‘If the cars are slower, the drivers are safer’


Opinion is certainly divided on the V8s...

Ralf Schumacher has backed the FIA over F1`s controversial new V8 engine formula for 2006. The German driver, who broke his back in an horror Indianapolis shunt in 2004, told reporters at the Valencia test last week that less horse power has made the sport safer.

“The FIA has made some bad decisions,” Toyota`s 30-year-racer old said, “but on the safety side we have seen some good ones. If the cars are slower, the drivers are safer.”

The end of the V10 era, however, and the loss of around 200 horsepower and three seconds per lap, has not been universally popular up and down the grid. But Schumacher thinks Formula One could have sped out of control if engines had kept evolving.

“Each year we were moving closer and closer to the limits, and beyond,” he said. “Without the V8s, I am sure we would have surpassed 1000 horse power this year.”

But some observers wonder just how much of an impact on safety a three second per lap deficit can have when speeds are still 300 kph-plus.

Ralf explained: “If you crash and the shock is 3 or 4-g lower, that is a big difference, for sure.”

Schumacher also dismissed the argument that a slower F1 is therefore less spectacular for its fans. “I don`t think they will notice a difference,” the German insisted. “If you are talking a second or two, you don`t really see that with the naked eye.”

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