Atlas F1 News Editor
New venue, same old story. Michael Schumacher and his Ferrari team were again the dominant force at Sunday's inaugural Bahrain Grand Prix, scoring their third consecutive victory of the year. However, there was much more than just another win for the World Champions. Atlas F1's Pablo Elizalde reviews the events and results from the third round of the 2004 season
The new state-of-the-art circuit was supposed to be, a priori, a leveler for those at the top of the field. The unknown track and the high temperatures should have done the trick for those chasing Ferrari and their star driver; or at least that was the hope. Of course they were expecting something similar from the Malaysian Grand Prix too.
Both times, they were proven wrong.
At the purpose built Sakhir track, Schumacher continued to walk on water and his rivals could only watch him disappear into the distance. Apart from the non-alcoholic fizzy that the German sprayed on the podium, there were not many differences from the previous two races.
Unlike in Australia and Malaysia, Schumacher did not show any signs of dominance during practice, and only raised his game when it mattered, to score his third consecutive pole and then to drive away into the distance to clinch Ferrari's sixth consecutive victory. It is worth mentioning that the last time a non-Ferrari won a race, was at last year's Hungarian Grand Prix, almost eight months ago.
"In race trim, apparently, Ferrari still are in a class of their own," said BMW motorsport boss Mario Theissen after the race. If to that you add perfect reliability and error-free driving, it's not hard to explain Ferrari's 29-point lead in the Constructors' Championship after only three events.
The experts said the circumstances again benefitted Ferrari and their Bridgestone tyres, with the track temperature lower than expected come race day. However, with Formula One now heading for the start of the European season, the track temperature argument will just sound as a poor excuse for his opponents if Schumacher continues with his unstoppable charge towards a seventh world title.
Certainly Michelin cannot expect over 40 degrees on track when they race in Imola in three weeks time. If Ferrari's opponents need to wait until the summer to be in a position to challenge for wins, then the Championship could well be decided earlier than anyone had anticipated before the start of the season.
Apart from Ferrari, only BAR had real reasons to leave Bahrain with a smile on their faces. Following Jenson Button's impressive showing in Malaysia, the Honda-powered team again showed their amazing progress throughout the winter to emerge as Ferrari's strongest rivals. BAR boss David Richards was right when he said that Button had been simply incredible during the race, with the end result being a just reward for his flawless driving and the team's strategic ability.
Button was one of the stars of the race once more, and this time BAR looked even better thanks to Takuma Sato who, despite his troubled race, showed good speed all weekend long. It is still too early to predict if BAR will be able to keep up with the development programme, but if their rivals are smart they will surely be following them closely in the coming races.
In terms of pace, and especially during the race, BAR seemed to be a good match for Williams, who had one of those nightmare races the British squad have from time to time. In terms of pace - at least compared to Ferrari - Williams took a step backwards compared to Malaysia. Whether it was for Juan Pablo Montoya's different tyre choice or not, the Colombian was never a rival for Ferrari, and not only in terms of pace, his car letting him down in the final stages of the race.
At least Montoya drove well during the weekend, and looked set for a podium had he not been hit by mechanical problems. That is more than can be said from Ralf Schumacher who, in the words of Patrick Head, made a "bloody mess" of his race to come home in seventh. If it's true that the German is still in talks with Williams over a new contract, he did himself no favours with his incident-filled race, which will serve as support to those who believe Ralf struggles when he has to fight in the middle of the field. That's the price a driver pays for bad starts or a poor qualifying these days.
No one, however, had a worse weekend than McLaren. Three races into the season, the Woking-based team are 47 points behind Ferrari. Kimi Raikkonen can safely say that, having not finished a race, he is out of the running for the title. The team showed no pace and less reliability - with three engine failures during the weekend. As Ron Dennis put it, McLaren are facing a task of Herculean proportions.
Qualifying
Formula One boss Bernie Ecclestone said ahead of qualifying for the Bahrain Grand Prix that the current format benefits Michael Schumacher and that he was not surprised Ferrari did not want to change it. The truth is that, in his and his team's current form, it's hard to imagine any qualifying format that would not benefit the German World Champion and the Italian squad.
When a driver and his team face the challenge of a new circuit, the quality and quantity of their work is all the more important. Schumacher and teammate Rubens Barrichello hit the ground running on Friday and, after a trouble-free two days of practice, the Ferrari duo, and especially Schumacher, proved out of everybody else's reach.
