Merc chief hails ‘thrilling battle’

Dieter Zetsche, the chairman of Daimler, reckons Michael Schumacher’s battle with Lewis Hamilton at Monza was “pure racing”…

Dieter Zetsche, the chairman of Daimler, reckons Michael Schumacher’s battle with Lewis Hamilton at Monza was “pure racing.”

Schumacher has dominated headlines this past week as F1 personalities and fans alike took sides in the debate over whether his driving was fair or not.

But while most at the McLaren camp reckon the German pushed the boundaries, those in the Mercedes camp were very happy with what they saw.

“Michael did a great job with a car that is still not yet quite at the same level as our best competitors,” Autosport quotes Zetsche as having said.

“It was a thrilling battle over twenty laps; it was pure racing. I was so excited that I almost wanted to climb inside the TV! It was absolutely of the highest class.

“And if Nico (Rosberg) hadn’t been crashed out by another car on lap one, we could even have seen two drivers in that position. It was a great race.”