Another Schumacher champion?

For many, the name Schumacher is synonymous with winning Formula One championships but in this case it's Ralf rather than Michael that is being heralded as the next title winner. Willi Weber, who manages both the Schumacher brothers, is convinced Ralf will take the championship as Williams has showed it can challenge Ferrari.

"Ralf will be the next world champion," said Weber, according to Gazetta dello Sport. "The BMW WilliamsF1 Team has made a major step this year." He believes Ralf will take more than one title: "One thing's for certain," he added, "when Ralf has won two or three championships with the BMW Williams F1 Team, and I'm convinced that he will do so, he will have the chance of choosing the team he will be racing for in the future."

Ralf was in the running for this year's title until a crash in testing forced him to miss the Italian Grand Prix and his hopes were lost. Williams did show it's strength in 2003, leading the constructors' championship from Ferrari at one point and Juan Pablo Montoya also in the running for the drivers' title until the penultimate race at Indianapolis.

Ralf has yet to confirm his contract with Williams but his current agreement runs until the end of next year. "The contract might have been signed in Japan, but Frank Williams was ill and didn't traveled to Suzuka," said Weber. "But there is no need to hurry as the contract runs until the end of the 2004 season."

Schumacher Junior is already sure that Williams can put a stop to Ferrari's string of title wins: "It is said that a team can only beat Ferrari if the team is on the same level at the end of the season before," Ralf commented recently. "I claim that we are already better than Ferrari. A good omen for 2004."

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