Imola is my first 'home' race, says Michael.

Ferrari driver Michael Schumacher has vowed to give the tifosi something to celebrate this weekend, when the Prancing Horse takes part in their 'home' grand prix.

Although the event is labelled the San Marino Grand Prix, Imola is located in Italy not far from Maranello, home of the Scuderia.

"I always wait anxiously for Imola," noted the German. "In a way it is my first home race, when we can surely count on the support of our fans. This can only bring out a sense of positive expectancy.

"It is clear that we will have to fight all the way, considering that things could have gone better for us recently, but the approach would have remained the same if we had been through a successful period because then we would have felt almost obliged to get a result."

"I really don't believe that using the F2002 is a disadvantage," added Michael. "Reliability is an important factor and so we shouldn't run even the smallest risk. We will see on Sunday what Imola has in store for us. The track characteristics are very different from those of Interlagos, so we can have more faith in it. At Imola the brakes will be really important.

"I think that McLaren will again perform well; something we expected right from the beginning of the season, but I think that we can also challenge for the win. Our aim is to give our fans something to celebrate, and where better to start than Imola?"