Following the exciting Australian Grand Prix, the expectations were high ahead of the race in Malaysia. And the event did not disappoint, with plenty of action, drama, and the coming of age of two of the most talented young drivers of the current field. Atlas F1's Pablo Elizalde reviews the entire weekend's events and results from the second race of the 2003 season

There is no denying that Formula One is changing and, despite criticism from those who believe the new rules are not the reason for the sport's renewed face, the changes seem to be for the better. There is still almost a whole season ahead, and it's very early days to start celebrating any kind of resurrection following a couple of years of utter boredom, but at the Malaysian Grand Prix the winds of change were there for everyone to see.

After an uncertain start in Australia, and as much as the new qualifying system has been criticised, the Sepang race proved that the new Formula One rulebook is likely to shake things up and provide the excitement that has been missing lately. The detractors of the new rules will certainly have a hard time trying to argue that the revised system is not beneficial for the sport, as much as the racing is somewhat fabricated.

With unpredictable races, overtaking aplenty, and new faces fighting for the top positions, it will probably not be long before the critics are silenced and the purists accept that this, for better or worse, is the new Formula One they have to get accustomed to. McLaren boss Ron Dennis has claimed that the new rules are making F1 lose its fundamental fabric and that people will refer to it as a show rather than the pinnacle of racing technology. Although he could be right, it's hard to imagine many people choosing the whole 2002 season over the first two races of this year.

If the new rules serve to revitalize Formula One in 2003, there will be time in the future to look at the problems more deeply and try to reach the right combination of racing in its purest form and the show the average fans wants on Sunday. But this year the sport could not afford a repeat of 2002, and so far the new rules are proving efficient in avoiding that, no matter what the real significance of qualifying is now.

The improved face of Formula One is not only down to the changes to the rulebook but, as seen in Malaysia, to a power shift at the top of the field. As much as Dennis has complained about the new qualifying system and about the introduction of the new rules, it's ironic that his team is the one which has benefitted the most from it. It's impossible to tell how long will it take before Michael Schumacher and Ferrari get back to form, but there's little doubt that the show is gaining from the coming of age of the New Guard.

Speaking at the post-race press conference, Rubens Barrichello, who went on to get Ferrari back on the podium after the Australian Grand Prix fiasco, had no doubt that he was sitting alongside the men whose future is the also the future of Formula One. "I think both are future World Champions," he said of 23-year old race winner Kimi Raikkonen and 21-year old third placed Fernando Alonso. "I just hope I can win the World Championship before them."

In yet another display of coolness and flawless driving, Raikkonen managed to score a maiden win that was already overdue, despite having raced in only 35 Grands Prix. It seems like just yesterday when Max Mosley was refusing to give the Finn his Superlicense, and only a little over two years after his debut Raikkonen is already drawing memories of Mika Hakkinen, as was evident by a wet-eyed Dennis, who has in Raikkonen his new favourite son and most certainly a future champion.

"He will be a quicker driver for it because it takes away the pressure," said Dennis of Raikkonen's first win. "The biggest thing is that it will contribute to the process of eliminating mistakes and Kimi doesn't make many. It will be easier for him to make fewer mistakes after the success of his first Grand Prix win."

After Malaysia it's not hard to predict that there will be another new Grand Prix winner soon, and that in Alonso Raikkonen will have a match for years to come, especially if Renault continue to making progress. In a car that is believed to be around 130 horsepower down on their rivals, Alonso fought a faulty gearbox and a fever to score his first podium finish after starting from pole position, something that despite the new regulations is not bad for a man with 19 Grands Prix to his name.

While the new wave of drivers shone in Malaysia, the old guard, including Michael Schumacher, left Sepang with little to show for. For the second consecutive race, the Ferrari driver proved he is human too, and made another mistake which cost him, and Jarno Trulli, the chance of fighting for the top positions. Two races into the season and Schumacher has failed to finish on the podium - the first time this has happened since he entered F1 - and lies only sixth in the standings.

The five-time champion, however, is likely to fight back soon and it'd probably be an error to think that he is not the favourite to win the title this year. After all, the F2002 is still proving fast and rock-solid, something that David Coulthard would want for his McLaren following a disappointing retirement. As usually happens to the Scot when he seems to be on top of his game, all the circumstances seem to go against him.

