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The 2003 Spanish Grand Prix, officially known as the Gran Premio Marlboro de España 2003, was the fifth round of the 2003 FIA Formula One World Championship, staged at the Circuit de Catalunya in Barcelona, Spain, on 4 May 2003.[1] The race would see Michael Schumacher sweep to a dominant victory for Ferrari, ahead of home hero Fernando Alonso of Renault.[1]

Qualifying for the race had seen Ferrari run unopposed at the head of the field, with Schumacher claiming pole position ahead of Rubens Barrichello.[1] Alonso, meanwhile, would give the home fans hope by claiming third ahead of his teammate Jarno Trulli, while an awful session for Kimi Räikkönen left the Championship leader in last place.[1]

The start of the race saw Alonso make the best start, although he was unable to exploit it as he got boxed in behind Barrichello.[1] Indeed, the Brazilian ace had also got away smartly to challenge teammate Schumacher into the first corner, although his lunge around the outside of his teammate only resulted in the #2 Ferrari clipping the grass.[1]

The lost momentum for Barrichello let Schumacher sprint clear, leaving the Brazilian racer to fend off Alonso through turn three.[1] Behind, however, there was chaos, as Trulli tried to make up for a poor start, only to slam into David Coulthard and bring out the Safety Car.[1] It was Räikkönen, however, who was the biggest victim, getting wiped out amid the chaos as the field scattered to avoid the collision.[1]

Several teams and drivers would opt to make stops during the early SC laps, hence altering their strategies from three-stops to two-stops.[1] However, none of the lead trio would stop, sticking with their three-stop plan, and would hence sprint clear together with lighter fuel when the race resumed.[1]

Indeed, the fight for the lead quickly became a battle of strategies, with Barrichello dropping back to hold up Alonso, while Schumacher established a five second lead.[1] However, the Spaniard would make an earlier stop than either of the Ferraris, and with clear air would halve Schumacher's lead and jump ahead of Barrichello.[1]

However, Alonso ultimately lacked the pace to challenge Schumacher, with the German ace steadily pulling clear of the Renault during their second and third stints.[1] Alonso himself, meanwhile, was able to keep Barrichello at arm's length, meaning the fight for the podium was effectively over with half of the race to run.[1]

Behind, Williams-BMW had used the SC to swap their strategies, and hence ran in fourth and fifth with Ralf Schumacher and Juan Pablo Montoya.[1] However, their race would be upset when Schumacher flew off the circuit and damaged his cooling system, allowing Cristiano da Matta in the Toyota to close in as Montoya swept past.[1]

Into the closing stages and da Matta was throwing everything at Ralf Schumacher, although the crippled Williams had enough pace in the corners to keep the Toyota at bay.[1] Mark Webber would also briefly join the fight, before fading badly as the final laps were concluded.[1]

With that the race was run, with Michael Schumacher cruising across the line to claim victory, while the home fans were jubilant as Alonso swept to second.[1] Barrichello had a lonely second half of the race to complete the podium, with Montoya, Ralf Schumacher, da Matta, Webber and Ralph Firman the remaining point scorers.[1]

Background[]

Kimi Räikkönen once again extended his early grip on the Championship lead after a second straight second place, leaving San Marino on 32 points. David Coulthard remained in his younger teammate's shadow, slipping thirteen behind, while victory for Michael Schumacher had catapulted the German ace into third, a point behind the Scot. Fernando Alonso was one of those to make way for Schumacher, slipping to fourth, with Rubens Barrichello moving into fifth.

In the Constructors Championship McLaren-Mercedes had continued their bid to build a lead, and would leave Italy with nineteen points in hand. Ferrari had moved up to be the Anglo-German squad's closest challengers, with Renault slipping six behind the Italian squad. Williams-BMW also made some minor ground in fourth, with Jordan-Ford Cosworth completing the top five.

Entry List[]

The full entry list for the 2003 Spanish 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 R23 Renault RS23 3.0 V10 M
8 Spain Fernando Alonso France Mild Seven Renault F1 Team Renault R23 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 European Minardi F1 Team Minardi PS03 Ford Cosworth CR-3 3.0 V10 B
19 Netherlands Jos Verstappen Italy European Minardi F1 Team 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 Practice Sessions Only
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 7 Italy Jarno Trulli France Renault 1:17.706 43
2 11 Italy Giancarlo Fisichella Ireland Jordan-Ford Cosworth 1:17.991 +0.285 39
3 8 Spain Fernando Alonso France Renault 1:18.048 +0.342 37
4 34 United Kingdom Allan McNish France Renault 1:18.625 +0.919 52
5 15 Brazil Antônio Pizzonia United Kingdom Jaguar-Ford Cosworth 1:18.699 +0.993 44
6 14 Australia Mark Webber United Kingdom Jaguar-Ford Cosworth 1:18.731 +1.025 53
7 12 Ireland Ralph Firman Ireland Jordan-Ford Cosworth 1:18.761 +1.055 43
8 18 United Kingdom Justin Wilson Italy Minardi-Ford Cosworth 1:21.036 +3.330 31
9 19 Netherlands Jos Verstappen Italy Minardi-Ford Cosworth 1:21.294 +3.588 29
Source:[3]

