NURBURGRING, Germany - World champion Michael Schumacher and his brother Ralf insisted here Thursday that there is no bad blood between them after their near collision at the end of last weekend's Monaco Grand Prix.
The pair will go head-to-head on home soil this weekend in the European Grand Prix, which takes place just a few kilometres away from their birthplace in Kerpen, with the German newspapers firing up a war of words between them.
Ralf accused Michael of being "crazy" after the Ferrari driver tried to sneak past his Toyota as the pair crossed the finish line on the final lap in Monaco but Michael insisted he was only racing and denied any blame.
The confrontation was billed as a feud between the two but speaking in a media conference at the Nurburgring Thursday, Ralf said: "It has nothing to do with a war, a family or brotherly war, it is just a different opinion.
"Whether it would have been Michael or anybody else, at that moment I just had a different opinion than a competitor. I understand it is interesting for people to write about but I don't really see what the fuss is about.
"It is nothing to do with being emotional or anything, you have an opinion and you stick to it. Some people do think it is a bit tough or too tough, but in racing situations sometimes you see things in a different way."
Michael, who was also criticised by team-mate Rubens Barrichello after making a lunge at the chicane to snatch seventh place on the final lap, prior to his later challenge on Ralf, continued to defend his position.
"I think we are both very highly competitive race drivers, we fight on the circuit, everyone for his own interest, in a way for his team," said Michael.
"But you never forget it is your brother, and you love your brother.
"We have to race each other. It is racing, maybe we might disagree on certain points of view but it's pretty natural. We are both very competitive, we have our opinions and I think we have to have our opinions.
"You finish the race, you may have some more emotions, but it doesn't really matter. At the end of the day, it is your brother, your blood, and everything that has been written in these silly newspapers at this moment is rubbish.
"To now make a detailed fuss about it with 'he has said this little word there and he has done this little thing there', let's be serious and stop the idiot business and let's continue again with the normal stuff."
The narrow streets of Monaco could have turned the close racing into a disaster if Schumacher had touched either cars of Barrichello or Ralf in his passing attempts but fortunately all drivers escaped unscathed.
But Ralf backed his brother and insisted the German driver would never intentionally put another competitor in danger just for the sake of an extra world championship point.
"At the end of the day we are all sensible," said Ralf. "Nobody wants to hurt another driver but obviously, at the same time, you have to fight for your position, for your team and your own points.
"It is a decision we sometimes have to take within a couple of tenths of a second. It might not always been the right one. It is like a start incident, things like this can always happen."
05/26/2005 15:52 GMT