1. Michael Schumacher
2. Rubens Barrichello
3. Juan Pablo Montoya
4. Ralf Schumacher
5. Takuma Sato
6. Jenson Button
7. Jarno Trulli
8. Olivier Panis
10. David Coulthard
11. Giancarlo Fisichella
12. Christian Klien
13. Felipe Massa
14. Mark Webber
15. Nick Heidfeld
16. Giorgio Pantano
17. Fernando Alonso
18. Gianmaria Bruni
19. Zsolt Baumgartner
20. Kimi Raikkonen
The Race
If the weather had behaved up until race day, Sunday would see a very different story when, early in the morning, a desert storm hit the circuit, with rain sweeping across the Kingdom's capital as gusts of high speed wind brought a sand "fog", which reached the circuit to make it more slippery.
Without launch control Ferrari seem to have gained in one of their weakest points of the last few years, and Michael Schumacher, like he had done in Australia and Malaysia, again managed to keep the lead easily when the red lights went off. Barrichello too kept his position, with Montoya still in third after keeping a fast-starting Sato at bay at the first corner.
The Japanese BAR driver was followed by Ralf, who had moved ahead of Trulli at the exit of the first corner. Button was seventh and Panis completed the top eight at the end of the first lap, which saw Alonso having to pit for repairs after damaging the front wing of his Renault when trying to find his way to the top.
Right from the start it was clear that Schumacher and Barrichello were in a race of their own, the German opening the gap to the Brazilian to over three seconds after the first three laps. The Brazilian, meanwhile, was over two ahead of Montoya.
While the race at the top of the field was action-less, further behind there were several battles for position, with overtaking included. Despite some drivers fearing no overtaking opportunities at the Sakhir circuit, the track provided with plenty of options, and that showed during most of the race.
One of the most interesting fights took place between Raikkonen and Klien, who was all over the back of the Finn's McLaren. The Jaguar driver overtook Raikkonen at least twice, only to go wide and allow the Finn to regain his 16th position.
"I knew we were side-by-side and going into turn two he shut the door and I had no room because of the kerb. Ralf didn't give me any space," said Sato of the incident. The stewards agreed with the BAR driver's view, as Ralf received a warning after the race. Amazingly, however, both cars were able to continue in the race, although Ralf was forced to pit and dropped down the order.
On lap eight, Raikkonen's race would come to an end in spectacular fashion, his Mercedes engine exploding, sending a sheet of flame out of the back of his car. It was another blow for the Finn, who has completed just 59 race laps so far this year.
Raikkonen's retirement marked the start of the first round of pitstops, with Schumacher being one of the first drivers to complete his stop. The German returned to the race in sixth position, but would soon return to the lead after the rest of the top runners had pitted. Barrichello was the only man to hit trouble, his Ferrari stalling as he tried to get back to the track. Despite that time lost, the Brazilian was back in second ahead of Montoya.
Fifteen laps into the race Schumacher was over 14 seconds ahead of Barrichello, who despite the problem was almost five in front of Montoya. Trulli was fourth followed by Sato, with Button right behind. The Japanese driver, however, would lose his position two laps later after running over a kerb and damaging his front wing as well as the bottom of the car. Sato had to come into the pits for repairs, dropping down to 14th position.
With the Ferraris disappearing into the distance, the attention focused on Alonso, who was battling his way into the points with a superb battle against Massa for 13th position. The Sauber driver did his best to keep the Renault driver at bay, and he managed to do it for almost two laps, until he went slightly wide and allowed not only Alonso, but also Ralf to pass.
Schumacher pitted on lap 24, Montoya two laps later, and Barrichello on lap 27, the order remaining unchanged. Further back Trulli lost out to Button, who elevated himself to fourth position ahead of the Italian. Coulthard continued in sixth, with Sato in seventh ahead of Webber, who was doing his best to keep the charging Alonso behind for several laps.
The Spaniard was relentless in his chase, pressuring Webber for several minutes until he was finally able to pass the Australian when he overshot the first corner. Just moments later, Ralf, who was fighting Fisichella for position, touched the rear end of the Sauber, sending the Italian into a spin. Both men continued in the race, but Fisichella was not impressed by the move.
