What’s in store for Schumi?

Although Formula One has been galvanised by Michael Schumacher’s return,the 41-year-old driver’s comeback could turn out to be far trickier than imagined as he faces one of the most competitive fields in the sport’s history.

Schumacher returns to the grid after three years on the sidelines with a new-found hunger pushing his bid for an eighth world title. Although testing has put his Mercedes GP team in contention alongside favorites Ferrari,McLaren and Red Bull,Schumacher only emerged with confidence right at the close of the pre-season. He previously said the German car could not win this weekend’s season-opener in Bahrain. “I see it as a three-year program,” Schumacher said. “Secondly,it is important what happens at the end of the season and not the beginning of the season. If we are not in a position to win the first two races I wouldn’t be worried at all. If we are two seconds off the pace,then I may start to worry.”

Former champions Fernando Alonso,Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button,as well as promising drivers Sebastian Vettel and team mate Nico Rosberg,are all primed to race against Schumacher. Only Alonso and Button faced the German while he was at Ferrari. “He’s not 22 any more. It’s totally obvious that he’s maybe not like he was,age-wise. That might be something that we might find out if it works against him,” Red Bull driver Mark Webber said. “But you can never underestimate him,we know that. He’s a very determined guy and I take my hat off to him.”

“It’s clear that Michael has had two careers now. He’s had the first career,which is what he had and was pretty special,a lot of championships and he achieved a lot of things,” Webber said. “And now there is the second career and we’ll see how it goes.”