Practice Overview[]

Qualifying[]

Q1 Report[]

Q2 Report[]

Qualifying Results[]

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

Pos. No. Driver Constructor Time Gap
Q1 Q2
1 1 Germany Michael Schumacher Italy Ferrari 1:17.130 1:17.762
2 2 Brazil Rubens Barrichello Italy Ferrari 1:17.218 1:18.020 +0.258s
3 8 Spain Fernando Alonso France Renault 1:18.100 1:18.233 +0.471s
4 7 Italy Jarno Trulli France Renault 1:17.149 1:18.615 +0.853s
5 17 United Kingdom Jenson Button United Kingdom BAR-Honda 1:17.613 1:18.704 +0.942s
6 20 France Olivier Panis Japan Toyota 1:17.746 1:18.881 +1.049s
7 4 Germany Ralf Schumacher United Kingdom Williams-BMW 1:18.409 1:19.006 +1.244s
8 5 United Kingdom David Coulthard United Kingdom McLaren-Mercedes 1:18.060 1:19.128 +1.366s
9 3 Colombia Juan Pablo Montoya United Kingdom Williams-BMW 1:18.607 1:19.377 +1.615s
10 10 Germany Heinz-Harald Frentzen Switzerland Sauber-Petronas 1:18.909 1:19.427 +1.665s
11 16 Canada Jacques Villeneuve United Kingdom BAR-Honda 1:18.461 1:19.563 +1.801s
12 14 Australia Mark Webber United Kingdom Jaguar-Ford Cosworth 1:17.793 1:19.615 +1.853s
13 21 Brazil Cristiano da Matta Japan Toyota 1:17.443 1:19.623 +1.861s
14 9 Germany Nick Heidfeld Switzerland Sauber-Petronas 1:19.050 1:19.646 +1.884s
15 12 Ireland Ralph Firman Ireland Jordan-Ford Cosworth 1:19.195 1:20.215 +2.453s
16 15 Brazil Antônio Pizzonia United Kingdom Jaguar-Ford Cosworth 1:18.528 1:20.308 +2.546s
17 11 Italy Giancarlo Fisichella Ireland Jordan-Ford Cosworth 1:18.879 1:20.976 +3.214s
18 18 United Kingdom Justin Wilson Italy Minardi-Ford Cosworth 1:21.100 1:22.104 +4.342s
19 19 Netherlands Jos Verstappen Italy Minardi-Ford Cosworth 1:20.822 1:22.237 +4.475s
20 6 Finland Kimi Räikkönen United Kingdom McLaren-Mercedes 1:17.862 1:31.900 +14.138s
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 ______________
Michael Schumacher 2
______________ Rubens Barrichello
Row 2 3 ______________
Fernando Alonso 4
______________ Jarno Trulli
Row 3 5 ______________
Jenson Button 6
______________ Olivier Panis
Row 4 7 ______________
Ralf Schumacher 8
______________ David Coulthard
Row 5 9 ______________
Juan Pablo Montoya 10
______________ Heinz-Harald Frentzen
Row 6 11 ______________
Jacques Villeneuve 12
______________ Mark Webber
Row 7 13 ______________
Cristiano da Matta 14
______________ Nick Heidfeld
Row 8 15 ______________
Ralph Firman 16
______________ Antônio Pizzonia
Row 9 17 ______________
Giancarlo Fisichella 18
______________ Justin Wilson
Row 10 19 ______________
Jos Verstappen 20
______________ Kimi Räikkönen

Race[]

Report[]

Results[]

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

Pos. No. Driver Constructor Laps Time/Retired Grid Points
1 1 Germany Michael Schumacher Italy Ferrari 65 1:33:46.933 1 10
2 8 Spain Fernando Alonso France Renault 65 +5.716s 3 8
3 2 Brazil Rubens Barrichello Italy Ferrari 65 +18.001s 2 6
4 3 Colombia Juan Pablo Montoya United Kingdom Williams-BMW 65 +1:02.022 9 5
5 4 Germany Ralf Schumacher United Kingdom Williams-BMW 64 +1 Lap 7 4
6 21 Brazil Cristiano da Matta Japan Toyota 64 +1 Lap 13 3
7 14 Australia Mark Webber United Kingdom Jaguar-Ford Cosworth 64 +1 Lap 12 2
8 12 Ireland Ralph Firman Ireland Jordan-Ford Cosworth 63 +2 Laps 15 1
9 17 United Kingdom Jenson Button United Kingdom BAR-Honda 63 +2 Laps 5
10 9 Germany Nick Heidfeld Switzerland Sauber-Petronas 63 +2 Laps 14
11 18 United Kingdom Justin Wilson Italy Minardi-Ford Cosworth 63 +2 Laps 18
12 19 Netherlands Jos Verstappen Italy Minardi-Ford Cosworth 62 +3 Laps 19
Ret 11 Italy Giancarlo Fisichella Ireland Jordan-Ford Cosworth 43 Engine 17
Ret 20 France Olivier Panis Japan Toyota 41 Gearbox 6
Ret 10 Germany Heinz-Harald Frentzen Switzerland Sauber-Petronas 38 Suspension 10
Ret 5 United Kingdom David Coulthard United Kingdom McLaren-Mercedes 17 Collision 8
Ret 16 Canada Jacques Villeneuve United Kingdom BAR-Honda 12 Electrical 11
Ret 7 Italy Jarno Trulli France Renault 0 Collision 4
Ret 15 Brazil Antônio Pizzonia United Kingdom Jaguar-Ford Cosworth 0 Collision 16
Ret 6 Finland Kimi Räikkönen United Kingdom McLaren-Mercedes 0 Collision 20
Source:[7]
  • T Indicates a driver used their test/spare car.

