Italian Grand Prix Review

For the second time in three races, and for the third time this year (fourth if you count Austria), Rubens Barrichello beat Michael Schumacher in a fair fight. Or did he? There were dark mumblings after the race that the Ferrari drivers had contrived this result to bolster the Brazilian's chances of coming 2nd in the championship. There is no doubt that after Barrichello's 2nd stop, when he emerged in front of Michael on a one-stop plan, the Ferraris immediately stopped battling, but were they ever racing at all?

If they weren't, then Michael Schumacher is more of a genius than we realised. He managed to get himself boxed behind the Williams at the start so that Rubens could sneak ahead into the Retafilio. He managed to set his car up slightly worse than Rubinho, so that he could run wide onto the dirt on several occasions, including one at the second Lesmo in particular. And he managed to set his fastest second sector time on the lap Barrichello came in for his second stop, and still not do enough to get by.

Ferrari were of course aided by yet another superbly inept Williams challenge on Sunday. Williams can talk the talk in qualifying, as Juan-Pablo Montoya showed by setting a scorching pole lap, the fastest (on average speed) in history, but they just can't walk the talk on race day. Seven poles but not a single win for JPM says it all about Williams (and Michelin) in 2002. Last year, Michael won 9 times and set 11 poles. This year he has won 10 times, but only set 5 poles. There's a lesson in that.

There's also a lesson in how the Ferrari drivers work together, unlike JPM and Ralf Schumacher. Like at the Nurburgring, the way they fought into turn one was simply absurd. JPM did get a horror start whereas Ralf launched off beautifully. They boxed in Michael and Rubens, and it ought to have been a dream getaway. But as they got deeper and deeper into the braking zone, neither giving an inch nor showing any common sense in the interests of the team, you knew it was going to end in tears.

That the stewards asked Ralf to let JPM by as his punishment for cutting the Retafilio was a sensible move. It's what drivers who cut chicanes and gain an advantage tend to do these days anyway. His subsequent engine blow-up was just one of those things, but a mild surprise nonetheless. Michael's 100% finishing record aside, Ralf has had the best reliability all year, and, going into Monza, Williams just shaved Ferrari in the reliability stakes. Matters little, though, if they can't turn that into race-winning results.

In relation to those speed humps at the Retafilio, some drivers complained that they were potentially dangerous, in that they could damage the cars or launch them into the air. But wasn't that the whole point of them? They were meant to stop drivers from cutting the chicane; if the best drivers in the world can't slow down in time, they ought to suffer the consequences. F1 drivers should not be allowed to push the envelope the contravene the rules, such as by cutting chicanes, with impunity.

David Coulthard was never in the hunt. After having his front win taken off inadvertently by his team-mate in the Retafilio and dropping to the back of the field, points were always going to be hard to come by, especially when he didn't really have the grunt to take advantage of the slipstream opportunities. Worse still, he had been out-qualified by Raikkonen yet again, and also by Irvine's Jaguar after the Ulsterman had publicly dissed him in the press during the week.

So a bad weekend for McLaren, simple as that, but perhaps the best race meeting yet in Jaguar's history, and an amazing turnaround in fortunes considering their embarrassment at the start of the year. Proving over recent races that in low downforce set-up, and with improved aerodynamics generally, the R3B was increasingly competitive, both Irvine and Pedro de la Rosa were 'best of the rest' after the top three teams all weekend. Eddie's eventual 5th starting spot was his best for the Big Cat so far.

The result lifted Jaguar into 6th in the constructors' title, and perhaps de la Rosa would have been in the points too. Sadly, he also lost time at the start cutting the Retafilio, and ended up being involved in an ill-fated midfield tussle with Felipe Massa, the man fast becoming F1's maddest nutcase since, um, Andrea de Cesaris perhaps. We never saw exactly what happened between those two, but the eventual incident earned Massa a ten-spot demotion down the Indianapolis grid.

Of course Felipe was pleading his innocence, but de la Rosa is an honest, clean racer, and it was no surprise that the stewards believed the Spaniard's version. Massa has been quick in 2002, but a top driver needs both speed and discretion. Out of Sauber for next year, his manager claims he has a definite race seat for 2003. Either his manager is risking being embarrassed, or some other team (Toyota?) is taking a risk on Felipe. Either way, not for the first time this year, Massa gets our 'Reject of the Race' award.

Apart from Jaguar, the other team to gain on race day was Renault, but their eventual 4th and 5th seemed remote after qualifying, when Jarno Trulli was only 11th quickest and Jenson Button 17th. But after a brave and enterprising early one-stop strategy, both blue and yellow cars moved into the points, improving to their final positions when Olivier Panis' BAR made its second stop. It was all the more amazing considering that Trulli had started from the back of the grid after getting off the dummy grid late.

Button admitted afterwards that he needed to improve his qualifying performances, the only area where he has lost out to Trulli this year. But frankly, knowing the way Flavio Briatore works, since Jenson is on way out he may not always get a fair chance any more. Recent race performances, though, are starting - only just - to justify Renault's choice to stick with Trulli. From last to 4th was a fantastic effort of consistent and forceful racing, words which anyone has rarely, if ever, associated with the Italian.

REJECT OF THE RACE
Felipe Massa
Collision with PDLR puts him 10 spots back at Indy

Jordan had a lacklustre weekend, for a team that won this race in 1999. The combination of Bridgestone tyres and weak Honda engine was always going to struggle at Monza, but Jordan couldn't even match BAR. Sato's qualifying smash added to his list of broken cars, but at least this one wasn't his fault. Giancarlo Fisichella went for a very late one-stop plan, and was up to as high as 4th, but was never likely to finish higher than 7th, which he lost to Coulthard anyway despite some impressively resolute defending.

Not unexpectedly Toyota did very well at Monza, their great engine able to stretch its legs. Allan McNish had one of his most impressive races of what looks like being a short F1 career, up to 6th early on and able to hold off Panis and team-mate Mika Salo. That despite the fact that, while dynamite on the straights, McNish was slowest of all, even slower than Alex Yoong, in the second sector - the twisty bits - which says it all about the Toyota's deficiencies this year.

Yoong was back in the Minardi this weekend, and whilst staying close to Mark Webber on Friday, when it mattered he was still miles off the pace. No surprises there. Both drivers then suffered problems in the race which put Webber out and dropped Yoong to 6 laps down by the end. Development seems to have stopped long ago on the PS02 as the team looks to 2003. Paul Stoddart already has an engine deal lined up, and he says the engine was on the podium here. Would be nice if it's a Ferrari, but it'll probably be a Cosworth.

The innovative Monza podium, perched over the pit lane, made for a terrific spectacle as the three tifosi heroes (Irvine included) stood aloft as the crowd swarmed in. In what has been a dreary season, apart from Webber's 5th place in Melbourne this was perhaps the most feel-good moment of the season. But anywhere other than at Monza, a Ferrari 1-2 would definitely not be a dream result right now. It's high time another team won a race, and perhaps Indianapolis will be the place where it happens.