But we are in the fortunate position of having an outstanding alternative in Luke Robinson he said

“But we are in the fortunate position of having an outstanding alternative in Luke Robinson,” he said.The young Yorkshireman has been a more than adequate replacement for Lam on several occasions this season, but Gregory, who is to be offered a two-year contract, will now be even more anxious for his other play-maker, Andy Farrell, to be fully fit.The Leeds coach, Daryl Powell, in charge at Headingley for the last time before becoming director of rugby, still has a slight doubt over Barrie McDermott’s ankle injury, which could tempt him to bring inRyan Bailey, who was released from custody only this week following his involvement in a brawl in Leeds city centre last year.Wigan are in the better form, but they have not beaten Leeds this season, losing at home and twice drawing at Headingley. “I was still leading the championship before that, but you knew how difficult it could be. But it was Monza which turned the situation.”Raikkonen seemed almost absurdly laid-back “I’m not approaching the race any differently,” he said. “I’ll drive the same as at the last race, I will try to win and see what happens.

I’m not really feeling any pressure and I don’t really mind, if we don’t win the championship, if we lose the second place Only first is important to me. I will just drive as hard as I can and hopefully it will be enough It’s the same thing we’ve done at all the races this year. I’m quite confident, after the last race.”Though the odds favour Schumacher, there is only one certainty. “I was asked about retirement at Indianapolis,” the champion said with a hint of exasperation, “and I made a clear statement that some people struggled to understand: No, I’m not thinking about it at all.”.

Wigan have suffered a major blow on the eve of their biggest game of the year after Adrian Lam aggravated a knee injury in training. The championships I won in 1994 and ‘95 were won in a similar situation.”Schumacher admitted that Hockenheim and Hungary were difficult races, but said that the turning point came when he won at Monza. “Sometimes your career goes wrong, what can I say?” the taciturn Raikkonen said “I agree with him,” Schumacher said. Six years ago Villeneuve was Schumacher’s nemesis in their title fight in Jerez.Both contenders say they will not be doing anything differently here. It would never occur to Raikkonen that he is in the situation Stirling Moss faced in Morocco when the 1958 championship was settled.

Moss had to win, but that may still not have been sufficient depending on the fortunes of another Michael, Mike Hawthorn. Moss duly did win, and set the fastest lap, but when Ferrari’s Phil Hill gifted second place to his team-mate, Hawthorn, it was enough to make the latter, not Moss, Britain’s first world drivers’ champion.Raikkonen must win, and hope that Schumacher stumbles. The German has gone 37 consecutive races without a mechanical problem – “I think I just have a good team, very methodical and precise,” he says – and if the odds of one on Sunday must therefore be higher, it is not something that appears to be troubling him.”The mathematics are quite good for me,” he said, “but while everyone seems to think the thing is done, I don’t think it is. That’s the point, we still have to win the constructors’ championship and be very careful not to retire. We have more to lose than to gain in a way, but in the end when you sit in the car you do what you naturally do and don’t think too much about it.”It will depend on qualifying.