> Schumacher admits motivation dropped

Michael Schumacher has gone into detail for the first time about the reasons why he decided to retire from Formula 1 – admitting that he felt he no longer had the supreme motivation needed to continue in the sport.

The 37-year-old called time on his record-breaking 16 year career following the Brazilian Grand Prix last month, after initially announcing the momentous decision after winning the Italian Grand Prix in September.

Speaking for the first time at length since quitting the sport, in an interview with German newspaper Suddeutsche Zeitung’s magazine, the seven-time-world champion revealed the process behind his decision to retire.

“I wanted to stop, because driving just for driving's sake is not for me,” he said in the interview which coincides with the launch of his updated official biography.

“I talked to Corinna [Schumacher’s wife] and later with Willi Weber, my manager, and with Jean Todt.

“Jean said: ‘Michael just stay calm for now. It would be wrong to make a decision in a rush.’

“He tried to delay my decision, he probably hoped secretly that he could change my mind.

“But round after round (on the track) I said good-bye to my life as a race driver.

“This was the first time in my career that I asked myself: Why am I doing this to myself? Why am I investing so much time into work if I’d rather be at home with my family?”

After clinching his first world title for Ferrari in 2000 – his third overall – the German famously announced that from then on he was simply driving for fun.

But some six years and four further world titles later, Schumacher admits that while the enjoyment from racing was still intact in his 2006 championship challenging campaign, the grind of testing in particular began to take its toll.

“But especially during testing I got more and more aware that I am actually counting the hours to the end of my career,” he said.

“The races as such were still fun but I had to force myself to do the concentrated work on the test tracks.

“I didn’t have this absolute mental power anymore that used to drive me to top performances.

“The effort you have to make to be at the top is enormous.

“It requires total motivation without doubt.”