Michael Schumacher started from pole and fought hard to take the race win from Fernando Alonso here at the San Marino Grand Prix. Schumacher lead from Button, Massa and Alonso at the start, pulling away from the three men behind him. Ferrari would change Michael’s pit strategy to a two-stopper, a move that would indeed pay off. Unfortunately the German’s second set of tyres were of poor quality and he would drop back into the clutches of Alonso.

Driving extremely defensively, Michael was able to keep the Spaniard behind him for several laps. Renault pitted Fernando early in an attempt to out-play the Scuderia, but they would have nothing of it. Schumacher drove like a mad man to try and pull out a big gap, then pitted on the next lap. It would prove to be enough as Michael pulled out ahead of Alonso.

Michael Schumacher would keep Alonso behind him for several more laps until the Spaniard fell away. Schumacher would then take a well deserved victory over Alonso and Juan Pablo Montoya, who was never really a factor. This is what Michael had to say about his excellent race:

I am very happy! The result shows that work pays off and that the effort put in by everyone – the team and our partners – has delivered its reward. The key moment was staying ahead after the second pit stop. As we saw last year, overtaking at this track it’s almost impossible, unless the guy in front makes a mistake. With all my years of experience, I knew that what I wanted to do was keep Alonso behind me, but at my pace, not pushing flat out and that’s what I did. At this time I had a bit of graining, as had been the case in free practice and now we must work out what caused it. I hope we can keep up this standard in the coming races and I think that from now on, we will be very competitive.