Schumacher

MILAN -- Formula One world champion Michael Schumacher sees no reason why he cannot notch up his fourth win in a row this weekend even though he has never triumphed in Austria before.

"I am often asked why I have never done well in Austria," Ferrari's website quoted Schumacher as saying.

"All I can say is that I don't pay attention to the statistics and therefore I'm looking forward to proving them wrong. I hope I can succeed this weekend.

"We can definitely go to Austria with confidence, ready to fight for the win. I don't see any reason why our winning streak should end," added the German.

"The F2002 is such a fantastic car that we should be in top shape again."

Ferrari's new F2002 was introduced late this season, at the third race in Brazil, but has won every race it has started with Schumacher at the wheel.

The German was on pole in Austria last year but the A1 Ring circuit at Spielberg is the only one on the 17-race calendar at which he has never triumphed.

Schumacher has won four out of five races this year and leads Williams' Colombian driver Juan Pablo Montoya by 21 points in the standings.

But he said that he and Ferrari would not be relaxing in Austria. "On the contrary, because Ferrari knows better than most that the fight for the world championship is not yet over and there will be some difficult times ahead."

"We will be tackling every race with the maximum concentration," said Schumacher.