Michael Schumacher wins F1 French Grand Prix, setting His Sights to Germany Next

Michael Schumacher won't give up just yet as he inches closer to Fernando Alonso's lead of the F1 drivers' championship.

Schumi set his sights on eroding Fernando Alonso's world championship lead after an ''unexpected'' win in the French Grand Prix at Magny-Cours. The Ferrari driver then revealed that he almost failed to make the start of qualifying on Saturday after an engine fire in practice.

But once that scare passed, he took pole position and followed that with a dominant win at Magny Cours, taking the checkered flag from title rival Alonso's Renault.

That trimmed the world champion's lead to 17 points, down eight in the last two races, but Schumacher wants more.

''It was a fantastic result, even if in all honesty it was unexpected. We did not know how the race would pan out. Now we have to keep this momentum going. The championship is far from over and these two points we have made up on our main rivals are very important. I hope we can soon make up more ground,'' Michael Schumacher said.

Schumacher's boss Jean Todt certainly has no doubt Ferrari can regain their world titles, despite an imposing advantage for both Renault and Alonso.

''Both championships are still up for grabs,'' said Jean Todt. ''There are seven races remaining this season and, as we have always said, we will do all we can to meet our targets.''

However, Todt's Renault counterpart Flavio Briatore refused to lose his cool despite his team's defeat on home turf in sweltering conditions at Magny-Cours.He admitted Ferrari's pace, aided by tire supplier Bridgestone's resurgence, had come as a shock but vowed a renewed push from Renault to see off their title challenge.

''This turned out to be a difficult weekend for us and Fernando got the best possible result from it,'' he said.

Can Fernando Alonso lead a Renault comeback at the German Grand Prix? Can Michael Schumacher win his home grand prix in Germany and inch closer to Alonso? Bodog has the odds. Visit and bet on Bodog now.