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The 2002 United States Grand Prix, otherwise known as the 2002 SAP United States Grand Prix, was the sixteenth and penultimate round of the 2002 FIA Formula One World Championship, staged at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indiana, USA, on 29 September 2002.[1] The race would see Rubens Barrichello and Michael Schumacher attempt to stage a dead-heat victory for Ferrari, with the Brazilian ultimately emerging ahead by 0.011s.[1]

The race was Ferrari's, and Schumacher's, to lose right from the start of practice, with the German ace claiming pole position in qualifying by a quarter of a second.[1] Barrichello made it a front row lock-out ahead of David Coulthard, two-thirds of a second behind, with the Scot just ahead of Juan Pablo Montoya.[1]

Furthermore, it was formation flying from the Ferraris at the start, with Schumacher leading Barrichello unopposed into the first corner.[1] Behind, Coulthard consolidated third place, while Ralf Schumacher managed to scramble ahead of teammate Montoya to claim fourth.[1]

With that the Ferraris were away, Schumacher dragging Barrichello clear, while Coulthard ran without trouble from the two Williams-BMWs.[1] Indeed, the two Williams would instead exchange a series of blows during the opening two laps, culminating in a collision at the start of lap three that left Ralf Schumacher with a broken rear wing.[1]

The action at the head of the field soon tailed off, with the only interest coming in how the various pit stop strategies, two-stop for Bridgestone runners and one-stop for the Michelin mob, would play out.[1] Indeed, it was only when the two Ferraris swept in for their stops that some outside of a scarlet Ferrari led the race, Coulthard inheriting a brief lead.[1]

Once Coulthard stopped the race lead was handed back to Schumacher, who duly stopped for a second time without losing the lead later on.[1] Behind, Barrichello was a secure second, trailing his teammate by a couple of seconds, while Coulthard's superior strategy left him within sight of the Ferraris, but with no hope of catching them, let alone beating them.[1]

Elsewhere, Montoya's race was ruined when he misinterpreted his pitboard, coming in for his stop ten laps earlier than planned.[1] Kimi Räikkönen, meanwhile, would spend most of the race on nine and a half cylinders, his McLaren-Mercedes limping around until it finally failed on lap 50, promoting Jarno Trulli and Jacques Villeneuve into the points.[1]

With that the race seemed to be over, with Barrichello unable to get within a second of Schumacher, and neither of the Ferraris particularly pushing.[1] However, as they came around the final banked curve to complete the final lap, Schumacher did the unexpected and pulled wide, opening the door for Barrichello to sweep inside.[1]

Barrichello briefly hesitated, unsure whether he should take the opportunity or not, resulting in the two Ferraris sweeping across the line side-by-side, although with no-one sure whom was ahead of whom.[1] The timesheets soon revealed that Barrichello was the victor by 0.011s, although there were plenty of scarlet faces blossoming in the Ferrari pitbox as Coulthard swept across the line to complete the podium.[1]

Indeed, speculation about why Schumacher had moved aside was rampant, with many concluding that he had moved aside to gift Barrichello the win as a thank you to the Brazilian for doing so in Austria.[1] This was countered by Schumacher who stated that he had wanted to stage a dead-heat finish, while Barrichello was simply confused.[1]

Officially the 2002 United States Grand Prix, had the second smallest winning margin in F1 history, and the smallest timed to a thousandth of a second.[1] It was also the closest ever finish to any race staged at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, and the narrowest winning margin for the US Grand Prix.[1] The race was also noted as one of the rare times in which Bernd Mayländer was unable to drive the Safety Car, resulting in Damien Faulkner taking over the role for one race.[1]

Background[]

Victory for Rubens Barrichello left the Brazilian racer in a clear second place in the Championship with two races to go, meaning he could secure the runner-up spot in the United States. Indeed, as teammate Michael Schumacher smashed the record for most points scored in a single season, the Brazilian racer would need just three points in Indianapolis to secure a one-two for Ferrari in the Drivers Championship. Furthermore, only Juan Pablo Montoya and Ralf Schumacher could now mathematically deny Barrichello, David Coulthard having fallen out of the fight.

In the Constructors Championship it had been another impressive day for Ferrari, with a seventh one-two moving them to within touching distance of the 200 point mark. Furthermore, their 189 point tally was 103 more than second placed Williams-BMW, with the Anglo-German squad set to finish a distant second. Indeed, McLaren-Mercedes were fast running out of time to close the gap, and would now required two one-twos in the final races just to get back on terms with their compatriots.