Raikkonen's win has relegated Coulthard to second place in the standings, and his criticism over the poor reliability of the MP4-17 will certainly not be a welcome gesture by a man who almost cried when the Scot's teammate won a race in dominant fashion.

Like Coulthard, the Williams drivers left Malaysia hoping for better days. The Grove-based squad are probably still unsure of their real pace after two troubled races for Juan Pablo Montoya and an under-performing Ralf Schumacher, who seems to be struggling to get to grips with the one-lap qualifying. At Sepang, the Colombian was the innocent victim of melee in the middle of the field, which gave further proof that qualifying in a good position could prove vital at the end of the day, regardless of race strategies.

Qualifying Analysis

There are two ways to see this year's qualifying and its new format. Under the first one, you can enjoy almost a whole full hour of non-stop action, seeing the world's best drivers going almost flat-out in their high-tech cars as they fight for a position on the grid for Sunday's race.

This point of view allows the spectator to enjoy qualifying sessions like the one at Sepang, where Fernando Alonso put on a superb performance to clinch his first pole position after only 19 Grands Prix, eclipsing the usual suspects and giving the "new" Formula One something to celebrate: it was the first time that a non Ferrari, Williams or McLaren driver was on pole since the 1999 European Grand Prix.

But there's a second point of view to the new qualifying system. The new fuel rule, which doesn't allow drivers to refuel their cars between Saturday and the start of the race, has turned the hour-long session into something of a deception for the fans. Qualifying in itself had never been an end, but rather a means to achieve a better result on Sunday. Under the new regulations this has been taken to an extreme, and even being five positions down on the grid is not that important anymore.

Having a driver from a top team starting from eighth position is probably a great way to ensure at least some on-track action in the early stages of the race, but it's an adulterated method to spice things up that has seen qualifying losing its essence. It looks like viewers, however, will have to get used to it following the success of the system in the first two races of the year.

With the Renault team opting for the softer tyre option and less fuel than their rivals, there was little anyone could do to stop Alonso and Jarno Trulli from storming to the top of the times on a day that, despite the heavy rain forecasted, presented the drivers with the challenge of coping with track temperatures of 45 degrees Celsius.

The Grid

1. Fernando Alonso Saturday time: 1:37.044
Friday Qualifying: 10th, 1:36.693

It's obvious that under the new regulations a pole position will never have the same significance as before. Still, Alonso's achievement was quite impressive for a driver with only 19 races of experience. The 21-year old became the youngest ever pole setter, benefitting from a lower fuel load and the softer of the Michelin tyres compounds, and although he said his flying lap was nothing special he did not put a foot wrong and saw how, one by one, the nine drivers who went out after him were unable to beat his time.

"When qualifying was finishing, with the last five or six cars, I thought that maybe I would finish fifth or sixth. But then the cars went down and down and in the end I saw Michael's lap and when he crossed the line I thought 'I'm on pole.' It's a very strange feeling" he said.

2. Jarno Trulli Saturday time: 1:37.217
Friday Qualifying: 6th, 1:36.301

Apart from Alonso, Trulli was the only driver who opted for the softer tyre compound for qualifying, and that, added to the fuel load chosen by the team for the race also proved crucial in securing an all-Renault front row. The Italian driver finished only 0.173 second behind Alonso after another flawless lap, although Trulli was carrying fuel for some three more laps than the Spaniard in order to pit later in the race.

Despite Renault's technical director Mike Gascoyne claimed their drivers were on a winning strategy, it was interesting to note that Trulli was around a second slower than on Friday, while third-place Michael Schumacher was nearly 2.5 seconds off his time from first qualifying.

3. Michael Schumacher Saturday time: 1:37.393
Friday Qualifying: 1st, 1:34.980

Having been the only driver to start from pole position at the Sepang circuit since F1 moved to Malaysia in 1999 Schumacher was obviously the clear favourite in qualifying. And more so after having posted the fastest time in Friday's session and having grabbed the first pole of the new qualifying era in Australia. The World Champion, however, could do little to stop a Renault front row sweep with a heavier Ferrari and on the harder of the Bridgestone compounds.

"I do not want to take anything away from Renault's achievement, as they did a good job, but I hope we have the right strategy for the race, but will not know until tomorrow afternoon," he said.

