Michael Schumacher says he is currently too disappointed to decide whether or not he will make a second attempt at a Formula 1 comeback at a later date.
The German was forced to pull the plug on his planned sensational return at next week’s European Grand Prix after medical checks on Monday showed that his injured neck had not healed enough to withstand the strain of an F1 race environment following his nasty motorcycle accident in February.
Ferrari has since confirmed long-time test driver Luca Badoer as stand-in for the injured Felipe Massa at Valencia, although this has not stopped speculation that Schumacher could still drive at a later event should his neck recover in time or even return as part of a three-car Ferrari team in 2010.
Appearing at a press conference in Geneva in which he gave further details about why he had to abort his comeback plan, a downbeat Schumacher admitted the disappointment of the current situation, rather than his future, was currently dominating his thoughts.
"Speculation in this business is pretty natural, the fact is that I'm disappointed I'm not able to do what I looked forward to do...that's how I feel for now," he was quoted as saying by AFP.
Although Schumacher had acknowledged from the outset that his lingering injuries could thwart his comeback plans, the German says his test in a 2007 Ferrari had still been needed as it was the only accurate way of discovering if his neck was still strong enough.
The seven-time world champion admitted the realisation that he couldn’t make a return had left him saddened.
“No simulation can produce the demands an F1 car puts on the body, so we needed to test to find out," he said.
"This is a very sad moment for myself.
"We have prepared very seriously, done as much as we could from our side, but we always said that I would do the job on condition I was ready for it and sadly I couldn't fulfil this.”
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