Entry list[]

The full entry list for the 2002 United States Grand Prix is outlined below:

No. Driver Entrant Constructor Chassis Engine Model Tyre
1 Germany Michael Schumacher Italy Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro Ferrari F2002 Ferrari 051 3.0 V10 B
2 Brazil Rubens Barrichello Italy Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro Ferrari F2002 Ferrari 051 3.0 V10 B
3 United Kingdom David Coulthard United Kingdom West McLaren Mercedes McLaren MP4-17 Mercedes FO 110M 3.0 V10 M
4 Finland Kimi Räikkönen United Kingdom West McLaren Mercedes McLaren MP4-17 Mercedes FO 110M 3.0 V10 M
5 Germany Ralf Schumacher United Kingdom BMW Williams F1 Team Williams FW24 BMW P82 3.0 V10 M
6 Colombia Juan Pablo Montoya United Kingdom BMW Williams F1 Team Williams FW24 BMW P82 3.0 V10 M
7 Germany Nick Heidfeld Switzerland Sauber Petronas Sauber C21 Petronas 02A 3.0 V10 B
8 Germany Heinz-Harald Frentzen Switzerland Sauber Petronas Sauber C21 Petronas 02A 3.0 V10 B
9 Italy Giancarlo Fisichella Ireland DHL Jordan Honda Jordan EJ12 Honda RA002E 3.0 V10 B
10 Japan Takuma Sato Ireland DHL Jordan Honda Jordan EJ12 Honda RA002E 3.0 V10 B
11 Canada Jacques Villeneuve United Kingdom Lucky Strike BAR Honda BAR 004 Honda RA002E 3.0 V10 B
12 France Olivier Panis United Kingdom Lucky Strike BAR Honda BAR 004 Honda RA002E 3.0 V10 B
14 Italy Jarno Trulli France Mild Seven Renault F1 Team Renault R202 Renault RS22 3.0 V10 M
15 United Kingdom Jenson Button France Mild Seven Renault F1 Team Renault R202 Renault RS22 3.0 V10 M
16 United Kingdom Eddie Irvine United Kingdom Jaguar Racing Jaguar R3B Ford Cosworth CR-4 3.0 V10 M
17 Spain Pedro de la Rosa United Kingdom Jaguar Racing Jaguar R3B Ford Cosworth CR-4 3.0 V10 M
22 Malaysia Alex Yoong Italy KL Minardi Asiatech Minardi PS02 Asiatech AT02 3.0 V10 M
23 Australia Mark Webber Italy KL Minardi Asiatech Minardi PS02 Asiatech AT02 3.0 V10 M
24 Finland Mika Salo Japan Panasonic Toyota Racing Toyota TF102 Toyota RVX-02 3.0 V10 M
25 United Kingdom Allan McNish Japan Panasonic Toyota Racing Toyota TF102 Toyota RVX-02 3.0 V10 M
Source:[2]

Practice Overview[]

Free Practice 1[]

Free Practice 2[]

Warm-Up[]

Practice Results[]

The full practice results for the 2002 United States Grand Prix are outlined below:

