian Cristiano da Matta and France's Olivier Panis are the 2004 line-up and either could stay on.

"No decision has been made on the second driver," said Gascoyne. "We are obviously considering a whole range of options and I don't think that we will make any decision until the end of the year."

Several top drivers, such as Britain's David Coulthard and Canadian Jacques Villeneuve, are looking for drives for next season while Jaguar's Australian Mark Webber - top of Williams' list - has also been mentioned.

Britain's Autosport magazine reported this week that Toyota, seen as future champions with one of the biggest budgets in the sport, had made an increased offer for Webber's services.