Chris Rattue: Tin-can tyrant dips out on vote

Tiger Woods. Yes - of course. Roger Federer. Most definitely. Michael Schumacher ... ummm ... not so sure about that bloke.

Sports greatness is the subject - just who rates a prime spot in the sports hall of fame.

Two of that trio are legendary sportsmen with behaviour to match.

Woods is the greatest golfer ever, maybe the most complete sporting unit of all time. He's just about perfected a sport that mankind had deemed gloriously imperfect.

As for Federer, he's as great as it gets in tennis and a joy to watch - Pete Sampras with a healthy dose of Andre Agassi at his best thrown in.

So that's two all-time dead set sporting geniuses to watch at the moment. They're so good, I'd even watch them on a Thursday night.

As for Schumacher though, it's an entirely different story.

We won't be able watch the tin-can tyrant in action for much longer and quite frankly, the world doesn't seem all that bothered.

Which on one hand is absolutely amazing because the guy has a record that stacks up big time.

Yet on the other hand, the guy has notched up so many demerit points with the public that he's lost his licence to thrill.

You would have to say that reaction to Schumacher's imminent retirement has been akin to a lot of noise struggling to escape a very big muffler.

People have tried to write glowing things about him, but there are a lot of buts.

The guy clearly never went to charm school, which is okay. We've got to take our sports stars' personalities as they come.

The trouble is, there are doubts he even went to driving school when a title is on the line. Under pressure, the dominant F1 motor racing driver of his time could suddenly turn into a crazed 12-year-old who'd been taught to drive on a tractor by his half-blind uncle.

Careless use of a motor vehicle knew no bounds when Mike was in strife.

Parking up during qualifying. Dinging blokes trying to pass. Getting disqualified from the championship points table. Using team protocol to jack up a victory, then manufacturing a square-up draw.

Honestly - manufacture a draw? You can do that with a couple of old Bedford trucks.

Quite frankly, a lot of us didn't even know this kind of thinking went through a Formula 1 driver's head, let alone transferred to his feet and hands, until Schumacher came along.

You'd assumed that despite the pig-headed determination needed to become a great motor racing driver, there would be some honour among men who knew what it was to risk all.

I won't get into the debate about drivers versus technology and which is most important these days in F1. You'd have to get all the drivers to drive each other's cars to sort that one out.

There is, however, no doubt at all about Schumacher's ability to inspire a great team.

But the stunts he has pulled are akin to Woods chopping up Vijay Singh's favourite driver, or Federer spiking Andy Roddick's drinks.

Schumacher could revel in victory all right, but he didn't have the grace to respect opponents when it was due. And for that, he ends up well back on the greatness grid.

LOSERS IN THE POPULARITY STAKES

Other champs who turned out to be chumps

TY COBB

The meanest sportsman in history. An American baseball genius in the early 1900s who died friendless. His stunts included beating up a handicapped heckler, and turning up for his final days in hospital carrying a pistol (actor Tommy Lee Jones did a great Cobb job). Unrivalled in the bad sports department.

RICHARD LOE

Should have been famed for his front row strength but was shamed after mugging a defenceless Aussie back and poking an All Black comrade in the eye. In the end they were self-inflicted injuries - on Loe's reputation.

MIKE TYSON

Where to start? Revered to start out with, reviled at the end. A sort of George Foreman in reverse. George got to sell grills, Mike ended up behind them.

HANSIE CRONJE

Match fixer and ultimate hero-to-zero.

ERIC CANTONA

Soccer wizard with lots of tricks - pity about the kung fu kick.

PAOLO DI CANIO

Italian soccer stylist who pushed over a referee and indulged in fascist salutes, with a fairplay award thrown into the mix. A very strange dude.

JOHN MCENROE

Revealed in his biography that he didn't like playing tennis, especially singles, because he got lonely. Had a strange way of trying to win friends and influence people though. Okay, a lot of us were fascinated by his outbursts (shame on me). Then again, you can't condone that behaviour. Mac screamed and smashed his way out of titles ... and the widespread acclaim his talent deserved.

CARL LEWIS

A brilliant athletics gold miner but dug a hole for himself in the popularity stakes. Formed a one-man smarmy army. The IOC's "Sportsman of the Century", yet even Americans didn't love him. Carl made up for that himself - which was the big problem in the first place.