4. David Coulthard Saturday time: 1:37.454
Friday Qualifying: 5th, 1:36.297

Fresh for his victory in Australia after starting from 11th place on the grid, Coulthard's fourth fastest time presented a considerable improvement and a boost to his chances of remaining at the top of the drivers' table. Like the Ferrari drivers, Coulthard sacrificed his performance in qualifying for a better strategy in the race, opting for a "more conservative" tyre choice. A couple of errors in the final part of his flying lap probably cost him a couple of tenths and maybe a position.

5. Rubens Barrichello Saturday time: 1:37.579
Friday Qualifying: 2nd, 1:35.681

Second fastest on Friday and fifth on Saturday, Barrichello took things easy on the decisive qualifying session as he was another of the drivers opting for a more conservative strategy. The Brazilian, who was the previous record holder for youngest pole setter after the 1994 Belgian Grand Prix, made a mistake in the final sector that cost him some time.

6. Nick Heidfeld Saturday time: 1:37.766
Friday Qualifying: 7th, 1:36.407

Like in Australia two weeks earlier, Heidfeld put on a very good performance with the Petronas-powered C22, although the German driver was running a relatively low load of fuel and a different strategy to teammate Heinz-Harald Frentzen, the same the Swiss squad had opted to go in Melbourne with positive results. Heidfeld's flying lap was clean and his time left him in a solid position to score points on Sunday.

7. Kimi Raikkonen Saturday time: 1:37.858
Friday Qualifying: 4th, 1:36.038

After a promising performance on Friday, Raikkonen had to settle for a place on the fourth row following an error on his flying lap on Saturday. The Finn, who had been quickest in practice prior to the one-lap shootout, locked up at the entry of the hairpin. Without that error, he could have ended ahead of Heidfeld. "My lap today wasn't a disaster, but it wasn't brilliant either," said Raikkonen. "I locked the rear of the car under braking at the hairpin, which lost me some time, but fortunately I kept the car on the circuit."

8. Juan Pablo Montoya Saturday time: 1:37.974
Friday Qualifying: 3rd, 1:35.939

Qualifying was not easy for Williams, with Montoya struggling with the balance of his FW25. Despite the oversteering problems and a pretty heavy car, the Colombian put on a decent performance with a lap that was not far from the pace of the McLarens. Montoya was again the only man in contention with a Williams, outqualifying Ralf Schumacher by almost a second for the second race in succession.

9. Jenson Button Saturday time: 1:38.073
Friday Qualifying: 9th, 1:36.632

From the first practice session it became apparent that the BAR 005 was not going to perform as well as it did in Australia, despite using the revised Honda engine that was ruled out in the first race after two failures. Still, Button was not too far from the top, especially considering he pushed too hard on his flying lap, making two errors in the last sectors. The Briton managed to outqualify teammate Jacques Villeneuve, which considering their war of words over the past weeks, must have left him satisfied.

10. Olivier Panis Saturday time: 1:38.094
Friday Qualifying: 14th, 1:36.995

Like the BAR team, Toyota failed to keep the impressive pace showed in Australia, although both squads managed to stay ahead of the following pack, which includes the Jordan and the Jaguars. The Japanese squad, however, recovered well from a difficult Saturday filled with problems. With set-up problems on Friday, and after suffering an engine failure in practice, Panis' tenth fastest time was a promising effort.

11. Cristiano da Matta Saturday time: 1:38.097
Friday Qualifying: 11th, 1:36.706

Like his teammate Panis, the CART champion had a troubled Saturday but still managed to put on a good performance in only his first visit to the Sepang circuit. Da Matta was forced to switch to the spare car for the grid-deciding session after a problem with the clutch of his racing car during the 15-minute warm-up. Just three thousands of a second slower than Panis was a good showing. "Considering that I changed cars and that it's my first Malaysian GP, I am happy with eleventh place, but it could have been even better," he said.

12. Jacques Villeneuve Saturday time: 1:38.289
Friday Qualifying: 15th, 1:37.585

The Canadian was unable to repeat his Australian Grand Prix performance in Sepang, and even had to cope with the "weak" Button outqualifying him both on Friday and Saturday. After struggling with the balance of the Honda-powered car on Friday, Villeneuve was happier with the handling of the 005 in second qualifying, but an error at the hairpin during his flying lap cost him valuable time.

