Formula 1 Wiki
Register
Advertisement

The 2003 British Grand Prix, otherwise known as the 2003 Foster's British Grand Prix, was the eleventh round of the 2003 FIA Formula One World Championship, staged at the Silverstone Circuit in Northamptonshire, UK, on 20 July 2003.[1] The race, which was won at a canter by Rubens Barrichello in mixed conditions, would be remembered for antics of protester Neil Horan, who ran onto the track mid-race.[1]

Indeed, the whole weekend would be a rather strange one, with an out of form Barrichello sweeping to pole position in qualifying ahead of Jarno Trulli of Renault.[1] Kimi Räikkönen and Ralf Schumacher then shared the second row ahead of Championship leader Michael Schumacher, while Cristiano da Matta claimed sixth for Toyota.[1]

Raceday dawned with dark skies, although the circuit was dry when the field assembled on the grid.[1] A slow start for Barrichello then saw Trulli and Räikkönen sweep through to claim first and second, while the Schumacher brothers fell shy of taking the Brazilian racer.[1]

The early stages of the race proved fairly tame, until the Safety Car was called upon for debris on the track.[1] The source was David Coulthard, whose already dim hopes of a home win had been destroyed when his headrest dislodged on lap six, forcing the Scot to pit on safety grounds.[1]

The SC stayed out for two laps, before Trulli made a smart getaway to re-establish his small lead.[1] Behind, Räikkönen would come under attack from Barrichello, the Brazilian finally claiming second on lap eleven, before Horan made his bizarre protest bid.[1]

Horan, a later defrocked Irish Roman Catholic Priest, ran onto the Hangar Straight on lap twelve of the race and ran towards several oncoming cars.[1] The SC was called upon immediately as marshals moved to stop Horan, with Stephen Green ultimately receiving the BARC Browning Medal for "outstanding bravery" for tackling the turbulent Priest.[1]

That interruption prompted several drivers to pit, leaving da Matta and Olivier Panis to lead the field in their Toyotas.[1] They duly established an early lead when the race resumed ahead of Coulthard, while early race leader Trulli slipped behind Räikkönen.[1]

The Finn subsequently pounced on his McLaren-Mercedes teammate later on during the lap, before hunting down and passing Panis.[1] Behind, Barrichello was making a similar, if slower, charge through the field to secure third, dragging Trulli up with him.[1]

da Matta's stop on lap 30 handed the lead to Räikkönen, just as Barrichello cleared the remaining traffic and set a series of fastest laps.[1] The Brazilian racer briefly claimed the lead when Räikkönen stopped for a second time, before making his second stop and rejoin behind the Finn.[1]

The closing stages of the race saw Barrichello swoop onto the back of Räikkönen, forcing the younger racer into a mistake that gifted the lead to the Brazilian.[1] Montoya then pressured Räikkönen into a second mistake to claim second, while Michael Schumacher bullied his way past Trulli to claim fourth.[1]

With that the race was run, with Barrichello easing clear in the closing stages to claim victory ahead of Montoya, while Räikkönen had no further mistakes to complete the podium.[1] Schumacher was next ahead of a resurgent Coulthard, with Trulli, da Matta and Jenson Button securing the remaining points.[1]

Background[]

Michael Schumacher saw his Championship lead grow to eight points as a result of the French Grand Prix, although in truth the title fight was more open than it had been in recent memory. Indeed, while Kimi Räikkönen had lost ground in France, Ralf Schumacher's second successive win had carried the German into title contention, leaving Magny-Cours just eleven off the lead. Juan Pablo Montoya was a further six behind in fourth, while Fernando Alonso and Rubens Barrichello were tied for fifth on 39 points.

Likewise, the Constructors Championship seemed to be getting more exciting as the season wore on, with just three points separating the top two teams. Ferrari still led the way, but the second straight one-two for Williams-BMW had left the Anglo-German effort well within striking range of the Scuderia. Behind, McLaren-Mercedes were still a major threat and had made a little ground, with Renault seemingly out of the fight in fourth with almost half the points of Ferrari. For Jaguar, the team was sponsored by the film Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines.

