At the start, Rubens begins to get squeezed....

...which leaves Ralf spinning in the background

Whilst MS disappears up the road, Barrichello hangs on gamely

Chaotic pitstop done, the Ferrari pair hurry back to the front once more

In the heat of Malaysia Michael does his best James Dean impression

As ever, the Ferrari crew just love their winners

Pics by Ferrari

GRAND PRIX: Malaysia: Rain & Luck on Ferraris' Side
18.3.01

There will not be many Grand Prix races won by a driver who first spins off the track and then is forced to spend a minute and a half queueing in the pit lane while his crew attend to his team-mate. But somehow Michael Schumacher did just that and, in the process, used up a good portion of the luck due to him in 2001.

Schumacher, who was leading after a strong start from pole position, and Rubens Barrichello both slid off the circuit on lap three when they came across a combination of oil from Panis' blown-up BAR and a sudden cloud-burst. Both managed to avoid hitting the barriers but Barrichello flew past Schumacher whilst in ther gravel trap and then dashed into the pits for a tyre change - except the team were expecting Schumacher!

In the chaotic scene which followed, Barrichello first had Schumacher's tyres put on his car, then taken off, then a slick was put on, and finally the correct set of intermediates was fitted. Behind him, in the pitlane, Schumacher was forced to sit powerless as the seconds slipped by. Amid the panic, the team made the decision to put both drivers on to lightly-treaded intermediate tyres rather than the full wet option, gambling that a safety car would be sent out to control the speed of the field while the track was covered in water.

With the rain hammering down, the other competitors took the conservative route and chose full wets. It was to prove the wrong option. The safety car stayed out for seven laps, by which time much of the water had been dispersed.

When the race restarted, Barrichello and Schumacher were up to five seconds a lap faster than the others thanks to the superior grip of their tyres. Schumacher took his chance to pass his team-mate, a move which Barrichello rather sniffily critisised, and the pair quickly gained a stranglehold on the race. Schumacher was unrepentant about the pass: "We leave each other room not to hurt each other, but I was on a better run and I was faster as well." Schumacher took just 7 laps to move from 11th to first.

"It was my fault," said Brawn referring to Ferrari's pit-stop fiasco. "In all the confusion, with cars falling off the track, I called Michael in first and Rubens second, so we had Michael's tyres ready for Rubens. I screwed up."

"Even the driver of the safety car was having trouble staying on the track," said Barrichello. "I fell off the circuit probably two or three times on the first lap out of the pits. I am happy to have made it to the end."

Ferrari's choice of intermediate tyres brought harsh criticism from McLaren boss Ron Dennis, whose drivers Coulthard and Hakkinen finished third and sixth respectively. Dennis suggested that Ferrari's decision to opt for intermediate rather than wet tyres had put their drivers at risk. "There was no way you could take the decision to put a car on intermediate tyres in that rainfall." Coulthard though otherwise, "Maybe intermediates would have been better."

McLaren have now been outmanoeuvred by Ferrari in the first two races of the season, as much in terms of bravado as speed, but Mika Hakkinen's fastest lap in the closing stages of the race showed the car's promise. There is a long way to go in this championship.

Jean Todt: "This race demonstrated Ferrari’s and its drivers’ superiority and also that of the Bridgestone tyres. The race was action packed in the early stages with many off-track excursions and passing moves. In the second half, Michael was able to manage his lead, while Rubens, who was on a two stop strategy, picked up a great second place. We have made a very good start to the championship, but we must remain focussed. We must keep cool!"

Michael Schumacher: "That was a very exciting race! I took the spare car, because we saw some oil at the back of the race car. Actually, I preferred the T-car in the morning, so it was no problem. Then, when I went off because of the rain, I could see the barrier coming and I thought it was over. Then I saw Rubens following me off. I was lucky the car stayed in shape and there was no damage. When I came into the pits, I asked them to push Rubens forward, but I could not see he had no right front. It was my decision to fit intermediates. We knew it would be difficult at first, but they would be better when the rain eased. I managed to pass Rubens because he lost momentum in Turn 8. The conditions were atrocious and undriveable and at times the safety car was quicker than us. The rest of the season will not be as easy as this and we must keep pushing. Today we made the best of the conditions and had the right choice of tyre and set-up."

Rubens Barrichello: "I made a good start, not losing much to Michael. Then Ralf Schumacher braked very late and came round the outside. When you fight for a corner you must give the other driver some room, but he did not and we touched. Luckily, the car was not damaged. When I went off, I thought Michael was going to be in the wall. I could not slow down and I could not spin because I would have collected Michael. It was a pity I could not pit then, because I spun three or four times. Then, two laps later I was lucky not to hit Coulthard and Trulli. When the water gets under the car there is nothing you can do. My long pit stop was caused because the team fitted three of Michael’s intermediates to my car. Later in the race I had to make an extra stop to clean the gravel out of the car. I lost bits off the car which is not surprising as I went off the track a few times, but this car is very strong."

RACE RESULTS

The Malaysian GP
Sepang, Kuala Lumpur;
Weather: Partly dry, partly heavy rain.

Classified:
Pos  Driver        Team                  Time
 1.  M.Schumacher  Ferrari          (B)  1h47:34.801
 2.  Barrichello   Ferrari          (B)  +  0:23.600
 3.  Coulthard     McLaren Mercedes (B)  +  0:28.500
 4.  Frentzen      Jordan Honda     (B)  +  0:46.500
 5.  R.Schumacher  Williams BMW     (M)  +  0:48.200
 6.  Hakkinen      McLaren Mercedes (B)  +  0:48.600
 7.  Verstappen    Arrows Asiatech  (B)  +  1:21.500
 8.  Trulli        Jordan Honda     (B)  1 Lap
 9.  Alesi         Prost Acer       (M)  1 Lap
10.  Burti         Jaguar Cosworth  (M)  1 Lap
11.  Mazzacane     Prost Acer       (M)  2 Laps
12.  Button        Benetton Renault (M)  2 Laps
13.  Alonso        European Minardi (M)  3 Laps
14.  Marques       European Minardi (M)  4 Laps

Fastest Lap: M.Hakkinen, 1:40.962, lap 48

Not Classified/Retirements:
Driver         Team                On Lap  
Fisichella    Benetton Renault (M)   32
Heidfeld      Sauber Petronas  (B)    4
Bernoldi      Arrows Asiatech  (B)    4
Montoya       Williams BMW     (M)    4
Irvine        Jaguar Cosworth  (M)    4
Villeneuve    BAR Honda        (B)    4
Panis         BAR Honda        (B)    2
Raikkonen     Sauber Petronas  (B)    -


World Championship Standing, Round 2:
Drivers:                    Constructors:  
 1.  M.Schumacher  20        1.  Ferrari        30
 2.  Coulthard     10        2.  McLaren        11
 =   Barrichello   10        3.  Jordan          5
 4.  Frentzen       5        4.  Sauber          4
 5.  Heidfeld       3        5.  Williams        2
 6   R.Schumacher   2
 7.  Raikkonen      1
 =   Hakkinen       1                                  

(results data by Atlas F1)        

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