"This is a fantastic result and I must thank the team for giving me a great car and giving me great support, especially when I was struggling with tyre choice earlier in the weekend," Barrichello smiled in a press release. "The start was veryexciting and I was looking to get away cleanly and I did not want to put Michael in a difficult situation.

"I backed off and then I saw Coulthard come past so I got off the brakes and went by on a very tight line. Then the two Williams were fighting and I saw a gap to get past Ralf and I took it and that made my race. The team let us push hard for a very long time but then after the second pit stops, we were told to be careful to bring the cars home.

"The tyres worked fantastically, the car's performance was great, so I was able to push and be competitive. Is this payback for Austria? That was in the past. That time, the strategy favoured Michael, this time it went in my favour. It shows what a strong and united group we are. Now I want to enjoy today as my son and wife are both here and it has been a fantastic day. I am looking forward to Silverstone, which is like a home track for me."

Michael Schumacher had an uncharacteristic spin on lap 23, and ended up second 0.2 seconds behind his colleague. "Rubens drove a superb race and deserves the win, while I deserve to be second," the German stated. "At the start, I chose the wrong side to make a move. I tried to go to the outside of Montoya and Ralf but then I had to slow for the kink and saw Rubens and Coulthard fly by.

"Ralf was very fair when I came to pass him, although I had an eventful couple of laps to pass Montoya, after which I closed on Rubens. I think I spun because I got too close to him and lost downforce, but I heard that Rubens also had problems at that point so maybe there was some dirt or oil.

"I was giving it everything I had and was pushing very hard as I would be staying out one lap longer than him before the pit stop and thought I might take advantage of that. But after the stop I lost a bit of time with backmarkers. After the second stop I did not really get a chance to pass and the team came on the radio and told us to bring the cars home safely.

"Why was Rubens not asked to let me by? The situation was very different to Austria, when we were not arrogant enough to think winning the title would be easy, given that nothing can be taken for granted. Now, later in the season, the championships are still not decided, but we are in a much stronger position than in Austria."

Sporting director Jean Todt added: "This victory here in Germany is a great triumph for Ferrari. We knew we would be more competitive in the race than in qualifying and that's how it turned out. That was in part due to the excellent performance of the Bridgestone tyres. Rubens made an extraordinary start and managed to take the lead on the opening lap. Michael found it a bit tougher to get ahead of those in front of him as he moved up to second.

"We allowed our drivers to race one another up to the second pit-stop and then we told them to hold station. We have picked up sixteen very important points towards the Constructors' Championship and the Drivers,' in which Michael has extended his lead, while Rubens is now back with the leading group.

"This race showed that Ferrari is a great team, united and determined to secure the best result possible, adopting the strategy best suited to this objective. We have passed the half-way point of the season and thanks to our efforts so far, we can look forward to the rest of the championship with confidence. We will continue to work hard to consolidate our situation."