13. Heinz-Harald Frentzen Saturday time: 1:38.291
Friday Qualifying: 8th, 1:36.615

On a much heavier car than teammate Heidfeld, Frentzen could do nothing to get into the top ten despite claiming his flying lap, which was error-free, was pretty much on the limit. The German, however, was relying on a similar strategy to the one used in Melbourne to get into a point-scoring position for the second time.

14. Giancarlo Fisichella Saturday time: 1:38.416
Friday Qualifying: 12th, 1:36.759

For the second consecutive race, the Jordan EJ13 proved to be disappointing despite the best efforts of Fisichella. Thinking about the race, the Silverstone-based squad opted for the harder Bridgestone compound, and the fast Italian driver could not manage a position within the top ten. "The lap was okay," said Fisichella. "We have chosen to go with the hard tyres which maybe is not fantastic for qualifying but it could be good for tomorrow. So I hope the race will be a better reflection of our potential."

15. Antonio Pizzonia Saturday time: 1:38.516
Friday Qualifying: 20th, no time

Hit all weekend by a fuel pick-up problem for which Jaguar had to find a quick temporary fix, and after failing to complete his flying lap on Friday, Pizzonia's 15th fastest time was a reasonable pleasing result. The Brazilian rookie was forced to go out on track in first place, which played against him, but still managed to outqualifying teammate Mark Webber, although the Australian was running on a heavier fuel load.

16. Mark Webber Saturday time: 1:38.624
Friday Qualifying: 16th, 1:37.669

Despite a heavy load of fuel on board Webber claimed he could have gone faster on his flying lap, and his impressive fifth fastest time in the second sector suggests he was right. The first and third sectors, however, were very slow and the Australian had to be content with a place behind his own teammate after losing some three tenths of a second at the final hairpin.

17. Ralf Schumacher Saturday time: 1:38.789
Friday Qualifying: 13th, 1:36.805

"I shouldn't be eight tenths away from my teammate. It's clear that I have to get used to this new qualifying system," said Ralf after another disappointing performance under the new qualifying system. The Williams driver, who had already struggled with the one-lap shootout in Australia, lost all his chances of a repeat win in Sepang before the race started. Apart from suffering from all sorts of balance problems during his flying lap, Schumacher showed he is finding hard to adjust to the new format.

18. Jos Verstappen Saturday time: 1:40.417
Friday Qualifying: 18th, 1:38.904

Despite a strong chance of rain for Sunday, the Minardi team this time opted to complete their qualifying runs, and both Verstappen and Wilson did a pretty good job that earned them the bonus of outqualifying a Jordan, which is probably the most the Minardi drivers can hope for in qualifying when opting for a logical race strategy. Verstappen had problems with the balance of his car, but his flying lap was clean.

19. Justin Wilson Saturday time: 1:40.599
Friday Qualifying: 19th, 1:39.354

Like his teammate, Wilson did a respectable job, finishing less then two tenths of a second behind the Dutchman. On a day when Minardi had more to celebrate for Alonso's pole than for their own performance, rookie Wilson showed he is a good match to Verstappen with a solid performance.

20. Ralph Firman Saturday time: 1:40.910
Friday Qualifying: 17th, 1:38.240

Affected by oversteering and a poor grip, Firman's performance proved to be somewhat disappointing despite benefitting from the Friday testing hours to get to terms with the technical Malaysian track. The British rookie, who finished 1.5 second off Fisichella's pace, was however the man with the heaviest car after opting for a one-stop strategy.

The Race

As it had happened on the previous two days, the threat of a tropical storm was just that, a threat, and despite some clouds covering the Sepang circuit, there were no fears of rain and so, unlike in Australia, Formula One's new rules were under pressure to show the first race's success had not been a fluke.

Before the start of the race, there were problems for three drivers. Like in qualifying, Cristiano da Matta was forced to switch to the spare car and start from the pitlane. Jacques Villeneuve was not so lucky, and after his car developed an electrical problem that damaged the gearbox, the BAR driver was unable to even begin the parade lap. The third driver hit by problems was Fernando Alonso, who woke up with a high fever that, added to the boiling track temperature, didn't make things easy for the Spaniard.

