Wrong tyre choice for Schumacher

Michael Schumacher is not overly worried about his fourth place finish in the Australian Grand Prix and thinks the wrong tyre choice was made for the start of the race. Originally Ferrari had thought it was too wet for dry tyres but the changeable weather conditions made for a difficult choice. Along with unexpected safety car intervals and Schumacher himself even making a mistake or two, it was an eventful start to the season.

"In hindsight, you can tell we made the wrong choice, but at the start it looked too wet to us to start on dry tires. We couldn't come in for a change right at the start because it was still raining on some sectors of the circuit," Schumacher explained.

"Considering all that, I can be really happy with the fourth place. Of course it's not the result that we wanted, but even so it wasn't all bad. It was clear that it couldn't last for ever," he continued, of Ferrari's dominance. "But the season is long and the fight doesn't consist of one race. It's still early for me to assess how strong the other teams are after this race. We'll have to wait until Malaysia."

Meanwhile, the German's manager, Willi Weber, has reportedly received an offer from Ferrari for the services of Schumacher beyond 2004, when his current contract expires. Weber told the German press that an offer had been made but Schumacher is not yet ready to discuss it.

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