He goes incommunicado once he’s in the car on the grid and you can’t do that when rain clouds are coming over.”He’s got to be right in there and switched on. I don’t blame him for our mistakes last season, but he played a part in those mistakes by not being part of the decision-making process Unlike Schumacher In fact, Schumacher makes most of the decisions at Ferrari. Jacques needs to beat Schumacher in a wet race to prove how good he is.”Ron Dennis, having hauled McLaren out of their recent trough, is conscious, too, that Schumacher’s powers of improvisation are unrivalled in modern racing. He’s big on psychology.”He is also big on wet tracks as he demonstrated at Monaco and Spa last year to embarrass Villeneuve and Williams.Head said: “Jacques knows this season the step he’s got to take is being able to drive in all conditions and have an input before and during the race. He is not simply quick, but able to generate competitive speed at any circuit instantly.

His strategy and his ability to change strategy according to race circumstances or track conditions place him apart from the rest.Patrick Head, Williams’ technical director, says: “Schumacher has this habit of going very fast on his first run in practice so that his name goes to the top of the time sheets and everyone gasps It’s all part of his psychology. He will probably be facing hostilities on at least two fronts this time.The challenge just might inspire him to greater heights. If either, or both, Williams and McLaren weaken their prospects of the individual title by persisting with a policy of running joint No 1 drivers, then Schumacher, supported by Eddie Irvine, is best equipped to capitalise.No driver is as complete as Schumacher. Some reports from Italy indicated dissatisfaction with the car’s performance.Equally disconcerting for Schumacher has been the form of the new McLaren- Mercedes. My concern is how our Goodyear tyres will compare with the Bridgestones of McLaren and Benetton.”He is of course, a master of pre-race psychology, shifting the burden of expectation on to others. He states the championship is not his duty, merely his goal.”Of course the expectation in our team and in Italy is high, and that puts a lot of responsibility on my shoulders, but that just makes me more motivated.”Since Williams are unlikely to become a second-rate team overnight, Schumacher could have an even more intense fight on his hands than last year. He will have anticipated an increasing threat after the team’s advance last season, but their times in pre-season testing surpassed most expectations.Schumacher said: ” McLaren will be the biggest danger to us It is clear they are going to be very strong this year.

Schumacher said: “I am sure all of this will be forgotten after a few races and there are other talking points for everyone. The best way I can stop the talk is by winning races.”Precisely so, and this is the season long scheduled to herald Ferrari’s return to the pinnacle of Formula One. Alas for Schumacher, and his team, their forward planning has been blurred by developments in the winter.Ferrari have concentrated their test work away from tracks used by their opponents, leaving the outside world to guess at their potential. He is the imperfect genius of the day.Senna, too, would resort to desperate tactics to protect his status. He speared Alain Prost off the track in 1990 in an assault far more violent and dangerous than Schumacher’s. Twelve months earlier Prost had, at a safer juncture, taken out Senna.Like Senna, a compulsion has carried Schumacher to the top and, like Senna, his ruthlessness is a great strength but also a destructive weakness.Senna is, above all, remembered for his brilliance and Schumacher will be if, as he promises, he does not repeat his indiscretion.

He is not as emotional as the Brazilian but is driven by the same commitment and has achieved a similar standard in Formula One. He didn’t realise it would cause such strong feelings against him. I think he and Ferrari misread that whole situation.”If they had been more open and honest from the start and Michael had apologised and accepted the responsibility in Jerez it would not have been so bad. But he and the Ferrari people spent a lot of time deciding what they would say and in the end they made it worse.”In his self-consciousness, and so many other ways, Schumacher is very much like the late Ayrton Senna.

“They don’t wish to talk about my wins or any other achievements before the incident at Jerez,” he says. “That is the disappointing part for me.”That seems also to contradict his insistence he is indifferent to public opinion. The fact is that he is more sensitive than he wishes to admit. He keeps tabs on his press, television and radio coverage around the world. He has potential interviewers screened and exploits his media platform whenever he needs to.A confidant said: “Michael has been genuinely shocked by all the negative publicity he has had.