2002 Italian Grand Prix
The 2002 Italian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race that took place at the Autodromo Nazionale di Monza near Monza, Lombardy, Italy before 60,000 spectators on 15 September 2002. It was the 15th round of the 2002 Formula One World Championship, the second Italian round of the year and the season's last race in Europe. Starting from fourth place, Ferrari's Rubens Barrichello won the 53-lap race His teammate Michael Schumacher finished in second with Jaguar's Eddie Irvine third.
Williams' Juan Pablo Montoya qualified on pole position after recording the quickest average qualifying lap speed in the one-hour session. Michael Schumacher started second, with Montoya's teammate Ralf Schumacher third and Barrichello fourth. At the start, Ralf Schumacher took the lead by cutting the Rettifilo chicane and was told by the stewards to give it back to Montoya, but he lost pressure in the engine's pneumatic valve system as he did so. Montoya briefly led, but the smoke from Ralf Schumacher's car and loss of momentum allowed Barrichello to take the lead at the start of lap five. Barrichello led for the bulk of the remaining laps, except for the first pit stop cycle, and won his third race of the season and fourth of his career. His teammate Michael Schumacher finished second, 0.255 seconds behind, while Irvine finished third, giving him and Jaguar their first podium since the 2001 Monaco Grand Prix.
The result saw Michael Schumacher eclipse his own record for most championship points scored in a single season, which he set in. Barrichello's victory moved him 17 championship points ahead of the third-placed Montoya in the World Drivers' Championship. In the World Constructors' Championship, Ferrari expanded their unassailable lead over Williams to 103 championship points, while McLaren secured third with two races remaining in the season.
Background
The 2002 Italian Grand Prix, contested at the, 11-turn Autodromo Nazionale di Monza at Monza, Lombardy, Italy on 15 September, was the 15th round of 17 in the 2002 Formula One World Championship. It was the 73rd Italian Grand Prix, the second of two events in Italy following the, and the season's final European race. Tyre suppliers Bridgestone and Michelin developed tyre specifications specifically for the Monza track, with a focus on heat resistance because tyres on the straights heated up faster than on other circuits. Heading into the race, both the World Drivers' Championship and World Constructors' Championship were already won, with Ferrari's Michael Schumacher winning the World Drivers' Championship four rounds earlier at the and Ferrari won the World Constructors' Championship two races later at the, with Williams too many championship points behind to catch up. Michael Schumacher could break his own season points scoring record if he finished fifth or higher at Monza.After the on 1 September, ten teams tested for four days with their racing and test drivers at Monza from 3 to 6 September, testing vehicle components and gathering data for the upcoming race at the circuit. Michael Schumacher was fastest on the first day, ahead of British American Racing test driver Anthony Davidson, in wet weather with sporadic dry spells. Williams' Ralf Schumacher lapped faster on the second day where the rain continued into the morning before stopping meaning the track dried up as the session progressed. The first full day of dry weather took place on the third day, with Jaguar's Pedro de la Rosa fastest. Rubens Barrichello was fastest on testing's final day. Williams' Juan Pablo Montoya caused a red flag when he lost control of his car at the Lesmo corners and collided with a barrier, removing the front wing. Ferrari test driver Luca Badoer spent three days testing Bridgestone tyres and racing setups at France's Circuit Paul Ricard. Badoer then shook down three F2002 cars and performed launch control starts at the Fiorano Circuit before the cars were transported to Monza.
Barrichello said he was looking forward to the race considering the previous year's race took place in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks in the United States, adding, "It is a special place for me and I usually go well here so there is plenty to look forward to." Michael Schumacher said he would be able to celebrate both championships at Monza after being unable to do so the previous year due to the attacks in America. However, he stated that the running order would be closer than it was in Belgium, and that expecting Ferrari to finish 1-2 would be "presumptuous". Montoya believed Williams could realistically finish third at Monza with the equipment they possessed. However, following testing, he revised his prediction to a race victory, "I think the best chance we've got this year to win a race is this next one."
File:AlexYoong 0028.jpg|thumb|right|upright|Alex Yoong returned to his race seat at Minardi after sitting out the previous two races.