No. Driver Team FP1 FP2 Warm-Up
Time Pos. Time Pos. Time Pos.
1 Germany Michael Schumacher Italy Ferrari 1:13.548 1 1:11.158 1 1:13.183 1
2 Brazil Rubens Barrichello Italy Ferrari DNP 1:11.394 2 1:13.321 2
3 United Kingdom David Coulthard United Kingdom McLaren-Mercedes 1:14.919 3 1:11.909 5 1:13.930 8
4 Finland Kimi Räikkönen United Kingdom McLaren-Mercedes 1:14.986 4 1:12.162 8 1:13.765 5
5 Germany Ralf Schumacher United Kingdom Williams-BMW 1:15.291 10 1:11.849 4 1:14.650 16
6 Colombia Juan Pablo Montoya United Kingdom Williams-BMW 1:15.632 16 1:11.992 7 1:14.223 11
7 Germany Nick Heidfeld Switzerland Sauber-Petronas 1:15.260 9 1:11.910 6 1:14.603 15
8 Germany Heinz-Harald Frentzen Switzerland Sauber-Petronas 1:15.136 6 1:12.589 10 1:14.236 12
9 Italy Giancarlo Fisichella Ireland Jordan-Honda 1:15.209 7 1:12.220 9 1:14.154 10
10 Japan Takuma Sato Ireland Jordan-Honda 1:15.659 17 1:12.826 16 1:14.154 10
11 Canada Jacques Villeneuve United Kingdom BAR-Honda 1:15.035 5 1:12.726 13 1:14.377 14
12 France Olivier Panis United Kingdom BAR-Honda 1:15.941 18 1:12.746 14 1:13.471 3
14 Italy Jarno Trulli France Renault 1:15.256 8 1:12.756 15 1:14.254 13
15 United Kingdom Jenson Button France Renault 1:15.548 13 1:12.878 17 1:14.074 9
16 United Kingdom Eddie Irvine United Kingdom Jaguar-Ford Cosworth 1:14.123 2 1:11.688 3 1:13.898 7
17 Spain Pedro de la Rosa United Kingdom Jaguar-Ford Cosworth 1:15.304 11 1:12.679 12 1:14.844 17
22 Malaysia Alex Yoong Italy Minardi-Asiatech 1:16.138 19 1:13.562 20 1:15.522 20
23 Australia Mark Webber Italy Minardi-Asiatech 1:15.629 15 1:13.547 19 1:15.257 19
24 Finland Mika Salo Japan Toyota 1:15.421 12 1:12.656 11 1:13.867 6
25 United Kingdom Allan McNish Japan Toyota 1:15.589 14 1:13.204 18 1:15.220 18

Qualifying[]

Qualifying Report[]

Qualifying Results[]

The full qualifying results for the 2002 United States Grand Prix are outlined below:

Pos. No. Driver Constructor Time Gap Ave. Speed
1 1 Germany Michael Schumacher Italy Ferrari 1:10.790 213.183 km/h
2 2 Brazil Rubens Barrichello Italy Ferrari 1:11.058 +0.268s 212.379 km/h
3 3 United Kingdom David Coulthard United Kingdom McLaren-Mercedes 1:11.413 +0.623s 211.323 km/h
4 6 Colombia Juan Pablo Montoya United Kingdom Williams-BMW 1:11.414 +0.624s 211.320 km/h
5 5 Germany Ralf Schumacher United Kingdom Williams-BMW 1:11.587 +0.797s 210.809 km/h
6 4 Finland Kimi Räikkönen United Kingdom McLaren-Mercedes 1:11.633 +0.843s 210.674 km/h
7 11 Canada Jacques Villeneuve United Kingdom BAR-Honda 1:11.738 +0.948s 210.365 km/h
8 14 Italy Jarno Trulli France Renault 1:11.888 +1.098s 209.927 km/h
9 9 Italy Giancarlo Fisichella Ireland Jordan-Honda 1:11.902 +1.112s 209.886 km/h
10 7 Germany Nick Heidfeld Switzerland Sauber-Petronas 1:11.953 +1.163s 209.737 km/h
11 8 Germany Heinz-Harald Frentzen Switzerland Sauber-Petronas 1:12.083 +1.293s 209.359 km/h
12 12 France Olivier Panis United Kingdom BAR-Honda 1:12.161 +1.371s 209.132 km/h
13 16 United Kingdom Eddie Irvine United Kingdom Jaguar-Ford Cosworth 1:12.282 +1.492s 208.782 km/h
14 15 United Kingdom Jenson Button France Renault 1:12.401 +1.611s 208.439 km/h
15 10 Japan Takuma Sato Ireland Jordan-Honda 1:12.647 +1.857s 207.733 km/h
16 25 United Kingdom Allan McNish Japan Toyota 1:12.723 +1.933s 207.516 km/h
17 17 Spain Pedro de la Rosa United Kingdom Jaguar-Ford Cosworth 1:12.739 +1.949s 207.471 km/h
18 23 Australia Mark Webber Italy Minardi-Asiatech 1:13.128 +2.338s 206.367 km/h
19 24 Finland Mika Salo Japan Toyota 1:13.213 +2.423s 206.127 km/h
20 22 Malaysia Alex Yoong Italy Minardi-Asiatech 1:13.809 +3.019s 204.463 km/h
107% Time: 1:15.745[3]
Source:[3][4]
  • T Indicates a driver used their test/spare car to set their best time in that session.
  • Bold indicates a driver's best/qualifying time.

