Schumacher ready for fresh challenge

The first race of the 2005 season is already only a couple of months away and Michael Schumacher is ready to take on the fresh challenge. For every driver the ambition is to win the world championship, and with seven titles under his belt one might think that Schumacher has little left to achieve. But the Ferrari star is always looking towards the next race.

Michael Schumacher.

Photo by Dave Dyer.

"I'm starting off the new season just like all the others before: with a hunger, fully motivated and looking forward to the fights that lay ahead," he told his website. "Like I said, I have fun, I love my sport and I love being challenged."

"The things I've achieved so far have nothing to do with it. That doesn't count in sports anyway. In sports, you can't rest on your past victories; you have to take on the challenge again and again. It's always all about the next race."

For 2005 there are new regulations to contend with as well as the on-track competition. Engines will have to last for two races and there are new aerodynamic and tyre rules. For Schumacher, this just makes life more interesting.

"That is what the Formula One is all about: nothing ever stands still, you have to keep on developing new things," he commented. "We'll all have to get used to the changes next year. I already got a little taste of it when I drove the last test at Jerez with the configurations for 2005 -- it all seemed extremely slow in the beginning."

"It will be a different Formula One, and everyone will have to adjust to it. Right now, I would say that the cars will be two, or more likely, three seconds slower per lap. So it will be different, but it will also be interesting."

Ferrari has yet to announce a launch date for its new car but Schumacher will again be partnered by Rubens Barrichello in 2005, with team test drivers Luca Badoer and Marc Gen?.