Michael Schumacher has called off his highly anticipated return to Formula One.He has not recovered from a neck injury he sustained in a motorcycling accident earlier this year.The seven times world champion had been due to replace Ferrari's Felipe Massa at the European Grand Prix in Valencia on August 23.He announced on his personal Web site that these plans have now been scrapped.
Since confirming he was to make an F1 return, Schumacher has been pushing himself hard to get back to race fitness. The consequences of the injuries caused in February, fractures in the area of head and neck, unfortunately have turned out to be still too severe to pave way for his F1 comeback in his favourite car Ferrari.The German driver said the decision had been an extremely difficult one to make and he apologised to everyone at Ferrari and to fans of the sport.
Ferrari test driver Luca Badoer will now replace Massa in Valencia.Massa is recovering in Brazil from the serious injuries he received in a freak crash in qualifying for the Hungarian Grand Prix and is set to miss at least four races.
Schumacher has worked as a special adviser to Ferrari since his retirement from Formula One in 2005, after winning five championships during his time with the team.The German, who won 91 grands prix from 250 races, is the most successful driver to take part in the sport.