Sato, who was fighting his way back to where he was before his incident, was the first man to make his final stop, dropping again behind Coulthard after having passed the Scot cleanly just four laps earlier. In the space of ten laps everybody had pitted for the last time, and the order remained mostly unchanged. By lap 45, Schumacher led from Barrichello, with Montoya still in third, Button close in fourth, followed by Trulli, Sato, Alonso and Coulthard, with Ralf in ninth outside the points.
Montoya's problems continued to worsen and, with four laps remaining, he was passed by Sato and Alonso. Ralf also moved ahead of his teammate, who was still hoping to score a point. On the penultimate lap, however, Webber overtook him to grab the final point.
In the end, Montoya dropped down to 13th and came to a halt just as he crossed under the chequered flag, over a lap behind the winning Ferrari of Schumacher, who only had to stay on track to take another dominant win that will allow him to have a chance at equaling his best ever start to a season in Imola in three weeks time.
"It was a little bit surprising. I certainly expected it to be a closer race," said the German champion after the second Ferrari one-two of the season. "That might have been the case if the temperatures had been a bit higher but fortunately that wasn't the case. It was hard work because the brakes were sort of marginal and we had to keep an eye on the tyres.
"But it was a superb weekend. We worked our way through, it was tough at times. We managed the first row and we managed the first and second position. That is obviously the dream result."
The teams now have an unusual three-week break before the season enters its European adventure with the San Marino Grand Prix, the first of Ferrari's home races. In front of their fans and after the triumphal start to their year, Schumacher and his team will be eager to continue with their winning streak. In their current form, few would dare to bet against them.
The weather is uncertain as the cars go to the grid for the first time in Bahrain. Nick Heidfeld, Zsolt Baumgartner and Kimi Raikkonen are all at the back of the grid because of engine changes. At the start of the parade lap Gianmaria Bruni is left behind and is pushed into pitlane. He starts the race but is two laps down by the time the problems have been solved.
Lap 2: Michael Schumacher increases his lead to 2.7secs but it is already clear that Montoya cannot keep up with second-placed Barrichello, as he drops more than a second behind the Brazilian. Further back Webber passes Coulthard to move to ninth and da Matta gets past Felipe Massa to move up to 12th.
Lap 3: The gap at the front is up to 3.3secs and Barrichello's lead over Montoya goes out to 2.4secs.
Lap 6: The positions are unchanged despite a lively battle for 14th between Christian Klien and Kimi Raikkonen. Schumacher's lead is up to 4.1secs and Barrichello is now nearly six seconds clear of Montoya. The only hope is that Montoya is running with a lot more fuel than the two Ferraris. In the midfield Olivier Panis comes into the pits and falls from 8th place down to 17th.
Lap 7: Ralf Schumacher and Sato come to blows as Ralf passes the BAR. The Japanese driver does not to back off and the cars collide. This puts Schumacher into a spin and allows Trulli to pass Sato. Ralf has to pit for repairs. Also pitting is da Matta in the Toyota.
Lap 9: The major pit stops begin with Michael Schumacher, Webber, Coulthard and Massa coming in. Down at the back Zsolt Baumgartner is also a pit caller. Barrichello goes into the lead while Coulthard and Webber leave pit lane absolutely side by side, Webber eventually having to give way to the McLaren.
Lap 10: Barrichello, Montoya and Trulli all pit and for a lap Sato is in the lead with Button second. Also stopping are Giancarlo Fisichella and Klien. Montoya's stop confirms that the Williams-BMWs are not competitive with the Ferraris.
Lap 11: Sato's moment of glory is brief as he pits at the end of lap leaving Button in the lead but he too needs to stop. Also stopping is Giorgio Pantano who was running eighth because of all the pit stops.
Lap 12: Button pits and Michael Schumacher goes back into the lead. He is around 10 seconds ahead of Barrichello who in turn is four seconds ahead of Montoya. There is then a big gap back to Trulli, Sato, Button and Nick Heidfeld, who is yet to stop. Then comes Coulthard and Webber.
Lap 13: Heidfeld pits and drops back down the order, allowing Coulthard to move up to seventh and Webber to eighth.
Lap 15: Klien, running 12th, has a spin and falls behind Massa and Alonso.