Entry list[]

The full entry list for the 2003 British Grand Prix is outlined below:

No. Driver Entrant Constructor Chassis Engine Model Tyre
1 Germany Michael Schumacher Italy Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro Ferrari F2003-GA Ferrari 052 3.0 V10 B
2 Brazil Rubens Barrichello Italy Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro Ferrari F2003-GA Ferrari 052 3.0 V10 B
3 Colombia Juan Pablo Montoya United Kingdom BMW Williams F1 Team Williams FW25 BMW P83 3.0 V10 M
4 Germany Ralf Schumacher United Kingdom BMW Williams F1 Team Williams FW25 BMW P83 3.0 V10 M
5 United Kingdom David Coulthard United Kingdom West McLaren Mercedes McLaren MP4-17D Mercedes FO 110P 3.0 V10 M
6 Finland Kimi Räikkönen United Kingdom West McLaren Mercedes McLaren MP4-17D Mercedes FO 110P 3.0 V10 M
7 Italy Jarno Trulli France Mild Seven Renault F1 Team Renault R23B Renault RS23 3.0 V10 M
8 Spain Fernando Alonso France Mild Seven Renault F1 Team Renault R23B Renault RS23 3.0 V10 M
9 Germany Nick Heidfeld Switzerland Sauber Petronas Sauber C22 Petronas 03A 3.0 V10 B
10 Germany Heinz-Harald Frentzen Switzerland Sauber Petronas Sauber C22 Petronas 03A 3.0 V10 B
11 Italy Giancarlo Fisichella Ireland Jordan Ford Jordan EJ13 Ford Cosworth RS1 3.0 V10 B
12 Ireland Ralph Firman Ireland Jordan Ford Jordan EJ13 Ford Cosworth RS1 3.0 V10 B
14 Australia Mark Webber United Kingdom Jaguar Racing Jaguar R4 Ford Cosworth CR-5 3.0 V10 M
15 Brazil Antônio Pizzonia United Kingdom Jaguar Racing Jaguar R4 Ford Cosworth CR-5 3.0 V10 M
16 Canada Jacques Villeneuve United Kingdom Lucky Strike BAR Honda BAR 005 Honda RA003E 3.0 V10 B
17 United Kingdom Jenson Button United Kingdom Lucky Strike BAR Honda BAR 005 Honda RA003E 3.0 V10 B
18 United Kingdom Justin Wilson Italy Trust Minardi Cosworth Minardi PS03 Ford Cosworth CR-3 3.0 V10 B
19 Netherlands Jos Verstappen Italy Trust Minardi Cosworth Minardi PS03 Ford Cosworth CR-3 3.0 V10 B
20 France Olivier Panis Japan Panasonic Toyota Racing Toyota TF103 Toyota RVX-03 3.0 V10 M
21 Brazil Cristiano da Matta Japan Panasonic Toyota Racing Toyota TF103 Toyota RVX-03 3.0 V10 M
Test Drivers for Free Practice Sessions
34 United Kingdom Allan McNish France Mild Seven Renault F1 Team Renault R23 Renault RS23 3.0 V10 M
Source:[2]

Pre-Race Testing[]

Pos. No. Driver Team Time Gap Laps
1 8 Spain Fernando Alonso France Renault 1:21.547 44
2 7 Italy Jarno Trulli France Renault 1:21.721 +0.174 35
3 14 Australia Mark Webber United Kingdom Jaguar-Ford Cosworth 1:22.060 +0.513 25
4 34 United Kingdom Allan McNish France Renault 1:22.141 +0.594 34
5 15 Brazil Antônio Pizzonia United Kingdom Jaguar-Ford Cosworth 1:22.834 +1.287 29
6 11 Italy Giancarlo Fisichella Ireland Jordan-Ford Cosworth 1:22.864 +1.317 26
7 12 Ireland Ralph Firman Ireland Jordan-Ford Cosworth 1:24.006 +2.459 30
8 19 Netherlands Jos Verstappen Italy Minardi-Ford Cosworth 1:24.013 +2.466 23
9 18 United Kingdom Justin Wilson Italy Minardi-Ford Cosworth 1:24.605 +3.058 29
Source:[3]

