![]() The 2002 Japanese GP Review
By Pablo Elizalde, Spain
Atlas F1 News Editor
The Japanese Grand Prix marked the end of the 2002 season, and to further confirm a close to perfect season, World Champion Michael Schumacher scored his 11th win of the year, securing Ferrari's 15th victory and their ninth one-two thanks to Rubens Barrichello's second place. The Ferrari men, however, were outshadowed by a small Japanese driver who made the crowd go wild. Atlas F1's Pablo Elizalde reviews the entire weekend's events and results from the final race of the year
As the German five-time champion said after the race, the results speak for themselves: 15 wins out of 17 races, nine one-twos, 221 points for Ferrari - the same amount that all the other teams combined - and nearly 7,000 kms without a single retirement for Schumacher which, considering Ferrari's level of competitiveness, can probably be considered as the most impressive of all the records that the dominant team have broken this year.
Finishing all the races in a season is already a highly impressive feat. Doing it by clinching a podium finish in every one of them is a breathless achievement whose magnitude will only be fully appreciated in the future, when Formula One and its fans shake off the feeling of boredom and disappointment left by a season that will be remembered for its wrongs as much as for its rights.
Ferrari antics throughout the year, the financial problems of some teams, several political issues, and above all, a very worrying lack of racing, turned 2002 into a season Formula One could have done without. Proposals like the driver-swapping or the weight penalties are only a reflection of how badly F1 needs a change, especially when those proposals come from the same men who, in the past years, have claimed that the sport was exciting enough for the casual observer.
Once more, the race belonged to Schumacher and Ferrari, the German putting on another majestic display of supremacy to clinch his 11th win of the season. Schumacher and Rubens Barrichello did not need to break a sweat, the Japanese circuit highlighting the superiority of the Ferrari package, to score their fifth consecutive one-two in Ferrari's most successful season ever.
"We could not ask for more," said Jean Todt after the race. "Fifteen wins, nine one-twos. Michael taking his third consecutive world title with Ferrari after 11 races and Ferrari taking their fourth consecutive Constructors' Championship after 13 races.
"Rubens took second place in the drivers' classification with one race to go and we have scored 221 points which is the same as all the other teams put together. It's hard to imagine anything better."
Hard indeed, and unless things go extremely wrong for the opposition, it's all going to be downhill from now on for Ferrari. Rivals, fans and promoters will certainly be knocking on wood to avoid Ferrari from repeating another season like this.
Of the two, McLaren look like the team on the up, and especially in qualifying the Woking-based squad proved to hold the upper hand over Williams. David Coulthard was the closest of the Ferrari rivals on Saturday, and the race was a similar affair, with Kimi Raikkonen finishing the season just like he had started it: on the podium.
After the Scot had retired with mechanical problems very early on, the Finn battled, although in the pits, with Ralf Schumacher - who was the quicker of the Williams drivers all weekend - and eventually emerged on top while the German retired with an engine problem. Unlike last year, Juan Pablo Montoya failed to shine at Suzuka, enduring a very anonymous Grand Prix.
If Michael Schumacher and Raikkonen finished the season like they had started it, the same could be said about a rookie driver who made the headlines on a day dominated by Ferrari. Mark Webber in his home Australian Grand Prix upstaged Schumacher in the opening race of the year to the delight of the Aussie fans.
As it had happened with Webber in Australia, the Japanese crowd went wild while celebrating the first point-scoring finish from one of their drivers since 1997. Whether his performance was enough to secure his seat at the team in 2003 only time will tell, but the much-needed boost certainly did not do any harm to Sato's chances.
"It makes a big difference," said a relieved Jordan after his team moved from eighth to sixth in the standings thanks to Sato's points. "Eighth is not somewhere where Jordan would like to be, we had to fight for sixth. It wasn't a great season, but it was a great ending."
Qualifying
With two years of his current contract with Ferrari still to run, and with the clear intention of staying in Formula One "quite a while longer", 15 more pole positions are something feasible for Schumacher, and more so if Ferrari can keep their current form into 2003.
