Schumacher surprised by his speed

Retired world champion Michael Schumacher said he was surprised by his speed after again setting the pace in his second day of testing with Ferrari in Spain yesterday. The 38-year-old German made clear however that there was no chance of him returning...

Retired world champion Michael Schumacher said he was surprised by his speed after again setting the pace in his second day of testing with Ferrari in Spain yesterday.

The 38-year-old German made clear however that there was no chance of him returning to F1 as a racer after walking away in 2006.

The seven times world champion recognised that he had experienced some apprehension at returning to the racetrack, saying he had felt "like I did when I was 18".

"Obviously, being out for so long raised some question marks for me," Schumacher told reporters at Bar-celona's Circuit de Catalunya after lapping faster than the other 20 drivers present.

"It took me a bit of time, maybe two laps, and then I was back into the groove. And I have to say I surprised myself that I was so quick."

Schumacher clocked an unofficial best time of one minute 21.486 seconds, with McLaren's Spanish test driver Pedro de la Rosa second quickest in 1:21.857.

The Ferrari champion had also been quickest on Tuesday, when he returned to the F1 cockpit for his first serious session since the Brazilian Grand Prix of October 2006.

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