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Montezemolo says he has "no good news" on Schumacher

Former Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo said on Thursday that he has "no good news" about Michael Schumacher's condition. Speaking to journalists on stage in Milan at the Quattroruote Day, where he was awarded the Premio Gianni Mazzocchi in memory of the newspaper's founder, di Montezemolo was asked about the seven-time world champion. And more than two years on from the skiing accident that left Schumacher with serious head injuries, di Montezemolo suggested there had been no positive developments. "I have unfortunately not good news," di Montezemolo said on stage. "Michael was a great driver, and we experienced a long time together in both our personal and professional lives. But life is really strange. "He was the most successful driver of Ferrari and in his career he had only one accident, in 1999. But unfortunately a fall in a ski accident has had serious consequences." The Schumacher family has kept details of the German's conditions a closely guarded secret, although has made it clear that he faces a long recovery. Earlier on this year, Schumacher's manager Sabine Kehm slammed as 'irresponsible' a report that he was able to walk again. "Such speculation is irresponsible, because given the seriousness of his injuries, his privacy is very important for Michael," she said. "Unfortunately they also give false hopes to many involved people." This article by Jonathan Noble originally appeared on Motorsport.com, the world's leader in auto racing news, photos and video. Image Credit: AFP via Getty Images Celebrities Motorsports Ferrari F1 michael schumacher luca di montezemolo

Ferrari planning special Schumacher tribute to mark injured racer's 45th birthday

Michael Schumacher may have completed his Formula One career with Mercedes-Benz, but the German racer will forever be associated with the Scuderia Ferrari, where he spent the better part of a decade winning just about everything. And as the seven-time World Champion continues to fight for his life following a skiing accident, the Tifosi are in the midst of organizing to pay tribute to one of their greatest heroes as his 45th birthday approaches.
According to the Scuderia's Facebook page, it's calling on Scuderia Ferrari Clubs from across Europe to show up at the Grenoble Hospital where Schumacher is being treated for a "silent and respectful" event to honor the injured champion, whose birthday is tomorrow. There's also a tribute being run on the Scuderia's website passing along the team's thoughts as Schumacher tries to recover from his injury.
The latest reports on Schumacher indicate that his condition continues to be stable, but he remains in a medically induced coma. News of the circumstances surrounding his ski mishap continue to trickle out, with the latest report from The Mirror heartbreakingly suggesting that Schumacher was actually attempting to help a friend's daughter who had fallen herself when he had his own tumble.

2015 Japanese Grand Prix is a little Mercedes, a lot of zen

Just one week on from the issues in Singapore Mercedes-AMG Petronas appeared to have solved its clamp problems and everything else. Daniil Kvyat at Infiniti Red Bull Racing took the two Free Practice scalps on Friday, but when it came time for qualifying the front of the grid looked really familiar: Mercedes' Nico Rosberg took his second pole position of the season, Lewis Hamilton next to him in second. Kvyat had a hand in that, too, the Russian getting into a big accident in Q3 when he put two wheels on the grass heading into the hairpin and veered into the tire wall so hard that he flipped. That ended qualifying before a number of drivers had a chance to improve their times, Hamilton among them. That's how Valtteri Bottas got in third for Willliams ahead of Sebastian Vettel fourth for Ferrari. Felipe Massa had the second Williams in fifth, ahead of Kimi Raikkonen in the second Ferrari. Daniel Ricciardo lined up sixth for Infiniti Red Bull Racing, a team we're going to have to enjoy watching for the rest of the season since it might not exist come 2016. Romain Grosjean gave Lotus some good news by getting into eighth, the team so strapped for cash that it couldn't get into its hospitality area, so it held press conferences outside and ate at Bernie Ecclestone's Paddock Club. Sergio Perez took ninth for Sahara Force India, and Kvyat slotted into tenth after not setting a time. The Russsian's race would begin from the pit lane once his mechanics rebuilt his car. It wouldn't be a Formula One start lately without someone at the front having clutch problems. This time it was pole man Rosberg, whose power unit got too hot and put him a few horsepower down on Hamilton through Turns 1 and 2. That's half of how Hamilton took the lead from the lights going out, and the Brit kept it throughout the race. Rosberg, however, said his race was lost when Hamilton pushed him wide through Turn 2, a move Hamilton defended. Rosberg finished almost 19 seconds behind his teammate, a gap that probably isn't fully explained by that opening incident. Hamilton's race was so uneventful that we almost never saw him on camera – that is, we saw him so much less than we usually see him when he's out in front and unpressured that Nikki Lauda said he'd ask Ecclestone why the cameras avoided him. The conspiracy theory holds that FOM was punishing Mercedes for not supplying Red Bull with engines next year.