On a circuit that highlights the efficiency of the Ferrari chassis and the power of its engine, Schumacher was in a class of his own once more, clinching his fifth consecutive pole position at Suzuka and the seventh out of the 12 Grands Prix he has taken part in. Schumacher only needed three of his four runs to beat teammate Rubens Barrichello by nearly half a second and to leave David Coulthard trailing by more than seven tenths as Ferrari secured their sixth front row lock out of 2002.
Benefitting from the latest tyres from Bridgestone, who were determined to dominate in their 100th Grand Prix in front of their home crowd, Schumacher also lapped more than a second faster than last year's pole position, although the circuit had been shortened some 100 feet compared to the 2001 version.
"We have a great car and that allows us to do what we are doing, which is to be faster, after all the development that Bridgestone has done it is no surprise either," said Schumacher after grabbing his seventh pole position of the season. "Basically it is great fun to throw the car through the 'esses' and to do the times we do."
Despite the lack of excitement in the fight for the top spot, qualifying saw a dramatic moment, as Toyota's Allan McNish careered off the track right after the 130R corner at around 260km/h to slam into the barriers. The Scot's car, as well as the barrier, was destroyed, but McNish was lucky enough to hit the guardrails backwards, escaping with only a few bruises.
"Basically, everything felt good through the 130R corner but the car suddenly snapped into a big oversteer and I reversed heavily into the barrier," he explained, and was forced to sit out the remaining part of the session. "My natural instinct after the crash was just to make sure everything was still in working order and thankfully it is.
"I have got to see the medical crew tomorrow morning for a check-up but I am confident for tomorrow. The best thing is to get back in the cockpit as soon as possible."
The Brazilian could do nothing to match the pace of Schumacher this time, although he could have been closer to the German, as he made a mistake at the final chicane in what turned out to be his quickest lap of the day. But Schumacher too claimed he could have gone faster.
David Coulthard was the best of the rest with the quickest of the McLarens, outqualifying teammate Kimi Raikkonen despite being one of the many drivers who lost one run due to McNish's accident. The Scot, however, was not expecting to be able to challenge the almighty Ferrari in the race.
"P3 is what you are aiming for in these circumstances as the best Michelin runner, but I don't think we can race the Ferraris," he said. Raikkonen, who had topped the times on Friday, managed to complete a good final run that saw him leapfrogging ahead of the two Williams drivers with only seconds of the session remaining.
Jordan's Takuma Sato sprung the surprise of the day with his best ever performance in front of his home crowd. The Japanese rookie, whose previous best had been a 12th place at the German Grand Prix, finally displayed the speed he was expected to show after winning the British F3 championship in style last year. Sato's seventh place, just ahead of teammate Giancarlo Fisichella, made him the quickest of the Honda runners, to the delight of the manufacturer and the crowd.
"The car was good, I was comfortable and drove exactly as I wanted to," he said. "I just nailed it! The fan support here is superb, they reacted as if I had won the race and it was just qualifying. Realistically the race is still going to be tough, but my target is to score points."
Jacques Villeneuve completed a good day for Honda, the Canadian setting the ninth fastest time with the BAR, just ahead of Jenson Button in his final race with the Renault team.
The Race
"I think I went out with style but this is not quite the way that we wanted," the Scot said. "For myself and also for all the Japanese fans it is a great disappointment because we wanted our two Toyotas as far up in the race as possible. They've got one to support now."
Before the start of the race there were also problems for Giancarlo Fisichella, whose Honda engine gave up before he was able to get his car to the starting grid. The Jordan driver was forced to rush back to the pits to get the spare machine, which did not include the latest Honda spec engine.
With no more problems the start took place under a clear sky, and pole-setter Michael Schumacher made a fantastic getaway and got miles ahead of teammate Rubens Barrichello when they braked for the first corner. The Brazilian was able to keep David Coulthard at bay, while Ralf Schumacher managed to move up to fourth ahead of Kimi Raikkonen. Juan Pablo Montoya kept sixth place ahead of Takuma Sato, the Jordan driver followed by the Renaults of Jarno Trulli and Jenson Button.
