Schumacher: It will be a very tight season

Michael, no winter testing this time for you. Are you missing F1 already a bit?

No, I am fully enjoying my life, being free from commitments and spending time with my family. Sure, I love F1, but it is a bit like with football – being active brings me much more than being passive. At the moment I am a free man.

So no withdrawal symptons?

No doubt driving a F1-car is extremely fun, but I am having this on a much lower basis at the moment, in Karting. But of course I am looking forward to the starting of the season, not only because I think it will be a very tight one.

What were you up to in the past months?

Well, first of all my life has been different only since january, as I was spot-on until christmas. For sure I can’t say it is boring; we have been travelling a lot and been very active sporting-wise as well. Then we are fine-tuning the strategies of the future cooperations with my partners, develop new ideas and define new projects. I am busy in a very positive way, I’d say.

Will you have a function at the Mercedes AMG Petronas F1-Team? How would that be?

Crossing fingers, yes. Of course I am still very close to the team, but not in a function and not on the race-tracks – more from out of the sofa. I hope we can take credit for the work of the past years. Already last year we have been in the picture at the beginning of the season but could not yet keep the potential up over the year. I hope with the improved structure with more engineers this will be possible in 2013.

How, according to you, will the season enfold, which driver and which team will be on top at the end?

Being a Mercedes-man, I am obviously interested in a good result for all the guys and the whole team. Being a friend of Sebastian and with regard to the continous performance also of the team I would probably think he has good stakes. But then, again, I think everything will be very tight, there are a lot of really good drivers out on the grid. At the moment it does not look like the overall picture will change dramatically. And from many years of experience I do know that you can only build a proper opinion after the first races.