More work to do for Ferrari

Ferrari and Michael Schumacher's victory at Imola on Sunday was the first in a long time but the team is still not quite happy with its performance. Schumacher believes the win was just a taste of things to come for the scarlet squad but acknowledges that there's still a lot of work in front of Ferrari.

Race winner Michael Schumacher celebrates with Felipe Massa.

Photo by xpb.cc.

"It is a fact that he have made up a lot of ground but it is also true that we are not where we would like to be, even if this victory is a taster," said the German. "We still have much work to do; the whole team agrees on this. (Sunday's) win is only the beginning."

Schumacher has been the subject of a lot of speculation recently, in regard to his future, but he keeps focused on the job. "Side issues do not help; we have to continue working as hard as we have been," he commented. "This is the only thing that has helped us to get better and reach our goals.

"It is incredible to see how the team manages to go on improving. Days like yesterday are especially important as they boost our motivation. This is good for our dream team, one that knows how to fight!"

Ferrari will test at Paul Ricard and Fiorano this week with both Schumacher and teammate Felipe Massa at work. Massa had a calm and confident drive at Imola to come home fourth, which equalled his best result of his F1 career so far. However, he was a little disappointed not to score his maiden podium.

"I might have made it to the podium, but I lost some time behind an Aguri at just the critical time, which meant I was just unable to keep ahead of Montoya," said the Brazilian. "On the second stint, I had some graining after the first couple of laps out of the pits."

"It lasted about five or six laps when it was really difficult to keep up a good pace. But then the tyres cleaned up and we were back on a goodish pace. So, after three unlucky races, I am happy with fourth and to see our team take its first win of the season."

Massa, who reaches the age of 25 today, April 25th, is confident that Ferrari is not far off the pace of its rivals. "I reckon that Sunday's race shows we don't need much to be exactly the same level in terms of performance as the others," he said.

"We have to think carefully about how we tackle the next race, but I think we are definitely at the right level to fight with the other top guys at every race now. On Sunday night, I said that naturally, it would have been nicer to finish on the podium, as fourth is still the best I have done in my F1 career so far, with two other finishes in this position. But now, I think I can look to do better in the coming races."