MOTOR SPORT/Formula One Championship/Belgian Grand Prix: Michael Schumacher won an unprecedented seventh world title by finishing second in yesterday's Belgian Grand Prix. That makes two more than Juan Manuel Fangio and is five of Ferrari's total of 14 drivers' championships, though it was hard luck on Kimi Raikkonen whose winning drive was completely overwhelmed by the German's success.
It is difficult to overstate the magnitude of Schumacher's achievement.
So far this season he has won 12 out of the 14 races, seldom looking remotely challenged by a succession of rivals, unable to match either his blinding speed and intuitive skill or the engineering excellence of the dominant Ferrari squad.
Raikkonen's race victory notwithstanding, the future prospects for Ferrari's rivals look bleak.
There is not yet evidence that any consistently credible opposition will emerge in the 2005 season and with Schumacher pledged to race through at least to the end of 2006 with Ferrari, it is entirely likely that an eighth and ninth title crown could await him before he finally opts to hang up his helmet.
Schumacher's five Ferrari titles speak for themselves as no other competitor with the Prancing Horse has managed to win more than two.
Alberto Ascari won back-to-back titles for them in 1952-53 and Niki Lauda took the 1975 and 1977 crowns, being thwarted in 1976 by James Hunt who beat him by a single point.
Fangio took one of his five championships at the wheel of a Ferrari in 1956, while Mike Hawthorn (1958), Phil Hill (1961), John Surtees (1964) and Jody Scheckter (1979) took one apiece, their relationships with the team made tense and often unmanageable by the autocratic ways of the company founder Enzo Ferrari who ruled his territory like a private fiefdom.
Yesterday's was an action-packed race from the start, but Schumacher, as usual, finished without a scratch on his Ferrari's red bodywork.
Having qualified second, Schumacher found himself eased back to fourth by the end of an opening lap which saw Rubens Barrichello's Ferrari collide with Mark Webber's Jaguar and Jenson Button's BAR hitting Felipe Massa's Sauber.
Button dropped to the back of the field after a pit stop for a replacement nose section and then climbed back strongly to take second by the time he made his next refuelling stop.
Webber was out on the second corner, along with Takuma Sato's BAR while Gianmaria Bruni's Minardi spun into Giorgio Pantano's Jordan, eliminating both and prompting the deployment of the safety car.
Schumacher seemed unworried about dropping back to fifth after the safety car was withdrawn at the end of lap four, content to preserve his tyres. As his rivals fell away Schumacher steadily edged forward through the field.
Jarno Trulli led from pole early on in his Renault, while his team-mate Fernando Alonso went ahead after the Italian's first pit stop only to spin off on oil leaking from his own engine and retire.
Schumacher finally moved into the lead on lap 16 when he made his first refuelling stop, but then dropped back to fourth.
By lap 21 he moved up to second behind Raikkonen after which he simply could not make any consistent inroads into Raikkonen's advantage and found himself in the rare position where he had to settle for second place.
For Raikkonen, this was his second career win for which he had to wait far too long after his maiden victory last year in Malaysia.
Button, David Coulthard's McLaren and Juan Pablo Montoya (Williams) all suffered spectacular blow outs. Button's came at 190mph going into Les Combes, and pitched him straight into Zsolt Baumgartner's Minardi. Thankfully both drivers emerged without harm.
"It is pretty scary when it suddenly goes but we were lucky we were nowhere near the barrier," said Button.
The Jordans of Nick Heidfeld and Giorgio Pantano both failed to finish.
Guardian Service
At Spa Francorchamps, Belgium, 44 laps
1 K Raikkonen (Fin) McLaren Mercedes 1hr 32mins 35.274secs
2 M Schumacher (Ger) Ferrari 01:32:38.406
3 R Barrichello (Bra) Ferrari 01:32:39.645
4 F Massa (Bra) Sauber Petronas 01:32:47.778
5 G Fisichella (Ita) Sauber Petronas 01:32:49.378
6 C Klien (Aut) Jaguar 01:32:49.888
7 D Coulthard (Br) McLaren Mercedes 01:32:53.244
8 O Panis (Fra) Toyota 01:32:53.967
9 J Trulli (Ita) Renault 01:32:57.389
DNF: 10 R Zonta (Bra) Toyota 41 laps; 11 N Heidfeld (Ger) Jordan Cosworth 40 laps; 12 J Montoya (Col) Williams BMW 37 laps; 13 A Pizzonia (Bra) Williams BMW 31 laps, 14 J Button (Br) BAR Honda 29 laps; 15 Z Baumgartner (Hun) Minardi Cosworth 28 laps; 16 F Alonso (Spa) Renault 11 laps, 17 G Pantano (Ita) Jordan Cosworth 1 lap; 18 G Bruni (Ita) Minardi Cosworth 1 lap; 19 M Webber (Aus) Jaguar 1 lap; 20 T Sato (Jpn) BAR Honda 1 lap.
Fastest Lap: Raikkonen 1 minute 45.108 seconds on lap 42.
WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS
Drivers 1. M Schumacher (Germany) Ferrari 128 points; 2. Barrichello (Brazil) Ferrari 88; 3. Button (Britain) BAR 65; 4. Trulli (Italy) Renault 46; 5. Alonso (Spain) Renault 45; 6. Montoya (Colombia) Williams 38; 7. Raikkonen (Finland) McLaren 28; 8. Coulthard (Britain) McLaren 21; 9= Sato (Japan) BAR 18; 9= Fisichella (Italy) Sauber 18.
CONSTRUCTORS: 1. Ferrari 216 points 2. Renault 91 3. BAR 83 4. Williams 54 5. McLaren 49 6. Sauber 28 7. Jaguar 10 8. Toyota 9 9. Jordan 5 10. Minardi 1.
