ATLAS F1 - THE JOURNAL OF FORMULA ONE MOTORSPORT
One Shot: 2003 Through the Lens

By Keith Sutton, England
Sutton Images



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The new season starts with a bang when pole sitter Michael Schumacher is denied a position by Kimi Raikkonen who pulled off this audacious move to keep the German behind. Few at the time though would have predicted that this battle would continue through to the last race of the season.
 
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After the monotonous red domination of 2002, it was a refreshing change for it to be a Ferrari free podium and boded well for an exciting season. Sadly for David Coulthard though, his victory in the season opener was to prove the highlight of his season.
 
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Kimi "The Iceman" Raikkonen kept his cool in the heat of Malaysia to take his maiden GP victory. It would be his only win of the season, but a run of consistent point scoring finishes would keep him in the championship hunt right down to the wire.
 
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Young Fernando Alonso celebrates his first ever pole position in the highly promising Renault. He backed this up with a third place finish in the race, becoming the first ever Spaniard to climb onto the podium in a GP. The strength of the Renault team was to be one of the revelations of the season.
 
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The combination of a torrential downpour and inappropriate rain tyres made Turn Three at Interlagos a multi-million dollar wrecking yard for F1 cars. Add one five-time World Champion's Ferrari to the collection!
 
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Race winner Giancarlo Fisichella sees his Jordan burst into flames in Parc Ferme at the end of a shortened, but chaotic GP. A timing error deprived Fissi and the Jordan team of the top step on the podium on race day, but this was put right in Paris five days later. Sadly for Giancarlo the remainder of the season was a pale shadow of this memorable day and he signed for Sauber for 2004.
 
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Michael Schumacher triumphed through adversity when he took an overdue first victory of the season at San Marino just hours after his mother had passed away in Germany. Just as it is on the track his loyal team mate Rubens Barrichello was there to offer support.
 
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Racing on the Easter Sunday didn't help, but the low crowd turnout at Imola was indicative of reduced interest in attending races by paying spectators. Before the season's end there were once again demands to spice up the show, not so much for the GP itself but the sideshows around it.
 
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Michael Schumacher may have taken victory in the new F2003-GA, but he was made to work all the way by Fernando Alonso, who thrilled his home crowd by bringing home his Renault in second position.
 
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Despite the efforts of young chargers like Fernando Alonso, Michael Schumacher is still top dog in Formula One.
 
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Michael Schumacher lives up to his reputation of not being only the best driver of his generation but also one of the luckiest when a pit stop refuelling fire cost him time but did not stop him from taking a hat trick of GP victories.
 
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It is to the loss of Formula One that the global expansion of GP hosts costs us arguably the most scenic backdrop for an F1 race, as the Austrian race held in the Styrian Mountains saw perhaps its last GP for the foreseeable future.
 
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Sheer delight for Juan Pablo Montoya and his Williams crew as he took his second career victory and gave Williams their first victory at the Principality since Keke Rosberg won there twenty years earlier.
 
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Jenson Button reminded us all that motorsport is dangerous when he crashed his BAR heavily at the harbour chicane. No lasting damage was done to the driver at least, but Button was briefly hospitalised and was forced to sit out the race.
 
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It was a case of follow the leader as second placed Ralf Schumacher appeared unwilling or unable to pass his brother Michael for the lead of the race.
 
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Kimi Raikkonen walks back to the pits after crashing his McLaren during his one-shot qualifying lap. The net result in starting from the back on the grid was losing his lead in the World Championship.
 
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With heavy German backing from their engine suppliers BMW and sponsors Allianz: a 1-2 finish for Williams on German soil at the Nurburgring with German Ralf Schumacher leading the field home was a dream result for the British team.
 
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A rare moment of unadulterated joy for the hard working Minardi mechanics as they watch Jos Verstappen make the most of favourable weather conditions to take provisional pole position for the French Grand Prix. Reality struck for the team for the remainder of the race weekend, but for one day: they could be heroes.
 
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The BAR mechanics can only stand back and watch as a bailiff impounds the team's cars during practice for the French GP. The dispute brought about by a sponsor of the team some years earlier was resolved in time to allow both drivers to race.
 
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The most surreal F1 moment since the last member of the public invaded the circuit during a race. Father Neil Horan chose the Hangar Straight as the location for his one-man protest against all the ills in the world. Fortunately no one was hurt and the ensuing chaos helped make it one of the most enjoyable races for years.
 
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Rubens Barrichello drove superbly to win the race and to maintain his 100% record for winning races when an interloper invades the circuit.
 
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Juan Pablo Montoya simply crushed the opposition at Hockenheim, winning in his Williams at a canter by over a minute. The tyre advantage enjoyed by Michelin over Bridgestone was becoming a little too obvious for some.
 
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A high-speed first corner accident between Kimi Raikkonen, Rubens Barrichello and Ralf Schumacher saw thankfully no injuries, but brought about a protracted investigation over the incident that saw Ralf Schumacher's 10-position grid penalty reduced to a fine on appeal.
 
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At 22 years and 26 days Fernando Alonso became the youngest ever winner of a Grand Prix. On this historic day it marked the first win for Renault in 20 years and the eighth different GP winner in a memorable F1 season.
 
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Ferrari hit their lowest ebb in many seasons as Rubens Barrichello was fortunate to escape from a high-speed suspension failure and Michael Schumacher suffered the ignominy of being lapped en route to his lowly eighth place finish. This prompted the team to protest the legality of the Michelin tyres used to such great effect by their rival teams.
 
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A titanic battle at the start of the race with the two championship leaders Michael Schumacher and Juan Pablo Montoya fighting for the lead. Michael held out and went on to win the fastest GP of all time.
 
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An almighty furore before the Italian GP over Ferrari questioning the legality of the Michelin tyres threatened to overshadow a thrilling conclusion to an exciting F1 season.
 
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A highly contentious drive-through penalty served upon Juan Pablo Montoya after his collision with Rubens Barrichello during the American GP effectively ended his hopes of fighting for his first World Championship title.
 
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In the build up to the US GP there were three genuine title contenders. Schumacher was victorious and all but assured him of a sixth world title: only a hard fought podium finish from Kimi Raikkonen gave him a slender chance of the crown.
 
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In a matter befitting of a memorable season, race victory in Japan for Rubens Barrichello and a hard fought eighth position for Michael Schumacher gave Michael a record breaking sixth World Championship and a fifth constructors' title in a row for Ferrari.
 


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Volume 9, Issue 44
October 29th 2003

Toyota 2003 Review

Interview with Ove Andersson
by David Cameron

Toyota 2003: The Drivers' Version

2003 Season Review

Rating the Great and Near-Great
by Karl Ludvigsen

The Road to Zero Defect
by Richard Barnes

Ann Bradshaw: View from the Paddock
by Ann Bradshaw

One Shot: 2003 Through the Lens
by Keith Sutton

The 2003 Season in Quotes
by Pablo Elizalde

Columns

Season Strokes
by Bruce Thomson

Elsewhere in Racing
by David Wright & Mark Alan Jones

The Weekly Grapevine
by Tom Keeble



  Contact the Editor



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