Nevertheless, come the start of the race Alonso was very quick off the line and managed to easily stay ahead of Trulli at the first corner. The Italian, who had managed to keep Coulthard at bay at the end of the straight, would suffer in the hands of Michael Schumacher, as the German was too optimistic going into the second corner and tried to dive down the inside of Trulli, where there was not enough room. As a consequence, the Ferrari touched the rear left wheel of the Renault, sending Trulli into a spin, and which also damaged Schumacher's front wing.

Trulli dropped to the back of the field, Schumacher lost several positions and was forced to come into the pits to change his front wing, and Barrichello, who had almost came to a stop to avoid Trulli, slipped down the order. That, however, was not the only drama at the first corner, as Antonio Pizzonia, claiming he had been pushed from behind, crashed into the back of Montoya, tearing off the Colombian's rear wing, who lost three laps while his mechanics replaced it.

After the first lap chaos, Alonso was left alone in the lead, followed by Coulthard, Heidfeld, Raikkonen, Button, Barrichello, Panis and a fast-starting Wilson who, as in Australia, had managed to climb up the field after a very good start.

Alonso's road was paved even further when Coulthard retired on lap three when his McLaren was hit by an electrical problem that left the Scot fuming. "Time and time again we park the car, and it is just not good enough," he said after leaving Raikkonen in second place. The Finn, who had moved ahead of Heidfeld with a nice move at the end of the straight, was around six seconds behind Alonso. Barrichello, meanwhile, was also moving up the field, having overtaken Panis and then Button.

Schumacher, who had rejoined the race in 14th place, received another blow to his chances when he was penalised for an avoidable collision and had to come back into the pits for a drive-through that relegated him further back. His brother Ralf, meanwhile, was moving up the field, and by lap 10 he was already seventh.

At the top of the field Raikkonen began to close the gap on Alonso, whose softer tyres began to lost their edge, while Barrichello moved up to third after passing Heidfeld, who was among the first men to stop for fuel. The Sauber driver, however, stalled his car when trying to rejoin and dropped back the order.

With a gap of less than four seconds Alonso made his first stop on lap 14, standing still for 9.2 second behind returning to the track in fourth position ahead of Ralf, who was under pressure from Trulli, having charged his way through the field at spectacular speed. The Renault driver dived into the pits on lap 16, falling back to ninth position.

Raikkonen stayed in the lead until lap 19, suggesting that the Renault driver had not used a lot less fuel than their main rivals in qualifying. The McLaren driver had a good stop, rejoining the race ahead of Alonso, and began to open the gap as the Spaniard struggled to match the Finn's pace. Raikkonen's pitstop allowed Barrichello to move into the lead before he too came into the pits on lap 22, coming back out in third place behind Alonso, who was already close to ten seconds behind Raikkonen.

At the halfway point Raikkonen had extended his lead to nearly 13 seconds over Alonso, who was fighting with a faulty gearbox that forced him to change gears manually. Barrichello was some 3.5 seconds behind the Spaniard and closing the gap, while Ralf had already moved up to a distant fourth and was followed by Button, Trulli and Heidfeld, with Schumacher Senior back in ninth.

Cristiano da Matta, who was running ahead of Schumacher, triggered the second round of pitstops on lap 33, and was quickly followed by Button and Heidfeld. Two laps later Alonso come in for his second stop, which cleared the way for Barrichello, who by then already right behind the Renault driver. The Spaniard enjoyed another clean stop and returned to the race in third place. Teammate Trulli pitted next, and after some problems with the fuel rig, the Italian was back on track in sixth position.

Three laps free of traffic were enough for Barrichello to be able to pit for the second time and rejoin the race ahead of Alonso, who continued to drop back but who was able to stay free of pressure from fourth-placed Ralf Schumacher. Raikkonen, miles ahead of his rivals, pitted next and returned to the track some 20 seconds clear of Barrichello.

The real action was taking place behind the leaders, where Schumacher was fighting with Trulli for fourth place. This time, the Ferrari driver managed to overtake the Italian cleanly and immediately set his sights on Button, whose tyres were losing grip at an alarming rate. Schumacher overtook Button moments later, only to drop to seventh place when he pitted for the fourth time on lap 41.

