Williams confirm Ralf to miss Italian GP.

BMW Williams has confirmed that Ralf Schumacher will not take part in testing this week at Monza as the F1 summer testing ban is lifted tomorrow [Wednesday].

As a result he will also miss the Italian Grand Prix on 12 September.

It was widely expected that Schumacher would figure in the test as he battles to regain full fitness following his serious accident in the US Grand Prix at Indianapolis back in June.

The incident, which left the German suffering from two broken vertabrae, has caused Schumacher to miss the last five races, with Williams test drivers Marc Gene and Antonio Pizzonia taking his place.

Speaking at the Belgium Grand Prix at the weekend, Pizzonia fuelled specualtion that a return for Schumacher was imminent but it's now apparent that he has not yet recovered enough to be allowed to get back behind the wheel - forcing him to again watch from the sidelines.

A statement released by the Williams team confirmed that Schumacher's recovery is still going well and that he should be back behind the wheel for a test session after the Italian race.

Pizzonia will again deputise after a strong performance in Belgium, where mechanical failure forced him out of the race while he was running near the front.