Lap 17: There have been no major changes in the order. Sato however goes over a kerb and damages his front wing and is overtaken for fifth by Button. Sato heads for the pits for a new nose. He rejoins in 14th place.
Lap 20: Panis stops again and falls from ninth to 14th.
Lap 21: Da Matta pits for a second time and he drops to 14th.
Lap 23: Coulthard and Webber come into the pits for a second time. Coulthard gets out faster and slots in ahead of Massa and Sato. Webber is caught behind them.
Lap 24: Michael Schumacher stops for a second time. Barrichello goes into the lead. Also pitting is Ralf Schumacher who has fought back to eighth. He drops to 14th.
Lap 25: Trulli comes into the pits and drops behind Button. Massa and Pantano are also in the pits for a second time. In the midfield Mark Webber has an off but he does not lose any positions.
Lap 26: Barrichello stays out and it is Montoya who goes into pitlane. Button is also in the pits. He is followed in by Fisichella and Alonso, stopping for the first time since his first lap pit stop.
Lap 27: Barrichello comes into the pits and so Michael Schumacher leads again. Barrichello is second 12secs behind. Montoya is third with Trulli fourth and Button fifth. Coulthard and Sato follow through while Webber is under serious attack from Alonso for eighth place.
Lap 28: Da Matta is overtaken by Ralf Schumacher for 12th place.
Lap 33: Sato goes past Coulthard on the inside at the first corner to take sixth place.
Lap 34: Heidfeld pits for a second time, indicating that he is on a two-stop strategy. He is too far back to make much of an impression.
Lap 37: The final pit stops begin with Sato and Panis leading the way.
Lap 38: Trulli, Coulthard and Webber all pit. Further back da Matta has his third stop.
Lap 39: Montoya pits and Button is briefly third.
Lap 40: The stops continue with Button stopping. He gets out ahead of Trulli to grab fourth place. Alonso has climbed to eighth but stops and drops back to 10th.
Lap 41: Michael Schumacher stops again. The pit stop is without incident but Barrichello goes back into the lead. Schumacher is however well clear of Montoya.
Lap 43: After leading for two laps Barrichello stops again. Schumacher goes back into the lead. Barrichello rejoins 10 seconds ahead of Montoya, who is three seconds ahead of Button. Further back Fisichella has his final stop but the strategy has not been a success and he rejoins 13th.
Lap 47: Montoya begins to slow with gearbox trouble. At the tail of the field Baumgartner retires with a blown engine.
Lap 49: Button passes Montoya to take third place.
Lap 50: Montoya falls behind Trulli, while further back Sato is under pressure from Alonso for sixth place. Coulthard comes into the pits and the team works on the car. David tries to rejoin but the cars stops at the end of the pitlane. This puts Ralf Schumacher up to eighth.
Lap 53: Montoya's problems are getting worse and he is overtaken by both Sato and Alonso.
Lap 54: Ralf Schumacher passes Montoya for seventh place.
Lap 56: Webber and Panis pass Montoya for eighth and ninth places.
Lap 57: Michael Schumacher wins his third consecutive race to give himself a huge advantage in the World Championship. Barrichello is second and Button third for the second race running. The remaining points go to Trulli, Sato, Alonso, Ralf Schumacher and Webber.
There are no quick fixes in Formula One, and even though the circumstances often conspire to alter the looks of things, the reality is that rapid change is very uncommon in the pinnacle of motor racing. You can ask Ferrari's rivals about it.
If the Malaysian Grand Prix two weeks earlier had offered a glimmer of hope to those trying to dethrone Michael Schumacher, Sunday's race in Bahrain was a reality check that showed further proof of the huge mountain they will have to climb to come close to beating the World Champion and his team.
However, it's not as if Michelin were to blame for the aspirants' problems. When, as usual, Schumacher played down his dominant win after the race saying that, during the 57-lap event, his "biggest problem was staying on line", you can imagine that his rivals would do anything to be in the same kind of trouble.
Like in Malaysia, Renault left Bahrain with mixed feelings. The French squad's real pace continues to be something of a mystery as Fernando Alonso had to start, for the second race running, from the back of the grid. He showed he can charge back to the front in spectacular fashion, but it was his or his car's fault that he was at the back in the first place. In the end, both himself and Jarno Trulli scored well, but it remains to be seen what the French squad are capable of doing.
