Nov.24 (GMM) In the face of ever-mounting speculation, Ross Brawn has once again moved to play down suggestions that Michael Schumacher is set to return to F1 next year with Mercedes GP.
Fellow team chiefs Norbert Haug and Nick Fry added fuel to the fire on Monday by declining to echo Brawn's earlier rejection of the 40-year-old German's reported link to the Brackley squad."I spoke with Michael about his plans over a beer in Abu Dhabi," Briton Brawn, 55, told Germany's Auto Motor und Sport."He told me he would have only made a temporary comeback with Ferrari. We are looking for a long-term condition. So I don't think we are going to be together," he added.Nevertheless, other figures are not reinforcing Brawn's attempts to quieten the rumours. Schumacher's manager Willi Weber, for instance, is quoted by rtl.de as playing down the former seven time world champion's neck injury."I recently spoke with (Schumacher's doctor) Dr Peil. He said Michael is making good progress with his recovery. He is very content," Weber added.The Spanish newspaper El Pais referred this week to Schumacher's media "omnipresence" since his retirement in 2006, and Mercedes' Norbert Haug did not disagree that the latest rumours make for good PR."If you can have good stories every week it is good," the German admitted, after new world champion Jenson Button defected to McLaren.
