“Mercedes not out of the woods; Ferrari need patience, it took Michael Schumacher years…”
Ralf Schumacher insists that even his brother Michael Schumacher required time to turn Ferrari’s fortunes around.
The seven-time F1 champion spent three years at Ferrari before finally claiming his first title with the famous team, and beginning his iconic run of five championships in a row.
Today, Ferrari are still waiting to crown their first champion since Kimi Raikkonen in 2007.
“Mercedes' weakness was actually Ferrari's chance in the fight for second place in the constructors' championship,” Ralf Schumacher wrote for Sky.
“But Ferrari didn't have a good weekend either [at the F1 Sao Paulo Grand Prix].
“Ferrari has always been a bit of a problem child.
“Fred Vasseur can't turn the entire store inside out within six or seven months.
“This also took a few years for Michael, Ross Brawn and Jean Todt. At Ferrari you need patience.”
Charles Leclerc crashed out of the grand prix on the warm-up lap due to a technical issue, the latest in a series of mishaps for Ferrari over the past few years.
However, through Carlos Sainz, they remain the only team to have won a grand prix apart from Red Bull this year.
'This worries Toto Wolff...'
Schumacher said: “Mercedes were very weak [in Brazil] .
“Afterwards, Toto Wolff was almost shocked at the Sky microphone.
“The problems can be explained by not understanding the concept.
“There was greater hope in Brazil, but everyone involved was disappointed.
“Therefore, I fear that Mercedes is not out of the woods yet. This worries Toto Wolff.”
'Not a fan of comparing Verstappen to my brother'
"Max Verstappen races from victory to victory, continues to write history and simply doesn't make any mistakes in Brazil," Schumacher added.
"However, I'm not a fan of always drawing comparisons with my brother or Ayrton Senna. They were exceptional in their time. That’s Verstappen now too. It's incredible how he does it.
"If you compare his performance with his teammate Sergio Perez, there was once again a big difference in the race.
"Lando Norris has become the number one pursuer. But he still makes too many mistakes, especially in qualifying. Norris reminds me a bit of Charles Leclerc. However, Norris does a great job in the race. Norris' problem is that he wants too much in qualifying. Then he overshoots and makes too many mistakes.
"Aston Martin was very strong in Brazil, with both drivers. At the beginning of the season they tried a lot, but things went a bit in the wrong direction. We have now gotten the best out of all this data. I'm happy for Aston Martin. Of course there is still a way to go, but it was a good performance from Fernando Alonso and Lance Stroll."
