BERLIN, 23 February 2004 — Formula One star Ralf Schumacher has hit out at Williams team boss Frank Williams and threatened to leave the team in an interview yesterday in the Bild am Sonntag newspaper.

Schumacher’s contract negotiations with Williams over the past few months have not been finalized and the younger of the Schumacher brothers accused Williams of suddenly retracting a new contract that was all set to be signed.

“Even if me and my manager Willi Weber would find it hard to leave behind our friends at BMW, there’s a chance it could happen,” said Schumacher.

Schumacher finished fourth in last season’s Formula One world championship drivers’ standings. “It would be sad but I can’t allow myself to be treated like that by Williams.

“I’m not frustrated,” added Schumacher. “But I find it hard to understand certain things that have happened these past few months.”

Schumacher claims that Williams, who he said offered him a contract then retracted it, has accused him of only being interested in money.

“Frank Williams says I’m nothing but a money-grabber. I can only laugh at that. He knows that I would accept to cut my current salary in half,” added Schumacher.

Schumacher said he was furious when Williams failed to turn up to sign a new contract last year.

“I wanted to sign. We scheduled a meeting for the final race of the season in Japan but Frank Williams wasn’t there and then he suddenly pulled the offer. On a human level I’m very disappointed with him.”

Schumacher’s teammate, Colombian driver Juan Pablo Montoya, is already set to leave Williams after agreeing to drive for McLaren in 2005.

And, in an interview with another German paper, Welt am Sonntag, Montoya fired a warning shot to six-time world champion Michael Schumacher that things were about to change this season.

“His performances speak for themselves, but Michael has never experienced really strong opposition throughout his career,” Montoya, 28, told the paper.

“That will all change this season because there are a lot of drivers who can actually win races, and they want to.”