With a new contract extension that will see him racing for Ferrari until the end of 2006, Rubens Barrichello is more confident than ever that he can - and will - win the World Championship in the next three years. Atlas F1's Michele Lostia talked to the Brazilian at Ferrari's launch this week, and heard from him about the life at Maranello, why Michael Schumacher gets to test the F2004 first, and how he plans to obtain his goal

For the last few years, on the day Ferrari launch their new Formula One car, the world media has grown accustomed to hearing Rubens Barrichello stating yet again his optimism about winning the World Championship.

While at previous launches this display of confidence was met by most with a raised eyebrow, this year the feeling is that his chances, even if not great, must be better than ever before. Not just because Michael Schumacher has already reached a record sixth title, but also because last season Barrichello managed to beat the German more than he's ever been beaten by a teammate before.

"I think I have always been a challenge for Michael and this year, the Championship should be wide open and I will give it my best shot. As a driver you must always believe you can do it," Barrichello says. "All the work that has gone into the F2004 means I can be optimistic about this coming year. Of course it will be tough, but I would like to start this year the way I finished the last one. After 2003, I now feel much more like a winner."

And rightly so. After often outqualifying and outracing his teammate last year - mostly during the middle part of the season - Barrichello put the icing on the cake at Suzuka, where he convincingly won the Japanese Grand Prix in front of McLaren's Kimi Raikkonen, helping Schumacher to grab his fourth consecutive World Championship.

To win the title, however, the Brazilian won't just have his teammate to deal with. He will first of all need a car capable of winning consistently. Even though Ferrari have won the last five Constructors' Championships, the gap to their opponents looked much slimmer last year than in previous years. After seeing a revolutionary nose on the new Williams and the new McLaren clocking some very fast laps in winter testing, it was perhaps surprising that Ferrari's new car, the F2004, looks a lot like its predecessor. Barrichello, however, is not worried.

"The car is an evolution," he states. "Everybody talks about the Williams that must surely be faster because of its different nose, but this doesn't make sense. As Rory [Byrne, Ferrari Chief Designer] said, our car is 99% different [to the previous one], as far as the construction and the aerodynamics are concerned. It's well polished and very good looking, especially at the rear, where a lot of the aerodynamic effect takes place. I can't wait to drive it."

Well, he'll have to wait. Michael Schumacher will take charge of the F2004's first test which, weather permitting, will take place at Ferrari's tracks in Italy, Fiorano and Mugello. Meanwhile Barrichello will keep on testing tyres on the old F2003-GA.

"While Michael will be the first to drive the F2004 to check it out, I will have six days running a tyre programme with the old car. Then, we will have two F2004 and I will have sufficient time to get used to it," Barrichello explains.

The likeable Brazilian is not too worried about missing track time with the new car, as long as he has enough time to adjust his driving position with it. "Driving the new car just three times, then going racing with it, is not a big deal, because we are informed of everything that Michael does [in the tests]. Of course if I could test it for fifteen days rather than three it would be better, but for now I will be working hard at Barcelona and Jerez with the tyres programmes.

"With a new car, the most important thing to sort out is the driving position, because you get used very quickly to its characteristics on track, in terms of how it handles and performs."

He goes on to explain that he doesn't mind missing the first tests with the new car, as "you just do three laps then wait for half an hour, then drive six more laps and wait around for two more hours. Therefore I'm not afraid of driving the new car a little less than Michael before getting to Melbourne."

But it's not just Schumacher he needs to worry about, and he knows it. "We've seen that the Williams is very fast over one lap, but we'll have to wait and see how they do over a full race. We haven't yet tested together with the new McLaren, but it seems very fast," Barrichello says. "And then there's Renault, who - if they make as big a step as they made last year - will pose a threat and win races. We'll also have to see what BAR and Jaguar can do; they might get podiums and who knows, maybe even win races."

It comes as no surprise that all the teams mentioned by the Brazilian are on Michelin tyres. Even BAR, who used Bridgestones throughout their five-year history, have now switched to the French rubber. Barrichello knows that Ferrari, on Bridgestone tyres, have a tough job at hand.

"If you think the tyres made the difference last year, then this year will be very similar," he comments. "At times one [tyre manufacturer] will be faster, while in some other races the other one will be stronger. Michelin, from what I can see, are surely doing a great job. But together with Bridgestone, and with everything we've learned from last year, we have worked hard too: I tested many different tyres in Barcelona and we can see some improvements, even if there are still things to learn."

The new engine regulations, which state that teams must use no more than one engine per car per weekend, with the penalty of being dropped ten places down the starting grid, are met by the Brazilian driver in the same way as last year's new qualifying procedures. That is, with a philosophical outlook.

"Last year [at the beginning of the season] I said that we will all make, at least once, a mistake in qualifying that will take us to the middle of the grid, giving us problems at the start. This year I can say that we will all suffer, at least once, from the new engine regulations.

"Even if the people at Ferrari make fantastic, long-lasting engines, it can happen that we'll have to go through the situation of losing the engine on the Friday, taking us ten places back [on the starting grid] straight away. In 18 races, it can happen once. We'll have to adapt to this new regulation."

This year's rules also state that F1 cars must revert back to use manual gear shift, after almost three years with fully automatic gearboxes. This doesn't worry Barrichello, however, as he says the engines will be able to withstand drivers' errors.

"It's not like you're going to change into the wrong gear," he says. "You might lose some thousandths of a second if you don't change gears [on time], but you won't be breaking the engine in doing so, because there are still some electronic devices that ensure you don't ruin it."

He then adds, tongue in cheek: "I don't care much about manual or automatic shifting, but perhaps I'd prefer driving with automatic gears because it's less dangerous: with 24 buttons on the steering wheel, by also having to change gears you run the risk of never looking at the road ahead!"

The road ahead, for Barrichello, is an 18-race long season where dropping back in the WC table could mean having to play second fiddle to teammate Michael Schumacher. He doesn't agree. "There is always this talk that if Michael opens a gap at the beginning, then the team just concentrates on him. I don't believe that. There is a lot of respect both ways between the team and myself.

"I don't think it is necessary to win the first two or three races in order to win the Championship. This is not a title that can be won in the first few races, as it's a longer season. Let's not forget that last year in Hockenheim, if instead of having the accident I would have ended up second behind Montoya, then I could have been challenging for the title almost to the end."

With the confidence gained on track in 2003 and a new contract extension that will see Barrichello race for Ferrari until the end of 2006, the Brazilian just might get his wish of winning the World Championship.

"Last year I was very strong mentally, as I concentrated on the driving without listening to outside pressures, and I will try to yet improve on that," Barrichello concludes. "I always managed to stay calm, and that's what I think might give me the chance to win a World Championship in the next three years."

All depending, of course, on the car Ferrari have produced for him.