Schumacher satisfied but cautious ahead of Melbourne

With the new Mercedes looking quick and dependable during its 4,250 kilometres of winter testing, fans are hopeful 2012 might see the team finally take on the frontrunners. But while driver Michael Schumacher is satisfied with how their pre-season preparations have progressed, he’s playing down the speculation before the season is fully underway.

“The car is dependable which is already good,” he told his official website. “The first impressions have been already quite positive. We were drove out of the box and everything went well, so there is potential. We are heading into the season much better equipped than in the past two years, and we can fully deliberate onto the development of our car.

“The speed is promising. I hope we can show that in Melbourne. We were able to drive a lot during the tests and therefore learnt a lot too, and we surely have made a step forward. I would just want to wait until after the first races to judge how big this step is and how much it is worth compared to our competitors.”

Last year, Mercedes finished testing on a high, confident of achieving much at the first race. But, in reality, the MGP W02 failed to match their prospect and the team struggled for much of 2011 to compete with their front-running rivals, Red Bull, McLaren and Ferrari. A wary Schumacher is worried they could fall into a similar trap this year, despite his belief the field as a whole will be much closer.

“We experienced last year that you can be very wrong relying on the data coming out of the winter tests,” the seven-time world champion explained. “And because we can see that the field will be very narrow this year. I do not have a clear picture yet. What we can say though is that the gap connecting the several teams will not be as big as it has been last year.

“Victory to me is not likely, I see Red Bull in front. Behind them it will be tight, and you can be either hero or zero very quickly. It will come down a lot to the skill of how well you set up your car to the respective track.”

Schumacher will take a trip to Melbourne next week for the Australian season opener which will take place in Albert Park from March 16-18.

Smoke to swap rides with F1's Hamilton

Two-time NASCAR Sprint Cup champion Tony Stewart and 2008 Formula 1 champ Lewis Hamilton are exchange race cars at Watkins Glen International.

The Mobil 1 Car Swap will take place June 14 at the well-known road course in the Finger Lakes region of upstate New York. Hamilton will take laps in Stewart's No. 14 Chevrolet and Stewart will climb into the cockpit of team Vodafone's McLaren Mercedes MP4-23.

"Tony and I will have some fun with the swap and make sure we put on a good show," Hamilton said of what will be his first foray in a stock car. "It's a racer's circuit and will give us both the chance to appreciate the differences between the two styles of racing at this legendary track."

Each will drive the long course at The Glen, which is 3.4 miles through 11 turns. NASCAR uses the 2.4-mile short course, which doesn't comprise the famed Boot section, but Stewart, who has a record five Cup victories at Watkins Glen, has determined it in a Grand-Am Rolex Sports Car Series race.

"When you've been around spirited racing for as long as I have, you really look forward to new experiences, and this car swap with Lewis is absolutely one of those opportunities," said Stewart, who also won an IndyCar Series title. "I already have quite a bit of respect for what Lewis and the F1 drivers and teams do, so to experience laps in the cockpit of an F1 car and see what Lewis can do in the Cup car is amazing I am really excited about."

The Glen became world-renowned by hosting the United States Grand Prix from 1961-1980 and has been home to NASCAR Sprint Cup races since 1986. This season marks the 50th anniversary of The Glen's opening F1 race.

Details of how many laps Stewart and Hamilton will make are still being worked out. They'll follow the lead of Jeff Gordon and Juan Pablo Montoya, who swapped rides at Indianapolis in 2003 when Montoya was heavy in F1. 

Whitmarsh: Lewis will remain at McLaren

With McLaren stressed at the start of this year's Championship, rumours emerged claiming that Hamilton is allowing for looking elsewhere for a race-seat.

The 26-year-old didn't help the rumours with his contradictory statements.

While in one breath he affirmed that "loyalty has its limits" in the next he insisted that he is "committed to them. I want to try and help them as well as becoming one of the most winning drivers myself."

Whitmarsh, though, believes it's only a matter of time before Hamilton commits his long-term prospect to the Woking team.

But, having said that, he's in no rush to start contract talks.

"Lewis has a long career ahead of him and I think he's intelligent sufficient to realise that the environment he has here is good for him and plays to his strengths," said the McLaren team boss told the Daily Mail.