First Qualifying: 1:30.751; Second Qualifying: 1:30.139
Unlike Malaysia or Australia, Schumacher's performances ahead of qualifying did not suggest he was the main favourite to clinch pole position at the new Sakhir circuit. But how deceiving can practice be. After setting the fastest time in the initial Friday session, Schumacher stayed away from the top of the times until it was the right time to show his true pace. In final qualifying the Ferrari driver flew to put himself out of his rivals' reach and set the third consecutive pole of the 2004 season, and that despite a less than perfect lap, which showed Schumacher's superiority.
First Qualifying: 1:31.283; Second Qualifying: 1:30.530
First Qualifying: 1:30.247; Second Qualifying: 1:30.581
Montoya went faster and faster as the weekend progressed and he could have been closer to his first pole of the season had he not messed up his final sector. The Colombian, who along with the Toyota drivers, was the only man to opt for the softer compound of the Michelin tyres, was comfortable with his Williams all weekend and looked set for a front row start until he made a mistake at the final corner. Without that, Montoya could have even managed to fight for pole, but as it was he had to settle for third.
First Qualifying: 1:29.968; Second Qualifying: 1:30.633
The highlight of Ralf's weekend came when he topped the timesheets in the first qualifying session. After that, it was all downhill. Like his teammate Montoya, Ralf was pleased with the handling of the FW26 during most of the weekend. Like Montoya too, however, the German driver made a costly mistake on his flying lap, losing around three tenths of a second. Nonetheless Ralf was confident his race set-up would give him the edge on Sunday.
First Qualifying: 1:31.135; Second Qualifying: 1:30.827
After the first two races of the season, in which the Japanese driver was unable to match the pace of teammate Button, Sato lived up to BAR's expectations in Bahrain, showing his best side. Despite complaining of oversteer during his flying lap, Sato completed an excellent lap that meant he was able to outqualify Button for the first time this season. It was also the best performance of his F1 career so far.
First Qualifying: 1:31.131; Second Qualifying: 1:30.856
Button looked like one of the favourites to fight for pole following an impressive display in both of Saturday's sessions, in which he set the quickest times. Qualifying, however, proved to be disappointing for the BAR driver, who was unable to explain the drop in performance. On his flying lap, his Honda-powered car's rear end was not as stable as Button would have wanted and the grip levels were not as high as in practice, which cost him over four tenths of a second.
First Qualifying: 1:31.103; Second Qualifying: 1:30.971
The Italian continued with his solid yet unspectacular qualifying performances, completing a good flying lap but not fast enough to fight for a position in the top six. Trulli, however, could be happy with the end result, especially after a lucky escape on Friday, when his RS24 engine suffered a problem in the fuel system that stopped his car on track during practice. Fortunately for him, the team did not need to change the engine and Trulli escaped a penalty.
First Qualifying: 1:31.001; Second Qualifying: 1:31.686
Following their poor start in Australia, things continued to improve for the Toyota team in Bahrain. At least in qualifying trim both Panis and Cristiano da Matta looked competitive enough to be able to fight for points. Panis had showed signs of the TF104's speed already in Saturday's first qualifying session when he set the fifth fastest time. His good day was completed with a solid effort in the grid-deciding session, which put him in a strong position to fight for Toyota's first points of the year.
9. Cristiano da Matta
First Qualifying: 1:31.329; Second Qualifying: 1:31.717
Like Panis, da Matta looked better in Bahrain, which seemed to suit the characteristics of the TF104 more than Sepang or Melbourne. The Brazilian was also pleased with the progress made and extracted the maximum from his car in qualifying. Both da Matta and his teammate opted for the softer compound of the Michelin tyres, which seemed to work better than the harder ones in the Toyotas.
First Qualifying: 1:31.364; Second Qualifying: 1:31.719
McLaren's weekend started poorly and only got worse. Coulthard spun off the track in Friday's practice after one of his tyres blew up, and then completed only four untimed laps in the final practice session on Saturday when another of his Michelins deflated. In spite of that, the Scot's worst problem was that he was simply unable to find the speed to be higher up the grid, claiming the MP4-19 was only quick at turns 11 and 12.