Practice Overview[]

Qualifying[]

Q1 Report[]

Q2 Report[]

Qualifying Results[]

The full qualifying results for the 2003 British Grand Prix are outlined below:

Pos. No. Driver Constructor Time Gap
Q1 Q2
1 2 Brazil Rubens Barrichello Italy Ferrari 1:21.209
2 7 Italy Jarno Trulli France Renault 1:19.963 1:21.381 +0.172s
3 6 Finland Kimi Räikkönen United Kingdom McLaren-Mercedes 1:21.065 1:21.695 +0.486s
4 4 Germany Ralf Schumacher United Kingdom Williams-BMW 1:19.788 1:21.727 +0.518s
5 1 Germany Michael Schumacher Italy Ferrari 1:19.474 1:21.867 +0.658s
6 21 Brazil Cristiano da Matta Japan Toyota 1:20.765 1:22.081 +0.872s
7 3 Colombia Juan Pablo Montoya United Kingdom Williams-BMW 1:19.749 1:22.214 +1.005s
8 8 Spain Fernando Alonso France Renault 1:19.907 1:22.404 +1.195s
9 16 Canada Jacques Villeneuve United Kingdom BAR-Honda 1:21.084 1:22.591 +1.382s
10 15 Brazil Antônio Pizzonia United Kingdom Jaguar-Ford Cosworth 1:20.877 1:22.634 +1.425s
11 14 Australia Mark Webber United Kingdom Jaguar-Ford Cosworth 1:20.171 1:22.647 +1.438s
12 5 United Kingdom David Coulthard United Kingdom McLaren-Mercedes 1:19.968 1:22.811 +1.602s
13 20 France Olivier Panis Japan Toyota 1:19.959 1:23.042 +1.833s
14 10 Germany Heinz-Harald Frentzen Switzerland Sauber-Petronas 1:21.363 1:23.187 +1.978s
15 11 Italy Giancarlo Fisichella Ireland Jordan-Ford Cosworth 1:21.500 1:23.574 +2.365s
16 9 Germany Nick Heidfeld Switzerland Sauber-Petronas 1:21.211 1:23.844 +2.635s
17 12 Ireland Ralph Firman Ireland Jordan-Ford Cosworth 1:22.335 1:24.385 +3.176s
18 18 United Kingdom Justin Wilson Italy Minardi-Ford Cosworth 1:25.468 +4.259s
19 19 Netherlands Jos Verstappen Italy Minardi-Ford Cosworth 1:23.418 1:25.759 +4.550s
NC 17 United Kingdom Jenson Button United Kingdom BAR-Honda 1:20.569
Source:[4][5][6]
  • 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 ______________
Rubens Barrichello 2
______________ Jarno Trulli
Row 2 3 ______________
Kimi Räikkönen 4
______________ Ralf Schumacher
Row 3 5 ______________
Michael Schumacher 6
______________ Cristiano da Matta
Row 4 7 ______________
Juan Pablo Montoya 8
______________ Fernando Alonso
Row 5 9 ______________
Jacques Villeneuve 10
______________ Antônio Pizzonia
Row 6 11 ______________
Mark Webber 12
______________ David Coulthard
Row 7 13 ______________
Olivier Panis 14
______________ Heinz-Harald Frentzen
Row 8 15 ______________
Giancarlo Fisichella 16
______________ Nick Heidfeld
Row 9 17 ______________
Ralph Firman 18
______________ Justin Wilson
Row 10 19 ______________
Jos Verstappen 20
______________ Jenson Button

Race[]

Report[]

Results[]

The full results for the 2003 British Grand Prix are outlined below:

Pos. No. Driver Constructor Laps Time/Retired Grid Points
1 2 Brazil Rubens Barrichello Italy Ferrari 60 1:28:37.554 1 10
2 3 Colombia Juan Pablo Montoya United Kingdom Williams-BMW 60 +5.462s 7 8
3 6 Finland Kimi Räikkönen United Kingdom McLaren-Mercedes 60 +10.656s 3 6
4 1 Germany Michael Schumacher Italy Ferrari 60 +25.648s 5 5
5 5 United Kingdom David Coulthard United Kingdom McLaren-Mercedes 60 +36.827s 12 4
6 7 Italy Jarno Trulli France Renault 60 +43.067s 2 3
7 21 Brazil Cristiano da Matta Japan Toyota 60 +45.085s 6 2
8 17 United Kingdom Jenson Button United Kingdom BAR-Honda 60 +45.478s 20 1
9 4 Germany Ralf Schumacher United Kingdom Williams-BMW 60 +58.032s 4
10 16 Canada Jacques Villeneuve United Kingdom BAR-Honda 60 +1:03.569 9
11 20 France Olivier Panis Japan Toyota 60 +1:05.207 13
12 10 Germany Heinz-Harald Frentzen Switzerland Sauber-Petronas 60 +1:05.564 14
13 12 Ireland Ralph Firman Ireland Jordan-Ford Cosworth 59 +1 Lap 17
14 14 Australia Mark Webber United Kingdom Jaguar-Ford Cosworth 59 +1 Lap 11
15 19 Netherlands Jos Verstappen Italy Minardi-Ford Cosworth 58 +2 Laps 19
16 18 United Kingdom Justin Wilson Italy Minardi-Ford Cosworth 58 +2 Laps 18
17 9 Germany Nick Heidfeld Switzerland Sauber-Petronas 58 +2 Laps 16
Ret 8 Spain Fernando Alonso France Renault 52 Gearbox 8
Ret 11 Italy Giancarlo Fisichella Ireland Jordan-Ford Cosworth 44 Suspension 15
Ret 15 Brazil Antônio Pizzonia United Kingdom Jaguar-Ford Cosworth 32 Engine 10
Source:[7]
  • T Indicates a driver used their test/spare car.

Milestones[]

Standings[]

Victory for Rubens Barrichello left the Brazilian racer twenty points off the lead of the Championship with five rounds to go, meaning he was effectively the dark horse for the title alongside Fernando Alonso. Indeed, Championship leader Michael Schumacher had seen his lead chipped away by the chasing pack, with Kimi Räikkönen moving within seven points of him. Behind, Juan Pablo Montoya had also gained ground, a further seven off of Räikkönen, while a pointless run for Ralf Schumacher saw him slip to fourth.

In the Constructors Championship Ferrari had, in contrast, extended their lead, moving ten points clear after Barrichello's win. Williams-BMW hence lost ground in second, while McLaren-Mercedes had inched closer to their two main rivals, although were still five points shy of the 100 point barrier. Behind, Renault looked to be out of the fight in fourth, but had a lot of space between themselves and fifth placed BAR-Honda.

World Championship for Drivers
Pos. Driver Pts. +/-
1 Germany Michael Schumacher 69
2 Finland Kimi Räikkönen 62
3 Colombia Juan Pablo Montoya 55 ▲1
4 Germany Ralf Schumacher 53 ▼1
5 Brazil Rubens Barrichello 49 ▲1
6 Spain Fernando Alonso 39 ▼1
7 United Kingdom David Coulthard 33
8 Italy Jarno Trulli 16
9 Australia Mark Webber 12
10 United Kingdom Jenson Button 11 ▲1
11 Italy Giancarlo Fisichella 10 ▼1
12 Germany Heinz-Harald Frentzen 7
13 Brazil Cristiano da Matta 5 ▲1
14 Canada Jacques Villeneuve 3 ▼1
15 France Olivier Panis 2
16 Germany Nick Heidfeld 2
17 Ireland Ralph Firman 1
World Championship for Constructors
Pos. Team Pts. +/-
1 Italy Ferrari 118
2 United Kingdom Williams-BMW 108
3 United Kingdom McLaren-Mercedes 95
4 France Renault 55
5 United Kingdom BAR-Honda 14
6 United Kingdom Jaguar-Ford Cosworth 12
7 Ireland Jordan-Ford Cosworth 11
8 Switzerland Sauber-Petronas 9
9 Japan Toyota 7
10 Italy Minardi-Ford Cosworth 0

