[Jeff Higgins]

It's Schumacher's driving style. Think about it; in years past he has never done well passing or being passed on the track. His strategy has always been to wait until an opponent pits to pass him. Michael rips off several extremely fast laps on a clear track, never having to pass another car, getting enough of a cushion to come out ahead from his own pit stop. This strategy uses up tires, but when he could get a fresh set every stop, so what. Now that he has to manage his tires and makes them last, he is not able to employ this particular strategy. So was F1 really trying to save money on tires? I don't think so. I think it was a masterfull stroke in their efforts to achieve parity with Schumi throughout the field.