Game set and match Schumi

Michael Schumacher: "One of the best ever"

By BBC motor racing correspondent Jonathan Legard

Wimbledon has another seven days to find a champion, but with seven races remaining in the Formula One season, it's almost game, set and match to Michael Schumacher.

"I am too realistic to think about the championship," he said after winning his sixth race of the season.

"Until it's mathematically impossible for me to lose I will keep fighting, but this is a comfortable lead."

Comfortable? It is the biggest and best seat in the house.

After shifting the monkey off his back by winning the title last season, he could claim to be making a monkey out of McLaren - if they weren't doing such a good job themselves.

Ralf: Poor pit-stop

For the fourth race this year, one of Ron Dennis's cars stalled on the grid.

In the words of Williams's technical director, Patrick Head, "That's extraordinary."

It's also wrecked their season. Dennis defiantly declared afterwards that there was a long way to go.

"We are not giving up," he said. "The championships are not over and we will immediately start to focus on our home Grand Prix at Silverstone."

You wouldn't expect anything less from McLaren.

They will recall, like Schumacher, how the Ferrari was punted off at the first corner at two race weekends in succession last season, and allowed Mika Hakkinen to close in and pass in the title race.

From experience they know that by the law of averages, Ferrari's record of reliability has to take a hit some time.

Then again, this is the same team which won all but one of the sixteen races in 1988.

McLaren know they could be clutching at straws in the face of such an awesome performer.

He is the best at the moment, one of the best of all time and he deserves to have this record.

  Alain Prost

The cruel twist for David Coulthard is that his only mistake of the season - speeding in the pit lane - has all but cost him his championship chance when he's been in the best form of his life.

Twelve months ago he approached Silverstone on the back of a storming charge to victory in the French Grand Prix which cut Michael Schumacher's lead from 22 to 12 points.

This time he's homeward bound, trying hard not to be daunted by Schumacher's towering 31 point advantage.

That's at least three race wins.

And at the rate Schumacher's currently amassing points, Coulthard won't get a look in.

Ferrari and their champion driver are more than capable of maintaining this winning streak all the way to Hungary, taking in Silverstone and Hockenheim en route.

After all, he reeled off six straight wins between Italy last September and Malaysia in March.

He's one short of Alain Prost's record of grand prix wins. He's three short of his own and Nigel Mansell's record of nine wins in a season - and there are still seven more races to come.

Gremlins

Fangio's record of five world titles is surefire target. The only serious challenge facing him is Ayrton Senna's remarkable haul of 65 pole positions.

Even so, there will be those who will claim he was lucky on Sunday.

He managed to overcome a clutch problem at the start, whereas Mika Hakkinen succumbed to the gremlins yet again.

Williams fumbled Ralf Schumacher's first pit-stop and conceded crucial ground. Their other car, driven by Juan Pablo Montoya, also broke down when running strongly in second place.

And of course, Coulthard was caught speeding in the pit-lane.

But it is no mere coincidence that Schumacher won at Magny-Cours or the Nurburgring or Monaco, or that he leads the championship so overwhelmingly.

Alain Prost put it perfectly. "You cannot win more than 50 races if you're not good. He is the best at the moment, one of the best of all time and he deserves to have this record."

It takes one to know one.