Only point scoring drivers 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 'British GP, 2003', grandprix.com, (Inside F1 Inc., 2014), https://www.grandprix.com/gpe/rr708.html, (Accessed 12/12/2019)
  2. 'Europe 2003: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2003/europe/engages.aspx, (Accessed 11/12/2019)
  3. 'British 2003: Friday Testing', pitpass.com, (Pitpass, 2003), https://web.archive.org/web/20211104044303/http://pitpass.com/src/seasons/2003/gp/britain/times/fri_test.html, (Accessed 04/11/2021)
  4. '2003 Foster's British Grand Prix - QUALIFYING 1', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Ltd., 2019), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2003/races/747/great-britain/qualifying-1.html, (Accessed 12/12/2019)
  5. '2003 Foster's British Grand Prix - QUALIFYING 2', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Ltd., 2019), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2003/races/747/great-britain/qualifying-2.html, (Accessed 12/12/2019)
  6. 'Britain 2003: Qualifications', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2003/grande-bretagne/qualification.aspx, (Accessed 12/12/2019)
  7. 'Britain 2003: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2003/grande-bretagne/classement.aspx, (Accessed 12/12/2019)
  8. '2003 British GP', chicanef1.com, (Chicane F1, 2014), http://www.chicanef1.com/racetit.pl?year=2003&gp=British%20GP&r=1, (Accessed 12/12/2019)
  9. 9.0 9.1 '11. Britain 2003', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2003/grande-bretagne.aspx, (Accessed 12/12/2019)
V T E 2003 Formula One Season
Teams Ferrari • Williams • McLaren • Renault • Sauber • Jordan • Jaguar • BAR • Minardi • Toyota
Engines BMW • Cosworth • Ferrari • Ford • Honda • Mercedes • Petronas • Renault • Toyota
Drivers M. Schumacher • 2 Barrichello • 3 Montoya • 4 R. Schumacher • 4 Gené • 5 Coulthard • 6 Räikkönen • 7 Trulli • 8 Alonso • 9 Heidfeld • 10 Frentzen • 11 Fisichella • 12 Firman • 12 Baumgartner • 14 Webber • 15 Pizzonia • 15 Wilson • 16 Villeneuve • 16 Sato • 17 Button • 18 Wilson • 18 Kiesa • 19 Verstappen • 20 Panis • 21 Da Matta
Other Drivers Badoer • Beretta • Bruni • Davidson • De la Rosa • Lotterer • Massa • McNish • Montagny • Paffett • Wurz • Zonta
Cars Ferrari F2002B • Ferrari F2003-GA • Williams FW25 • McLaren MP4-17D • Renault R23 • Renault R23B • Sauber C22 • Jordan EJ13 • Jaguar R4 • BAR 005 • Minardi PS03 • Toyota TF103
Tyres Bridgestone • Michelin
Races Australia • Malaysia • Brazil • San Marino • Spain • Austria • Monaco • Canada • Europe • France • Britain • Germany • Hungary • Italy • United States • Japan
See also 2002 Formula One Season • 2004 Formula One Season • Category
V T E United Kingdom British Grand Prix
Circuits Brooklands (1926 - 1927), Silverstone (1948 - Present), Aintree (1955 - 1962), Brands Hatch (1963 - 1986)
SilverstoneArena2010
Races 19501951195219531954195519561957195819591960196119621963196419651966196719681969197019711972197319741975197619771978197919801981198219831984198519861987198819891990199119921993199419951996199719981999200020012002200320042005200620072008200920102011201220132014201520162017201820192020202120222023
Non-Championship Races 1926192719481949
v·d·e Nominate this page for Featured Article
Advertisement