The Sauber driver, returning to Grand Prix action after skipping the US Grand Prix due to the penalty imposed at Monza, would not stay in the race much longer, going off the track on the following lap, crashing against the tyre barriers in his final race for the Swiss squad.
"I got my car over the kerb exiting the Degner Curve and then I lost a bit of downforce as I was right behind Villeneuve so I just couldn't get back on the road," the rookie explained. "I'm disappointed to finish my last race for the team this way."
Up in front of the field, Schumacher began to open a gap to Barrichello, who at the same time was running faster than Coulthard. By lap five of the race, the Ferrari World Champion was nearly four seconds ahead of his teammate, while the Scot McLaren driver was already eight seconds adrift and followed closely by Ralf. Coulthard, however, would be hit by problems only two laps later, retiring from the race.
"I lost throttle at turn nine which I was told was due to a failure on one bank of the control system," Coulthard said. "I was able to get the car back to the garage but there was nothing the team could do."
The leader did not come into the pits until five laps later, when the German was already more than seven seconds ahead of Barrichello are around 25 ahead of his brother Ralf. Schumacher senior pitted for 9.4 seconds and came back out right in front of his younger brother. Barrichello was next to pit, rejoining in fourth spot, and was followed by Sato, now running in the points.
The Japanese star, however, returned to the track behind the two Renault drivers, who had benefitted from his early stop to gain on the Jordan. Raikkonen, following Ralf closely, was unable to get ahead of the German after both had made their stops, the Williams crew being more than a second quicker than the McLaren mechanics. Montoya was the final front runner to come into the pits, the Colombian rejoining in a lonely fifth place.
Once everybody had made their first stop, the order at the top of the field remained unchanged, with only Trulli gaining a position that allowed him to move into the top six.
Unaltered, Schumacher continued to increase his lead to over eight seconds to Barrichello when the second round of pitstops was again triggered by a Renault driver. This time it was seventh-place Button who pitted first. Trulli would have followed him on the next lap, but the Italian's car came to a halt right after the bridge, allowing Button to gain one position.
Sato also benefitted from the retirement of Trulli and, thanks to an increased pace after his first stop, the Japanese driver managed to emerge ahead of Button following his second stop on lap 33. After Schumacher and Barrichello pitted five laps later, the order in front remained the same, with the German leading the Brazilian by more than ten seconds.
The battle for third place also remained unchanged, Ralf staying ahead of Raikkonen, with Montoya still in a solitaire fourth in front of Sato, who had managed to open a comfortable gap to Button. The Briton, however, would move into the points with five laps remaining, when the BMW engine of Ralf's Williams exploded, depriving him of his first podium finish since the Hungarian Grand Prix.
His brother Michael allowed Barrichello to get close in the final moments of the race, but this time there was no repeat of the Indianapolis farce, and the German driver crossed clearly ahead of his teammate to secure his 11th win of the year and to seal the perfect season in the perfect way, and not even Schumacher himself is expecting to be able to repeat this year's feat.
"I expect next season to be tougher as the other teams get closer," he said. "That will be a challenge. I still think we will be in the fight for the titles and winning races but maybe we will not win races so consistently. But we don't need to be as dominant as long as we still win."
Raikkonen completed the podium for McLaren, with a disappointed Montoya crossing the line in fourth place more than half a minute behind the Ferraris. Schumacher's joy, however, was nothing compared to fifth-place man Takuma Sato, who grabbed his first Formula One points in style to the delight of the 155,000 fans that crowded the Japanese circuit.
"Unbelievable. Really incredible," said the 25-year old. "Right from the start the fans were waving flags and whatever, the whole race for 50 laps. I could see it. That meant so much to me. I could drive very comfortably, be very confident in every corner. That was a great feeling really."
Despite the powers-that-be trying to change the face of Formula One with unprecedented, and probably unrealistic, ideas, Ferrari's rivals know that it's hard work, and not knee-jerk policies, what will bring them closer to the Italian squad and help the sport recover the lost excitement. They have more than four months to turn things around.
