Schumacher reigns in Spain

Michael Schumacher grabbed the debut victory he craved with his new Ferrari at the Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona today as championship leader Kimi Raikkonen crashed out at the start.

Sun, 04 May, 2003 - 15:48

Michael Schumacher grabbed the debut victory he craved with his new Ferrari at the Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona today as championship leader Kimi Raikkonen crashed out at the start.

The five-time champion shrugged off a fleeting first-lap collision with team-mate Rubens Barrichello to triumph by almost six seconds from the Renault of local hero Fernando Alonso.

Schumacher’s triumph in the F2003-GA – his third in a row in Spain and fifth overall – took him to second in the world championship just four points behind McLaren’s Raikkonen.

Barrichello took third spot for Ferrari with Juan Pablo Montoya leading home Williams-BMW team-mate Ralf Schumacher for fourth while rookie Cristiano da Matta finished sixth to score his first Formula One points and open Toyota’s account for the season.

Australia’s Mark Webber scored his first points for Jaguar with seventh while there was delight for British rookie Ralph Firman who celebrated his first grand prix point with eighth for Jordan-Honda.

Countryman and fellow rookie Justin Wilson also claimed his first race finish at the fifth attempt with 11th place for Minardi.

David Coulthard’s championship hopes suffered a blow as he crashed out after a collision with fellow Brit Jenson Button who finished ninth for B.A.R-Honda.

Raikkonen, forced to start from the back of the grid after messing up his qualifying lap yesterday, hit the back of Pizzonia’s Jaguar as he sped away when the red lights went out.

The race had been billed as vital for Pizzonia’s future but the Brazilian rookie was told today that his job is safe for the next few grands prix.

Jaguar have ended their interest in McLaren’s reserve driver Alexander Wurz after deciding not to meet the reputed £2million asking price to release him from his contract.

Race officials sent out the safety car to clear the damaged McLaren and Jaguar off the grid by which time Raikkonen’s team-mate Coulthard had collided with Jarno Trulli ending his Renault rival’s race and forcing him into a first-lap pit-stop for repairs.

Coulthard hopes of cuting his 13-point deficit to Raikkonen were abruptly ended after just 19 laps when he was dumped in the sand by Button as the B.A.R-Honda attempted to overtake.

It was a nightmare afternoon for the McLarens, who had won the first two races with Raikkonen’s championship advantage devastated and Coulthard plummeting from second to fifth in the drivers’ standings.

Schumacher’s race could have also been over by the first corner as the Ferraris briefly touched as Barrichello tried to overtake to grab the lead from the pole winner having briefly lost second spot as Alonso charged off the grid.

The 34-year-old controlled the race thereafter only losing the lead briefly after each of his three pit-stops but it was not the crushing victory many had expected in the eagerly-awaited F2003-GA’s first outing.

Alonso matched Schumacher’s pace for much of the afternoon and confirmed he is the rising young talent of Formula One, his performance delighting the thousands of fellow countryman who flocked to the circuit.

But it is Schumacher who was the beneficiary with a second successive victory and Raikkonen’s first non-finish of the campaign moving him within sight of the Finn heading to the next race in Austria in two weeks’ time.

Alonso is not third in the standings, just three points further adrift, after claiming his third podium appearance of the campaign in only his second season having made his debut with Minardi in 2001.

Spanish Grand Prix, Barcelona, 65 laps:

1 Michael Schumacher (Ger) Ferrari 1hr 33mins 46.933secs,

2 Fernando Alonso (Spa) Renault at 5.716secs,

3 Rubens Barrichello (Bra) Ferrari at 18.001,

4 Juan Pablo Montoya (Col) Williams-BMW at 62.022,

5 Ralf Schumacher (Ger) Williams-BMW at 1 lap,

6 Cristiano da Matta (Bra) Toyota Racing at 1 lap,

7 Mark Webber (Aus) Jaguar Racing at 1 lap,

8 Ralph Firman (Gbr) Jordan-Ford at 2 laps,

9 Jenson Button (Gbr) BAR-Honda at 2 laps,

10 Nick Heidfeld (Ger) Sauber at 2 laps,

11 Justin Wilson (Gbr) Minardi at 2 laps,