Michael Schumacher yesterday began preparations for his home grand prix by hitting out at claims that he is a dangerous driver, saying he does not take the complaints of his fellow drivers seriously.

The Ferrari star has come under increasing pressure regarding his driving style which frequently sees him, at the start of races, diving across the path of drivers in order to hold position prior to the first corner. After tangling with David Coulthard at the start of the French Grand Prix a month ago and subsequently involving himself in a post-race war of words with the Scot, Schumacher recently came under fire from Jacques Villeneuve, who in Austria two weeks ago questioned the German's racing ethics.

But yesterday Schumacher uncharacteristically lashed out at such criticisms, saying that the guidelines regarding starts had been clarified by FIA technical delegate, Charlie Whiting, at a meeting in Austria and that he felt he was now completely in the clear.

"The rule is the rule," he said emphatically. " It's what we're allowed to do, what we can do? And as long as you do it in a safe way, it's okay. What are we doing here? Is it Formula One or us playing happy families and sitting around drinking coffee? We're racing in a hard but fair way in my view." He added that the opinions of Villeneuve or Coulthard were unimportant in the light of the clarification of the rules governing starts and said the two drivers were the only ones in the paddock who had questioned his actions.

"If the rules allow us to fight like this we will fight like this and that's it. It's a part of the business," he said. "That's why we had a meeting in Austria prior to the race at which Charlie (Whiting) clarified quite clearly what happened in Imola and Magny Cours, unfortunately only my two examples, and what happened was quite okay."

Pressed about the barbs aimed his way by Villenueve and Eddie Irvine, who recently described his former team-mate as a "bully", Schumacher testily drew the conversation to a close saying: "These two guys, I don't take them seriously. I don't want to discuss their comments at all, they're not the point for me. "

While the blades of other drivers were out for Schumacher, the only knife being wielded by Heinz-Harald Frentzen was being used to cut an EJ10-shaped cake in celebration of his newly signed two-year contract with Jordan. The German, who arrives in Hockenheim hoping to find the kind of luck that last year saw him qualify second and finish third, admitted he was delighted to finally complete a deal believed to be worth $4.5 million a year, but added that Eddie Jordan must replace designer Mike Gascoyne sooner rather than later.

"It's true Mike Gascoyne is not involved any more in the new project because he's going to Benetton and this is one of the points that we have to look at in the future," he said. "We have to sort out who's going to be responsible for its design. This is among the package that we have yet to conclude for the future. "

Frentzen also admitted that Honda's involvement with the team was a significant step forward and influenced his decision to stay at Jordan. "Honda's a major manufacturer that has been very successful in Formula One in the past and they are very committed to being successful," he said. "For Jordan, it's a very big help that we have works-engine support."

Frentzen goes into his home grand prix bouyed by the arrival of the heavily-modified EJ10B chassis. The Jordan number one said the major aerodynamic modifications have made a significant impact and he hoped to get the best from the new package this weekend.

"We have modified the car aerodynamically and it's been a change for the better, I hope," he said. "At the last testing I wasn't there because I was on holiday. Jarno did the test and the result was that we reckon we'll get a little bit more efficiency out of the car, especially here at Hockenheim and it should give us a little bit more support for lap times."