First Qualifying: 1:31.203; Second Qualifying: 1:31.731
Fisichella was another driver who did not have a good start to his weekend, and not only because he was not comfortable with his car: the Italian Sauber driver was feeling unwell on Friday. Things improved on qualifying day, Fisichella much happier with both his health and his car, which he claimed was behaving better than ever before this year. The performance of the C23, however, was not good enough for a place in the top ten.
First Qualifying: 1:31.868; Second Qualifying: 1:32.332
For the first time this season, Klien started the weekend with the benefit of driving at a circuit which was new for everybody. And he looked better than in the first two races of the year, in which he had been blown away by his teammate Mark Webber. In Bahrain, however, the young Austrian was the quickest Jaguar driver in most of the timed sessions and even outqualified his rated teammate, something not often seen.
First Qualifying: 1:32.152; Second Qualifying: 1:32.536
The young Brazilian looked faster than what his qualifying position reflected, but two mistakes - one of them quite big at the first corner - during his flying lap on Saturday relegated him to 13th place. Massa was generally pleased with the handling of his Sauber during most of the weekend, although he complained of issues with the balance that he was unable to correct. A mechanical failure in Saturday's practice did not help.
First Qualifying: 1:31.945; Second Qualifying: 1:32.625
Following his amazing showing in Malaysia's qualifying just two weeks earlier, Webber's performance was one of the biggest letdowns of the day. The Jaguar, however, never looked as quick in Bahrain as it had a fortnight ago in Sepang. Still, Webber, who had grip problems during qualifying, claimed he could have gone quicker had he not made a couple of mistakes during his flying lap.
First Qualifying: 1:32.640; Second Qualifying: 1:33.506
For the third race in a row, Heidfeld showed his consistency by posting the 15th quickest time of the qualifying session, which is the best the Jordan driver can aspire to at the moment. His time, although not his position, could have been better had he not found a bollard on his racing line during his flying lap. In any case, the German was penalised after changing his Ford engine, which was hit by trouble in the second practice session on Friday.
First Qualifying: 1:33.598; Second Qualifying: 1:34.105
Being on a track that no other driver knew did not help Pantano's cause much, although he was somewhat closer than usual to teammate Heidfeld in qualifying. The Italian had his moment of glory in Friday's second free practice, where he managed the 13th quickest time of the day. After that, he returned to the back of the field and in qualifying finished over half a second off Heidfeld's pace.
First Qualifying: 1:31.040; Second Qualifying: 1:34.130
For the second consecutive race, the Renault driver had a nightmare qualifying lap that forced him to start the race from the back of the grid. This time, however, Alonso claimed it had not been his fault, as the brakes of his R24 car had not been working properly. First he overshot the first corner and lost almost a whole second, and then went off the track towards the end of the lap. The end result was the prospect of another tough race from the wrong end of the grid.
First Qualifying: 1:34.879; Second Qualifying: 1:34.584
The Minardi driver managed to escape the final row of the grid once more, which is basically all he can hope for with the underpowered, underdeveloped PS04B. Bruni also qualified ahead of his teammate by over a second, proving that, so far, he is the leading driver at the Faenza-based squad.
First Qualifying: 1:35.632; Second Qualifying: 1:35.787
The Hungarian driver did not bode particularly well in Bahrain, finishing far behind his Minardi teammate after struggling in qualifying. After a spin in the final practice session, Baumgartner was unable to test the tyres he was to use on his flying laps. As a result he claimed he was not feeling comfortable with his car and decided to takes things easy.
First Qualifying: 1:30.353; Second Qualifying: no time
It didn't take long for Raikkonen's weekend to go horribly wrong. Ten minutes into Friday's second practice session, the Finn's Mercedes engine let go, and with it, all his hopes of finally getting his season on the right path disappeared. That, however, was not the end of Raikkonen's problems: in Saturday's practice, as he attempted to leave the pitlane, his McLaren grounded to a halt and had to be pushed back into the garage. After all that, the team opted to save the engine and the tyres and Raikkonen aborted his qualifying lap.
By the start of the race, however, the weather had improved and the only concern was the dust on track. Or at least the only concern for Ferrari, as the cooler temperatures were a worry for the Michelin runners.
Meanwhile, Ralf and Sato were battling out for fourth place, the German right behind the BAR driver for some laps before he dived down the inside at the end of the straight. Sato, however, was not ready to give up that easily and stayed alongside the German around the outside of the corner and on the inside of the next turn. When Ralf turned for the corner, Sato was there and the Williams' rear wheel touched the BAR's front, sending Ralf into the air and into a spin.