With 10 laps to go, Raikkonen continued to driver flawlessly in the lead, running some 30 seconds ahead of Barrichello and nearly 45 ahead of Alonso. Ralf was fourth, while fifth-placed Button was under pressure from Trulli until the Italian spun at the final hairpin. He was able to continue the race, and such was the state of Button's tyres that it didn't take long before Trulli was back under the BAR's rear wing.

Trulli's error and Button's pace allowed Schumacher to close the gap during the final laps of the race, and both the Italian and German were able to overtake a struggling Button on the final lap, relegating the Briton to seventh position.

Up in front, Raikkonen was able to cruise home to score his first Grand Prix win to the delight of his team boss, who was nearly crying when the Finn crossed under the chequered flag. As usual, the calm and collected Raikkonen showed little emotion. "It is difficult to say how I feel," Raikkonen said with a timid smile. "Tomorrow morning I will really realise I won my first race."

Barrichello came home second, while Alonso's third place completed the youngest ever podium in the history on F1. "It's the best weekend in my life probably," said a delighted Alonso, also the youngest man on a podium. "To be the youngest also to have pole position is a good thing and I hope to be the youngest driver to win a race... maybe the youngest driver to win the World Championship."

Ralf, after recovering from a dismal qualifying, went on to finish in a distant fourth place ahead of Trulli and Schumacher, who stayed philosophical after two troubled races and two uncommon mistakes. "It was a tough race with an unfortunate start," said Schumacher. "I made a mistake and hit Jarno and I have apologised to him. That was the decisive moment of my race."

Although Schumacher's error in Australia had nothing to do with the new rules, the Malaysian race proved that the new system is likely to shake things up. And, as artificial as it may be, when a top driver starts from a position he is not accustomed to the action is almost guaranteed. That, and the coming of age of the new wave of drivers, is likely to produce a lot of action-packed races this year. Nonetheless, regardless of how exciting the 2003 proves to be, the Malaysian Grand Prix demonstrated that at least the sport will be in good hands when Schumacher's era come to an end.

Race Results

CLASSIFIED

Pos  Driver        Team-Engine       Tyres   Time        
 1.  Raikkonen     McLaren Mercedes  (M)     1h32:22.195
 2.  Barrichello   Ferrari           (B)     +    39.286
 3.  Alonso        Renault           (M)     +  1:04.007
 4.  R.Schumacher  Williams BMW      (M)     +  1:08.026
 5.  Trulli        Renault           (M)     1 lap      
 6.  M.Schumacher  Ferrari           (B)     1 lap      
 7.  Button        BAR Honda         (B)     1 lap      
 8.  Heidfeld      Sauber Petronas   (B)     1 lap      
 9.  Frentzen      Sauber Petronas   (B)     1 lap      
10.  Firman        Jordan Ford       (B)     1 lap      
11.  da Matta      Toyota            (M)     1 lap      
12.  Montoya       Williams BMW      (M)     3 laps     
13.  Verstappen    Minardi Cosworth  (B)     4 laps     
 
Fastest Lap: M.Schumacher, 1:36.412, lap 46

Not Classified/Retirements:

Driver        Team                     On Lap
Pizzonia      Jaguar Cosworth   (M)     43
Wilson        Minardi Cosworth  (B)     42
Webber        Jaguar Cosworth   (M)     36
Panis         Toyota            (M)     13
Coulthard     McLaren Mercedes  (M)      3
Fisichella    Jordan Ford       (B)    DNS
Villeneuve    BAR Honda         (B)    DNS


World Championship Standing, Round 2:                

Drivers:                    Constructors:             
 1. Raikkonen     16      1. McLaren-Mercedes  26
 2. Coulthard     10      2. Ferrari           16
 3. Montoya        8      =  Renault           16
 =  Barrichello    8      4. Williams-BMW      14
 =  Alonso         8      5. Sauber             4
 =  M.Schumacher   8      6. BAR-Honda          2
 =  Trulli         8                             
 8. R.Schumacher   6                                                      
 9. Frentzen       3
10. Button         2
11. Heidfeld       1                             

