Jean Todt has admitted that Ferrari needs its rivals’ help if championship leader Fernando Alonso is to be caught.
The red team’s French principal refers to the respective 17 and 21 point deficits to Renault in the drivers’ and constructors’ titles, which – under the current points scoring regime – will be near impossible to bridge if Alonso continues to race consistently.
Ferrari has already noted the importance of Schumacher teammate Felipe Massa’s role this year, with Todt now telling ‘Sunday Life’: ”It’s very crucial for us in the championship if we are ahead, that some cars are in between us and our rivals.”
Michael Schumacher, meanwhile, has protected Massa from criticism that he has not adequately filled the supporting role formerly performed by Rubens Barrichello and Eddie Irvine.
”You need to allow people time to learn,” the German told Italy’s La Gazzetta dello Sport.
Schumacher also dismissed Alonso’s recent observation that while Massa crops up at grands prix to help Schumacher, Renault teammate Giancarlo Fisichella rarely adopts a similar role.
Schumacher said of Alonso: ”He didn’t seem so isolated at the Spanish grand prix.
”So, in the end, the situation evens out.”
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