The gap between Schumacher and Barrichello stabilized around 14 seconds while Montoya, unable to keep the pace of the Ferraris, was over 20 seconds behind the leader as the second round of pitstops began. Coulthard, running sixth, was the first of the top runners to pit. He was followed by Webber, who was running some six seconds behind the Scot.
Only two laps later Montoya began to slow down due to a problem with his gearbox. Button needed just a couple of laps to close the gap to the Colombian and pass him. Montoya's situation looked desperate as he continued to lose gears and positions. He was overtaken by Trulli and began to lose ground to Coulthard until the Scot was forced to come into the pits with problems. His mechanics worked on the car and Coulthard tried to return to the race, only for his car to succumb to an engine problem at the end of pitlane.
"As usual, a dream result for Ferrari meant a bad one for their main rivals, except for BAR, who were delighted with Button's second consecutive podium after an excellent race from the Briton. "Jenson was simply incredible this afternoon, and now we must aim for that first win," said team boss David Richards, his team now tied in third place in the Constructors' Championship.
Race Results
Pos Driver Team-Engine Time
1. M.Schumacher Ferrari (B) 1h 28:34.875
2. Barrichello Ferrari (B) + 1.367
3. Button BAR-Honda (M) + 26.687
4. Trulli Renault (M) + 32.214
5. Sato BAR-Honda (M) + 52.460
6. Alonso Renault (M) + 53.156
7. R.Schumacher Williams-BMW (M) + 58.155
8. Webber Jaguar-Cosworth (M) + 1 lap
9. Panis Toyota (M) + 1 lap
10. da Matta Toyota (M) + 1 lap
11. Fisichella Sauber-Petronas (B) + 1 lap
12. Massa Sauber-Petronas (B) + 1 lap
13. Montoya Williams-BMW (M) + 1 lap
14. Klien Jaguar-Cosworth (M) + 1 lap
15. Heidfeld Jordan-Ford (B) + 1 lap
16. Pantano Jordan-Ford (B) + 2 laps
17. Bruni Minardi-Cosworth (B) + 5 laps
Not Classified/Retirements:
Driver Team On Lap
Coulthard McLaren-Mercedes (M) 51
Baumgartner Minardi-Cosworth (B) 45
Raikkonen McLaren-Mercedes (M) 8
World Championship Standing, Round 3:
Drivers: Constructors:
1. M.Schumacher 30 1. Ferrari 51
2. Barrichello 21 2. Renault 22
3. Button 15 3. Williams-BMW 19
4. Montoya 12 = BAR-Honda 19
5. Alonso 11 5. McLaren-Mercedes 4
= Trulli 11 6. Sauber-Petronas 1
7. R.Schumacher 7 = Jaguar-Cosworth 1
8. Sato 4
= Coulthard 4
10. Massa 1
= Webber 1
Pos Driver Team Lap Time
1. M.Schumacher Ferrari (B) 7 1:30.252
2. Alonso Renault (M) 39 1:30.654 + 0.402
3. R.Schumacher Williams-BMW (M) 56 1:30.781 + 0.529
4. Barrichello Ferrari (B) 29 1:30.876 + 0.624
5. Button BAR-Honda (M) 24 1:30.960 + 0.708
6. Montoya Williams-BMW (M) 28 1:30.977 + 0.725
7. Sato BAR-Honda (M) 55 1:31.101 + 0.849
8. Trulli Renault (M) 24 1:31.421 + 1.169
9. Coulthard McLaren-Mercedes (M) 19 1:31.861 + 1.609
10. Webber Jaguar-Cosworth (M) 19 1:32.277 + 2.025
11. da Matta Toyota (M) 23 1:32.319 + 2.067
12. Fisichella Sauber-Petronas (B) 40 1:32.329 + 2.077
13. Panis Toyota (M) 22 1:32.401 + 2.149
14. Klien Jaguar-Cosworth (M) 38 1:32.533 + 2.281
15. Massa Sauber-Petronas (B) 44 1:32.690 + 2.438