Speed bumps were added at the first and second chicanes for the event after it was discovered that a driver could gain time by going across the tight opening chicane or by using the flat run-off area adjacent to the apex of both chicanes and driving on without penalty unless they gained a place. Gaps were created between the speed bumps to allow drivers who had outbraked themselves to navigate between them. The bumps drew mixed feedback from drivers. Barrichello thought they were quite valuable because it had been difficult for drivers a year ago to tell if cars passing through had gained or lost time. Renault's Jarno Trulli stated the bumps were excessively high and added some drivers would request their removal to the race organisers as they could damage their vehicles. Montoya claimed running over one of them would put a driver into the wall while McLaren's David Coulthard said they appeared to be overly close together.
Ten constructors represented by a racing team entered two drivers each for the event. Alex Yoong retook his race seat at Minardi after Davidson replaced him in the previous two races due to Yoong not qualifying for three races earlier in the season. Arrows' financial troubles persisted as chairman Tom Walkinshaw attempted to negotiate the team's sale, which also owed money to four creditors. The team failed to present their cars by Thursday afternoon's preliminary scrutineering, missing the event. Sauber were the first team to test the HANS device at a Formula One race with drivers Nick Heidfeld and Felipe Massa. Teams focused on finding a setup with a very low aerodynamic load that would provide the least amount of downforce feasible without penalising the cars too much during the heavy braking that characterises the Monza track. Each team adopted rear wings with lower profiles, while others, such as Renault, presented new front wings. Ferrari introduced a new qualifying engine, but for the race on Sunday, the team used the original engine specification. Williams and BAR introduced revised engine specifications for qualifying.
Practice
Preceding the race were two one-hour practice sessions on Friday and two 45-minute sessions on Saturday. The first practice session on Friday morning was overcast, with the circuit damp in sections due to overnight rain, so some drivers chose intermediate tyres. The track eventually dried out, and lap times became faster. Michael Schumacher set the quickest time of 1:22.869, almost eight-tenths of a second faster than Montoya. Ralf Schumacher, De La Rosa, Trulli, Jaguar's Eddie Irvine, Massa, the McLaren duo of Coulthard and Kimi Räikkönen and BAR's Olivier Panis followed in the top ten. There were no major incidents during the session, although some drivers ran off the circuit, including Irvine who twice ran into the gravel traps. Barrichello had a soft brake pedal, so mechanics in the pit lane had to bleed the system before he could continue.File:COULTARD David-24x30-1999.jpg|thumb|left|upright|David Coulthard crashed his McLaren car during the second free practice session on the Friday afternoon.
The second practice session took place later in the afternoon under cloudy conditions. Michael Schumacher lapped four-tenths of a second faster than in the first session, finishing first with a 1:22.433 lap, 0.225 seconds faster than his teammate Barrichello. Räikkönen, Irvine, Montoya, Toyota's Mika Salo, Ralf Schumacher, De La Rosa, Trulli and his teammate Jenson Button rounded out the top ten. Some drivers ran off the circuit during the session. After putting a wheel on the grass at the Curva del Serraglio turn, Coulthard spun into the tyre barrier five minutes into the session. Yoong spun his car at the Ascari chicane exit midway through the session, colliding into the tire wall with his rear. He abandoned his car there. Allan McNish's Toyota stopped at the end of the pit lane when it got stuck in first gear and pushed the car back into the garage. This required a rear end switch to his car.
In the third practice session, held in sunny weather on Saturday morning, Michael Schumacher was again quickest with a 1:22.110 lap, 0.025 seconds faster than Montoya. The McLaren duo of Coulthard and Räikkönen, Ralf Schumacher, the Jaguar pairing of Irvine and De La Rosa, Massa, McNish and BAR's Jacques Villeneuve completed the top ten. The session was halted midway through after Barrichello's car began to emit smoke due to an engine failure at the Curva Grande exit. Marshals moved the Ferrari off the circuit and into a safer area and cleaned oil laid on the asphalt track before practice could resume. Ferrari installed a new engine in his car.
The final practice session took place later in the morning. Late in the session, Montoya set the quickest time of 1:21.319, which was 0.009 seconds inside Michael Schumacher's 2001 pole lap. Positions three through ten were occupied by Barrichello, Ralf Schumacher, the McLaren pairing of Räikkönen and Coulthard. the Jaguar duo of De La Rosa and Irvine, McNish and Villeneuve. More drivers spun their cars during the session. Button lost control of his Renault at high-speed at the Parabolica corner, ending his running early in the gravel trap.