Weber: Williams favours Monty over Ralf

Speaking in an interview with German newspaper Sport Bild, Weber stated his belief that team boss Frank Williams favours the Colombian to the deficit of team-mate Schumacher.

"Ralf has a driver beside him who was hailed as a hero and a future world champion after just three races by their common boss," he said. "I don't think that's right and it's not ideal for Ralf. Williams are now protecting only Montoya and that's not okay."

Weber added that he believes Ralf to be Williams' best driver. "If the car is right, the driver most likely to challenge Michael is Ralf, not Montoya," he said. "Our goal is quite clear and that is for Ralf to become world champion for BMW-Williams before his contract expires in 2004."

Also in the interview, the manager expressed his belief that Michael Schumacher should extend his contract with Ferrari after its expiry at the end of the 2004 season. "At the moment there is more in favour of it than against it. His best years are probably ahead of him. He likes what he's doing. For me it's difficult to imagine that he will quit in two years."