Milestones[]

Standings[]

A second victory in a row for Michael Schumacher carried the German ace right to the head of the field, leaving him just four off the lead after a slow start. Indeed, a non-score for Kimi Räikkönen had left him looking vulnerable at the head of the pack, with Fernando Alonso also moving within striking distance in third. Elsewhere, David Coulthard had slipped to fifth behind Rubens Barrichello, with sixteen drivers on the scoresheet.

In the Constructors Championship it had been a very strong afternoon for Ferrari, as they demolished the gap between themselves and early leaders McLaren-Mercedes. The double failure to score in Spain had been very costly for the Anglo-German alliance, leaving them just three ahead of the Scuderia as their strong start to the season faded. Behind, Renault had kept Williams-BMW at bay, while Minardi-Ford Cosworth were left as the only non-scorers.

World Championship for Drivers
Pos. Driver Pts. +/-
1 Finland Kimi Räikkönen 32
2 Germany Michael Schumacher 28 ▲1
3 Spain Fernando Alonso 25 ▲1
4 Brazil Rubens Barrichello 20 ▲1
5 United Kingdom David Coulthard 19 ▼3
6 Germany Ralf Schumacher 17
7 Colombia Juan Pablo Montoya 15 ▲1
8 Italy Giancarlo Fisichella 10 ▼1
9 Italy Jarno Trulli 9
10 Germany Heinz-Harald Frentzen 7
11 Canada Jacques Villeneuve 3
12 Brazil Cristiano da Matta 3 ▲4
13 United Kingdom Jenson Button 3 ▼1
14 Australia Mark Webber 2 ▲1
15 Germany Nick Heidfeld 1 ▼2
16 Ireland Ralph Firman 1 ▲1
World Championship for Constructors
Pos. Team Pts. +/-
1 United Kingdom McLaren-Mercedes 51
2 Italy Ferrari 48
3 France Renault 34
4 United Kingdom Williams-BMW 32
5 Ireland Jordan-Ford Cosworth 11
6 Switzerland Sauber-Petronas 8
7 United Kingdom BAR-Honda 6
8 Japan Toyota 3
9 United Kingdom Jaguar-Ford Cosworth 2
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 'Spanish GP, 2003', grandprix.com, (Inside F1 Inc., 2014), https://www.grandprix.com/gpe/rr702.html, (Accessed 10/12/2019)
  2. 'Spain 2003: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2003/espagne/engages.aspx, (Accessed 10/12/2019)
  3. 'Spanish 2003: Friday Testing', pitpass.com, (Pitpass, 2003), https://web.archive.org/web/20211104025856/https://www.pitpass.com/src/seasons/2003/gp/spain/times/fri_test.html, (Accessed 04/11/2021)
  4. 'Gran Premio Marlboro de España 2003 - QUALIFYING 1', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Ltd., 2019), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2003/races/741/spain/qualifying-1.html, (Accessed 10/12/2019)
  5. 'Gran Premio Marlboro de España 2003 - QUALIFYING 2', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Ltd., 2019), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2003/races/741/spain/qualifying-2.html, (Accessed 10/12/2019)
  6. 'Spain 2003: Qualifications', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2003/espagne/qualification.aspx, (Accessed 10/12/2019)
  7. 'Spain 2003: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2003/espagne/classement.aspx, (Accessed 10/12/2019)
  8. 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 '5. Spain 2003', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/2003/espagne.aspx, (Accessed 10/12/2019)
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 Spain Spanish Grand Prix
Circuits Pedralbes (1951, 1954), Jarama (1967-1968, 1970, 1972, 1974, 1976-1981), Montjuïc (1969, 1971, 1973, 1975), Jerez (1986-1990), Catalunya (1991-Present)
Catalunya2007
Races 19511952–195319541955–1967196819691970197119721973197419751976197719781979198019811982–198719861987198819891990199119921993199419951996199719981999200020012002200320042005200620072008200920102011201220132014201520162017201820192020202120222023
Non-Championship Races 19231924–1925192619271928–192919301931–19321933193419351936–196619671968–19791980
V T E Promotional Trophy
Races 197519761977197819791980198119821983198419851986198719881989199019911992199319941995199619971998199920002001200220032004200520062007200820092010201120122013201420152016201720182019
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