Grid[]

Pos. Pos.
Driver Driver
______________
Row 1 1 ______________
Michael Schumacher 2
______________ Rubens Barrichello
Row 2 3 ______________
David Coulthard 4
______________ Juan Pablo Montoya
Row 3 5 ______________
Ralf Schumacher 6
______________ Kimi Räikkönen
Row 4 7 ______________
Jacques Villeneuve 8
______________ Jarno Trulli
Row 5 9 ______________
Giancarlo Fisichella 10
______________ Nick Heidfeld
Row 6 11 ______________
Heinz-Harald Frentzen 12
______________ Olivier Panis
Row 7 13 ______________
Eddie Irvine 14
______________ Jenson Button
Row 8 15 ______________
Takuma Sato 16
______________ Allan McNish
Row 9 17 ______________
Pedro de la Rosa 18
______________ Mark Webber
Row 10 19 ______________
Mika Salo 20
______________ Alex Yoong

Race[]

Report[]

Results[]

The full results for the 2002 United States Grand Prix are outlined below:

Pos. No. Driver Constructor Laps Time/Retired Grid Points
1 2 Brazil Rubens Barrichello Italy Ferrari 73 1:31:07.934 2 10
2 1 Germany Michael Schumacher Italy Ferrari 73 +0.011s 1 6
3 3 United Kingdom David Coulthard United Kingdom McLaren-Mercedes 73 +7.799s 3 4
4 6 Colombia Juan Pablo Montoya United Kingdom Williams-BMW 73 +9.911s 4 3
5 14 Italy Jarno Trulli France Renault 73 +56.847s 8 2
6 11 Canada Jacques Villeneuve United Kingdom BAR-Honda 73 +58.211s 7 1
7 9 Italy Giancarlo Fisichella Ireland Jordan-Honda 72 +1 lap 9
8 15 United Kingdom Jenson Button France Renault 72 +1 Lap 14
9 7 Germany Nick Heidfeld Switzerland Sauber-Petronas 72 +1 Lap 10
10 16 United Kingdom Eddie Irvine United Kingdom Jaguar-Ford Cosworth 72 +1 Lap 13
11 10 Japan Takuma Sato Ireland Jordan-Honda 72 +1 Lap 15
12 12 France Olivier Panis United Kingdom BAR-Honda 72 +1 lap 12
13 8 Germany Heinz-Harald Frentzen Switzerland Sauber-Petronas 71 +2 Laps 11
14 24 Finland Mika Salo Japan Toyota 71 +2 Laps 19
15 25 United Kingdom Allan McNish Japan Toyota 71 +2 Laps 16
16 5 Germany Ralf Schumacher United Kingdom Williams-BMW 71 +2 laps 5
Ret 4 Finland Kimi Räikkönen United Kingdom McLaren-Mercedes 50 Engine 6
Ret 22 Malaysia Alex Yoong Italy Minardi-Asiatech 46 Engine 20
Ret 23 Australia Mark Webber Italy Minardi-Asiatech 38 Steering 18
Ret 17 Spain Pedro de la Rosa United Kingdom Jaguar-Ford Cosworth 27 Gearbox 17
Source:[5]
  • T Indicates a driver used their test/spare car.

Milestones[]

Standings[]

Michael Schumacher moved onto 134 points after another podium finish, although that was overshadowed by more PR embarrassment for the German ace. Behind, Rubens Barrichello had secured the runner-up spot with his win, leaving Juan Pablo Montoya, Ralf Schumacher and David Coulthard to fight for third. It was the Colombian racer who held the advantage, five ahead of Ralf Schumacher, while Coulthard sat six off third place.

In the Constructors Championship Ferrari smashed through the 200 point barrier, ending the weekend on 205 points. Behind, Williams-BMW had been confirmed in second place, albeit with less than half the points of the Scuderia, while McLaren-Mercedes were confirmed in third place. Elsewhere, Renault were almost guaranteed to claim fourth, while BAR-Honda moved level with Jordan-Honda.

