I’m going to go out on a limb here and say that the Michael Schumacher comeback is officially starting to show signs of life.
It would be easy to say, yes that’s well and good since he inherited the lead of the Japanese Grand Prix and finished sixth, but that’s only one race, but the fact is that Schumacher has been making genuine inroads.
His gradual resurgence can be traced to Canada, where he diced with the big boys, in his element – in the wet, narrowly missing a return to the podium.
Although this didn’t usher in Michael Schumacher-Ferrari mark II, there’s no denying that his form has improved somewhat in following races.
Almost as though competing for a meaningful outcome for the first time has re-ignited the flame inside Schumacher.
Many people dismissed his drive at the British GP, unluckily slugged a stop-go penalty for locking up and nudging Kamui Kobayashi, the German carved his way back through the field to finish ninth, backing this up with seventh place at the Nurburgring.
Hungary needs no explanation, but the four races since the summer break are telling.
At Spa, a weekend where the stars were supposed to align for his twentieth anniversary race, a tyre which wanted to be somewhere else threw all plans out the window.
He finished fifth, passing no less than nineteen cars.
The next race, Italy, Schumacher made a banzai start amidst the first-corner chaos, climbing to as high as third, before enjoying an entertaining scrap which lasted nearly half the race with Lewis Hamilton – pulling off some of the moves we haven’t seen since even pre-2000, eventually coming home a still credible fifth, again.
There’s every chance that at Singapore, Schumacher could have made it three fifth placings in succession, if only he didn’t trip over Sergio Perez, who was only in Schumacher’s path as a result of an extremely tardy previous lap from his team-mate Nico Rosberg.
Finally, at last weekend’s Japanese Grand Prix, Schumi stayed clear of the dicing big boys, employed a clever strategy, and surprised everybody, even if it was always temporary, by leading the race for five laps.
That notion is almost as significant in itself as the sixth place Schumacher eventually settled for. Slowly but surely, the German experiences the kicks which are needed to remind him of what can be achieved.
There’s a very good chance that Schumacher will displace Rosberg for seventh place in the drivers’ standings where he is just three points behind. If he does so – poof! – there will go the critics’ long-held argument that if he can’t beat his team-mate, he shouldn’t be in Formula One.
This will only further underline Schumacher’s vindication in returning, for the first step to success always lies within, and he will takes loads of confidence from outscoring his countryman.
2012 is unlikely to usher victories, and podiums may even still be a tough ask, but there is now no doubt that Schumacher can call his comeback worthwhile, and there’s every reason for the German to stick around for a few years yet.
With a strong technical team taking shape, following the recruitment of Geoff Willis and ex-Ferrari man, Aldo Costa, Schumacher can look towards 2013 with bona fide optimism.
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