Lap 1: At the start of the race the frontrunners all get away well and the order as they go into the first corner is Michael Schumacher, Rubens Barrichello, David Coulthard, Ralf Schumacher, who gets ahead of Kimi Raikkonen, Juan Pablo Montoya, Takuma Sato and Jarno Trulli, the Italian up from 11th on the grid. He is followed by Jenson Button. The big losers are Fisichella who drops from eighth on the grid to 11th and Villeneuve who falls from ninth to 14th after an off in the course of the lap. At the end of the first lap Schumacher is 2.2 seconds ahead of Barrichello.
Lap 2: Villeneuve overtakes Felipe Massa to move up to 13th place.
Lap 4: At the front Michael Schumacher increases his lead to 3.5 seconds. Barrichello's lead over Coulthard is 3.1 seconds. Massa gets too close to Villeneuve and loses downforce and goes off at the Degner Curve. The Sauber then bounces over the gravel and Massa is unable to avoid going into the barriers. He is out.
Lap 7: After five fastest laps in seven laps, Schumacher's lead is up to 4.1 seconds. Coulthard slows and comes into the pits to retire. This promotes Ralf Schumacher to third, Raikkonen to fourth, Montoya to fifth and Sato into sixth.
Lap 9: Yoong has a spin in the Spoon Curve and falls behind his team mate Mark Webber.
Lap 15: Trulli is the first runner to pit, dropping from seventh place to 14th. At the back of the field Yoong spins off and retires.
Lap 16: Button stops and drops from seventh to 14th, mirroring Trulli.
Lap 18: Schumacher's lead over Barrichello is up to seven seconds while Rubens is 17 seconds ahead of Ralf Schumacher. Mika Salo, in the single Toyota, pits and falls back from ninth place to 14th.
Lap 19: The pit stops continue as seventh-placed Nick Heidfeld and ninth-placed Villeneuve both pit.
Lap 21: Barrichello stops and falls behind both Ralf Schumacher and Raikkonen. Sato also pits and Eddie Irvine moves to sixth. Pedro de la Rosa also pits.
Lap 22: Raikkonen and Irvine both pit for the first time. At the tail of the field Webber also pits.
Lap 24: Ralf Schumacher pits and so the Ferraris go back to first and second places with Montoya third. Ralf Schumacher is fourth with Raikkonen and Trulli completing the top six.
Lap 25: Montoya is the last man to pit. He drops from third to fifth and the order stabilises with the only major change from the first stint being that both Jordans have dropped places: Sato falling back from sixth to eighth and Fisichella dropping from 10th to 11th behind Salo.
Lap 28: Villeneuve, who is running 12th, retires with a blown engine.
Lap 32: The second pit stops begin with Button stopping.
Lap 33: Trulli pulls off with a mechanical failure and so Sato moves back to sixth position with Heidfeld seventh, Salo eighth and Fisichella ninth. The top 10 is completed by Button, but he is a lap behind.
Lap 40: De la Rosa retires with a mechanical problem.
Lap 41: Montoya is the last man to pit for the second time and the order is set again. Michael Schumacher leads Barrichello by 10 seconds, Ralf Schumacher is third with Raikkonen fourth, Montoya fifth and Sato sixth. Button is seventh. A lap down are Heidfeld, Salo and Irvine. Webber is the only other runner a further lap behind.
Lap 49: Ralf Schumacher pulls off with a mechanical problem in the Degner Curve. Raikkonen moves to third, Montoya to fourth, Sato to fifth and Button to sixth. This moves Jordan up to sixth in the Constructors' Championship ahead of BAR and Jaguar Racing.
Lap 53: Michael Schumacher wins his 11th victory of the year and Barrichello makes it a ninth 1-2 finish for Ferrari. The crowd however celebrates Sato's first points of his F1 career.
© 1995-2005 Kaizar.Com, Inc.
. This service is provided under the Atlas F1 terms and conditions.
Please Contact Us for permission to republish this or any other material from Atlas F1. |
![]() |
|