World Championship for Drivers
Pos. Driver Pts. +/-
1 Germany Michael Schumacher 134
2 Brazil Rubens Barrichello 71
3 Colombia Juan Pablo Montoya 47
4 Germany Ralf Schumacher 42
5 United Kingdom David Coulthard 41
6 Finland Kimi Räikkönen 20
7 United Kingdom Jenson Button 13
8 Italy Jarno Trulli 9 ▲1
9 United Kingdom Eddie Irvine 8 ▼1
10 Germany Nick Heidfeld 7
11 Italy Giancarlo Fisichella 7
12 Canada Jacques Villeneuve 4 ▲1
13 Brazil Felipe Massa 4 ▼1
14 France Olivier Panis 3
15 Australia Mark Webber 2
16 Finland Mika Salo 2
17 Germany Heinz-Harald Frentzen 2
World Championship for Constructors
Pos. Team Pts. +/-
1 Italy Ferrari 205
2 United Kingdom Williams-BMW 89
3 United Kingdom McLaren-Mercedes 61
4 France Renault 22
5 Switzerland Sauber-Petronas 11
6 United Kingdom Jaguar-Ford Cosworth 8
7 United Kingdom BAR-Honda 7 ▲1
8 Ireland Jordan-Honda 7 ▼1
9 Italy Minardi-Asiatech 2
10 Japan Toyota 2
11 United Kingdom Arrows-Ford Cosworth 2

Only point scoring drivers and constructors are shown.

References[]

Images and Videos:

References:

  1. 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 1.16 1.17 1.18 1.19 1.20 1.21 1.22 1.23 'United States GP, 2002', grandprix.com, (Inside F1 Inc., 2014), https://www.grandprix.com/gpe/rr696.html, (Accessed 21/11/2019)
  2. 'USA 2002: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2015), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2002/etats-unis/engages.aspx, (Accessed 21/11/2019)
  3. 3.0 3.1 'USA 2002: Qualifications', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2002/etats-unis/qualification.aspx, (Accessed 21/11/2019)
  4. '2002 SAP United States Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Ltd., 2019), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2002/races/735/united-states/qualifying-0.html, (Accessed 21/11/2019)
  5. 'USA 2002: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2002/etats-unis/classement.aspx, (Accessed 21/11/2019)
  6. 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 '16. USA 2002', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2002/etats-unis.aspx, (Accessed 21/11/2019)
  7. 7.0 7.1 7.2 '2002 United States GP', chicanef1.com, (Chicane F1, 2014), http://www.chicanef1.com/racetit.pl?year=2002&gp=United%20States%20GP&r=1, (Accessed 21/11/2019)
V T E United States United States Grand Prix
Circuits Sebring (1959), Riverside (1960), Watkins Glen (1961–1980), Phoenix (1989–1991), Indianapolis (2000–2007), Austin (2012–present)
CircuitoftheAmericas2012
Formula One Races 19591960196119621963196419651966196719681969197019711972197319741975197619771978197919801981–19881989199019911992–1999200020012002200320042005200620072008–2011201220132014201520162017201820192020202120222023
Non-F1 races 1908190919101911191219131914191519161917–1957 • 1958
See also Miami Grand PrixLas Vegas Grand PrixUnited States Grand Prix WestIndianapolis 500Detroit Grand PrixCaesars Palace Grand PrixDallas Grand PrixQuestor Grand Prix
V T E 2002 Formula One Season
Teams Ferrari • McLaren • Williams • Sauber • Jordan • BAR • Renault • Jaguar • Arrows • Minardi • Toyota
Engines Asiatech • BMW • Cosworth • Ferrari • Honda • Mercedes • Petronas • Renault • Toyota
Drivers M. Schumacher • 2 Barrichello • 3 Coulthard • 4 Räikkönen • 5 R. Schumacher • 6 Montoya • 7 Heidfeld • 8 Massa • 8 Frentzen • 9 Fisichella • 10 Sato • 11 Villeneuve • 12 Panis • 14 Trulli • 15 Button • 16 Irvine • 17 De la Rosa • 20 Frentzen • 21 Bernoldi • 22 Yoong • 22 Davidson • 23 Webber • 24 Salo • 25 McNish
Other Drivers Alesi • Alonso • Badoer • Burti • Gené • Lotterer • Pizzonia • Wurz
Cars Ferrari F2001 • Ferrari F2002 • McLaren MP4-17 • Williams FW24 • Sauber C21 • Jordan EJ12 • BAR 004 • Renault R202 • Jaguar R3 • Arrows A23 • Minardi PS02 • Toyota TF102
Tyres Bridgestone • Michelin
Races Australia • Malaysia • Brazil • San Marino • Spain • Austria • Monaco • Canada • Europe • Britain • France • Germany • Hungary • Belgium • Italy • United States • Japan
See also 2001 Formula One Season • 2003 Formula One Season • Category
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