Alonso slams 'unsporting' Schumacher
Fernando Alonso has opened a war of words with the German legend
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Tuesday, 12, Sep 2006 08:51
World champion Fernando Alonso has claimed that Michael Schumacher will slip into retirement to be remembered as "the most unsportmanlike driver in the history of Formula One".
The Spaniard launched the astonishing attack on his title rival after an Italian grand prix that saw Schumacher both announce his retirement from the sport and also close the gap in the current drivers' championship to just two points.
"Michael is the most unsporting driver with the largest number of sanctions in the history of Formula One," he told Spanish newspaper Marca.
"That doesn't take away from the fact that he has been the best driver."
Alonso also joined his Renault boss Flavio Briatore in suggesting that his demotion from fifth to tenth on the grid at Monza was evidence of a bias towards Ferrari.
Renault were outraged by the decision from F1 stewards and produced video evidence that they say proves that Alonso did not block Schumacher's teammate Felipe Massa.
"In Formula One there are commercial and political interests," he said.
"We are talking about the most successful driver in history and a little bit of help has never gone amiss. Quite often they go over the line of what is acceptable and it is inexplicable."