Pos  Driver        Team                  Lap  Time              
 1.  M.Schumacher  Ferrari          (B)  45   1:36.412         
 2.  Barrichello   Ferrari          (B)  24   1:36.542  + 0.130
 3.  Raikkonen     McLaren-Mercedes (M)  10   1:36.764  + 0.352
 4.  Alonso        Renault          (M)  12   1:37.078  + 0.666
 5.  Trulli        Renault          (M)  53   1:37.484  + 1.072
 6.  Montoya       Williams-BMW     (M)  26   1:37.787  + 1.375
 7.  Coulthard     McLaren-Mercedes (M)   2   1:38.021  + 1.609
 8.  R.Schumacher  Williams-BMW     (M)  24   1:38.071  + 1.659
 9.  da Matta      Toyota           (M)  35   1:38.156  + 1.744
10.  Panis         Toyota           (M)   7   1:38.176  + 1.764
11.  Button        BAR-Honda        (B)  10   1:38.413  + 2.001
12.  Webber        Jaguar-Cosworth  (M)   6   1:38.464  + 2.052
13.  Heidfeld      Sauber-Petronas  (B)   9   1:38.528  + 2.116
14.  Pizzonia      Jaguar-Cosworth  (M)   3   1:38.572  + 2.160
15.  Frentzen      Sauber-Petronas  (B)  19   1:39.287  + 2.875
16.  Firman        Jordan-Ford      (B)  14   1:39.665  + 3.253
17.  Verstappen    Minardi-Cosworth (B)   3   1:39.667  + 3.255
18.  Wilson        Minardi-Cosworth (B)  12   1:39.752  + 3.340

Pos  Driver        Team                  Time      Lap
 1.  M.Schumacher  Ferrari          (B)    24.113   9 
 2.  Panis         Toyota           (M)    34.161  12
 3.  R.Schumacher  Williams-BMW     (M)    34.311  40
 4.  M.Schumacher  Ferrari          (B)    34.705  26
 5.  Barrichello   Ferrari          (B)    34.879  38
 6.  R.Schumacher  Williams-BMW     (M)    35.099  22
 7.  M.Schumacher  Ferrari          (B)    35.171  43
 8.  Raikkonen     McLaren-Mercedes (M)    35.234  40
 9.  Barrichello   Ferrari          (B)    35.338  22
10.  Frentzen      Sauber-Petronas  (B)    35.623  35
11.  Heidfeld      Sauber-Petronas  (B)    35.669  34
12.  Button        BAR-Honda        (B)    35.888  17
13.  Trulli        Renault          (M)    35.894  16
14.  da Matta      Toyota           (M)    36.382  48
15.  Alonso        Renault          (M)    36.418  35
16.  Alonso        Renault          (M)    36.520  14
17.  Pizzonia      Jaguar-Cosworth  (M)    37.044  19
18.  Pizzonia      Jaguar-Cosworth  (M)    37.199  38
19.  Raikkonen     McLaren-Mercedes (M)    37.350  19
20.  M.Schumacher  Ferrari          (B)    37.480   3
21.  da Matta      Toyota           (M)    37.502  17
22.  Verstappen    Minardi-Cosworth (B)    37.912  10
23.  Button        BAR-Honda        (B)    38.422  34
24.  Montoya       Williams-BMW     (M)    38.546  28
25.  Verstappen    Minardi-Cosworth (B)    39.098  31
26.  Wilson        Minardi-Cosworth (B)    39.556  35
27.  da Matta      Toyota           (M)    42.491  33
28.  Frentzen      Sauber-Petronas  (B)    46.067  17
29.  Trulli        Renault          (M)    50.029  36
30.  Heidfeld      Sauber-Petronas  (B)    50.283  13
31.  Wilson        Minardi-Cosworth (B)    50.327  13
32.  Pizzonia      Jaguar-Cosworth  (M)    54.484   1
33.  Firman        Jordan-Ford      (B)    55.468  22
34.  Webber        Jaguar-Cosworth  (M)  1:07.590  15
35.  Verstappen    Minardi-Cosworth (B)  2:46.858   1
36.  Montoya       Williams-BMW     (M)  4:06.282   1

Lap 56: Kimi Raikkonen wins his first race well clear of Rubens Barrichello while Fernando becomes the first Spaniard to be on the podium since Fon de Portago was second at the British GP in 1956. Ralf Schumacher is fourth, the last man unlapped. On the last lap Trulli and M Schumacher are both able to pass Button to finish fifth and sixth, while Frentzen is able to scramble ahead of Firman to grab ninth place.