Schumacher gets down to business

MUGELLO/HAMBURG - Michael Schumacher intends absolving his first practice laps in a Ferrari Friday since announcing his comeback as temporary replacement for the injured Felipe Massa.

As in-season testing is banned under new Formula One rules, the 40-year-old hopes get some practice hours in Ferrari’s 2007 car at the Italian marque’s Mugello circuit.

“Although I can’t drive this or last year’s car, I still want to drive as much as I can and this is a good option,” Schumacher said on his website www.Michael-Schumacher.de.

Schumacher announced Wednesday that he would return to Ferrari in the wake of Massa’s accident during qualifying for the Hungarian Grand Prix last weekend in Budapest which left the Brazilian hospitalised.

The seven-time world champion is now racing to get up to speed in time for the European Grand Prix in Valencia, August 23.

“He will try to drive as much as possible to familiarise himself again with the challenges of driving in a Formula One car,” said Schumacher’s spokeswoman Sabine Kehm.

Schumacher flew Thursday from his home in Switzerland to Ferrari headquarters in Maranello to check the steering of the 2009 Ferrari on a simulator as well as getting measured for a specially moulded seat in the F60.

“I obviously also used the time to get further advice from the engineers about how we should progress,” said Schumacher, whose last F1 race was the Brazilian GP Oct 22, 2006 in Sao Paulo.

Despite Schumacher’s long time out of F1, Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo told German television station ARD in an interview in Rome that he was sure the German would cope.

“When I called Schumacher into the office, I saw the fire in his eyes,” he said.