Lewis Hamilton has insisted it will be "an honour and a privilege" to compete against Michael Schumacher.

The reigning world champion missed out on the opportunity to race against the seven-times king as Schumacher retired a month before Hamilton signed his first F1 contract.

But in the wake of Schumacher confirming he is to make a comeback at next month's European Grand Prix as replacement for the injured Felipe Massa, Hamilton cannot wait to face the 40-year-old German.

"I am excited by the possibility of Michael's return, assuming it happens," said Hamilton before heading off on holiday to India.

"Michael is one of the sport's greatest competitors, a legend in his own right, and it would be great to compete against him.

"The whole world will be watching his return to the cockpit in Valencia.

"It will not only be fascinating to see how he readies himself for his grand prix comeback, but also an honour and a privilege to race against him for the very first time. I wish him well.

"My thoughts, though, are still with Felipe and his family after his terrible accident in Hungary."

Schumacher has decided to answer Ferrari's call for help as it is almost certain Massa will miss the rest of the season.

Massa is continuing to make rapid progress from life-saving surgery after fracturing his skull in a freak accident during qualifying on Saturday for the Hungarian Grand Prix.

The 28-year-old was struck on the helmet at 162mph by a suspension spring that had worked its way off Rubens Barrichello's Brawn GP, the Brazilian then ploughing nose first into a tyre barrier.

Schumacher, even though he has been retired from F1 for almost three years, was always the most logical choice as replacement.

As a highly-paid advisor to the team who has been on the pitwall at many races, he still knows the current car, even if he has not been behind the wheel.

Schumacher, though, did test last season's Ferrari towards the back end of the year, and as Jenson Button recalls, he was on the pace.

World championship leader Button sees no reason why Schumacher will not be back fighting at the front come the race in Valencia.

"He'll come back fit, and he will be quick," Button told the Press Association at the launch in Birmingham of Bridgestone's Driving Nation roadshow designed to gather opinions on motoring today.

"He drove the car in the winter. He jumped in and on his first run he was competitive.

"It's not like he hasn't driven an F1 car for three years, so he'll get in it and be on the pace.

"He's still young, 40 is not old, so he'll still be competitive and his reactions will be there, especially coming up to qualifying.

"He will have been in the car for three hours, so I'm sure he'll be up there with (team-mate) Kimi (Raikkonen)."

Button feels, though, Schumacher is a "very brave" man for taking up what he sees as a no-win challenge.

"It's a strange situation because the reason for Michael being there is because another driver can't take part," added Button.

"In a way Ferrari are very lucky because they've someone working in their team who can jump straight into the car and be competitive, and Michael will be.

"It's an interesting one, though, because if he wins people will say they expected him too, and if he doesn't, they will say he should not have come back.

"So it's a tough position for him to be in, although I'm happy he has taken up the challenge. It's very brave of him."

It will be a question now of whether people recall Schumacher the driver who broke virtually every conceivable F1 record, or the man who at times controversially tarnished the sport.

"The problem is he had a lot of controversial moments, and people remember them as much as they do his world championships, which is a pity," added Button.

"But you can't take it away from him, he did win seven world titles and it's going to be difficult for anyone to break that record.

"The guy is a bit of a master, and this will be exciting for him.

"Towards the end of your career, you might not be so into it, but he is fresh, looking for a new challenge, and this is it for now."

Schumacher has been driven by loyalty to a team that helped him win five of his titles, as well as a competitive instinct that clearly still burns within.

"A lot of people struggle after sport to try and find something else to get a buzz from, especially motor sport," remarked Button.

"He went down the motorcycle route, and had that for his adrenaline rush for a while.

"Now he is going to get back in an F1 car and I'm sure he is going to love the buzz of it all again."