The Rogue Spring

I was busy watching the Qualfiying session of the recent Hungarian Grand Prix and suddenly I see Felipe Massa slamming into the wall. It didn't look serious to me until I saw the slow motion replays that showed a spring from Barrichello's car slamming into Massa's helmet. And the noise of the engine after that? Scary! The way he drove straight into the wall was plain terrible. When the stretchers and helicopter came, I knew the race was over before it even started for him. I continued to watch the replays recounting how much worse it could have been if those safety measures weren't in existence. Inspite of attempts to make the sport safe, Massa was badly injured. The news that came the next few days was quite disturbing, especially when they speculated that his career might be in jeopardy.

One week into the accident, 'The Rogue Spring' that started it all, springs in a huge surprise! Michael Schumacher replacing Massa! I couldn't believe my eyes, my ears, nothing.. Never did I dream of Schumi coming back after a freak incident like this. The most unpredictable thing just happened and I was confused whether to be delighted or depressed. While on one hand it meant Schumi would be back on the track (something that people would kill to watch after he retired), on the other hand it meant that Massa was still not in a position to race.



And at the same time, news of BMW's exit also started flying around. Over the last 2-3 years so much has changed in F1 that it gets a little difficult to accept more change. Things are just happening lighting fast. Massa injured, Schumi in, BMW going out, all within a week. What more are we expecting? Schumi winning in Valencia? Woo. That would be a treat to watch, won't it? Though I would call it a miracle if it happens. Surely even for a legendary racer it will be tough to come back so suddenly, especially after just recovering from a biking accident. Though it's true he's been hanging around the team all the time, the race track is something else. It's mad, and aggressive and real and merciless...

Yet, nobody is expecting Schumacher to pull of miracle come backs. Everybody just wants to watch him race, watch him doing his thing. At a time when F1's future is in doubt, he came in like a 11th Hour Samaritan. The viewership was steadily decreasing after Schumacher left. I myself missed almost 2 entire seasons though the problem was with the cable operator and nothing to do with my declining interest in Formula One. Yet I did notice a certain fall in general interest around me. And now, Schumi's comeback has been pretty well publicised. Most of the world that watches News on a daily basis would have known that he's racing again, even if it is only a few races. What more does F1 need now? They might as well win back most of the viewers and the coming European Grand Prix might end up getting maximum viewership.

Here I am eagerly waiting for the next race, not to expect Schumi perform miracles, but just to see him race again. It's all one would ask for as of now. The rest would be history...