16. Heidfeld Jordan-Ford (B) 56 1:33.284 + 3.032
17. Raikkonen McLaren-Mercedes (M) 7 1:33.527 + 3.275
18. Pantano Jordan-Ford (B) 9 1:34.032 + 3.780
19. Baumgartner Minardi-Cosworth (B) 24 1:34.555 + 4.303
20. Bruni Minardi-Cosworth (B) 40 1:35.130 + 4.878
Pos Driver Team Time Lap
1. Alonso Renault (M) 25.234 26
2. Trulli Renault (M) 25.386 10
3. R.Schumacher Williams-BMW (M) 25.424 45
4. da Matta Toyota (M) 25.483 7
5. Trulli Renault (M) 25.803 25
6. Panis Toyota (M) 25.888 6
7. Barrichello Ferrari (B) 25.977 43
8. da Matta Toyota (M) 26.027 21
9. Montoya Williams-BMW (M) 26.175 39
10. Massa Sauber-Petronas (B) 26.263 42
11. Panis Toyota (M) 26.312 20
12. Alonso Renault (M) 26.329 40
13. Coulthard McLaren-Mercedes (M) 26.425 23
14. Coulthard McLaren-Mercedes (M) 26.476 9
15. Barrichello Ferrari (B) 26.482 27
16. Sato BAR-Honda (M) 26.619 11
17. M.Schumacher Ferrari (B) 26.629 9
18. Baumgartner Minardi-Cosworth (B) 26.632 9
19. Montoya Williams-BMW (M) 26.753 26
20. Webber Jaguar-Cosworth (M) 26.852 23
21. M.Schumacher Ferrari (B) 26.862 41
22. Fisichella Sauber-Petronas (B) 26.866 10
23. Klien Jaguar-Cosworth (M) 26.876 19
24. Trulli Renault (M) 27.047 38
25. Klien Jaguar-Cosworth (M) 27.086 10
26. Massa Sauber-Petronas (B) 27.293 25
27. Button BAR-Honda (M) 27.310 40
28. Webber Jaguar-Cosworth (M) 27.336 9
29. Massa Sauber-Petronas (B) 27.416 9
30. M.Schumacher Ferrari (B) 27.443 24
31. Fisichella Sauber-Petronas (B) 27.444 43
32. Panis Toyota (M) 27.505 37
33. da Matta Toyota (M) 27.544 38
34. Pantano Jordan-Ford (B) 27.648 11
35. Baumgartner Minardi-Cosworth (B) 27.771 22
36. Coulthard McLaren-Mercedes (M) 27.879 38
37. Montoya Williams-BMW (M) 27.921 10
38. Pantano Jordan-Ford (B) 28.002 41
39. Pantano Jordan-Ford (B) 28.400 25
40. R.Schumacher Williams-BMW (M) 28.602 7
41. Klien Jaguar-Cosworth (M) 28.669 39
42. Button BAR-Honda (M) 28.672 26
43. Fisichella Sauber-Petronas (B) 28.788 26
44. Heidfeld Jordan-Ford (B) 28.982 13
45. Sato BAR-Honda (M) 29.039 37
46. Sato BAR-Honda (M) 29.505 18
47. R.Schumacher Williams-BMW (M) 29.726 24
48. Baumgartner Minardi-Cosworth (B) 30.153 37
49. Button BAR-Honda (M) 30.593 12
50. Webber Jaguar-Cosworth (M) 30.821 38
51. Heidfeld Jordan-Ford (B) 31.937 34
52. Barrichello Ferrari (B) 32.668 10
53. Alonso Renault (M) 35.766 1
54. Bruni Minardi-Cosworth (B) 37.593 24
55. Bruni Minardi-Cosworth (B) 37.611 38
The Bahrain Grand Prix, Lap by Lap
Lap 1: At the start of the race Michael Schumacher jumps into the lead with Rubens Barrichello slotting into second and Juan Pablo Montoya seeing off a challenge in the first corner from a fast-starting Jarno Trulli. This allows Takuma Sato and Ralf Schumacher to get ahead of the Renault although Jenson Button is stuck behind Trulli. Then come Cristiano da Matta, David Coulthard, Olivier Panis and a fast-starting Mark Webber. In the course of the lap da Matta goes off and is passed by Webber and Coulthard loses out to Panis. At the end of the lap Michael Schumacher is 1.5secs ahead of Barrichello with Montoya eight-tenths behind Rubens. Next up is Sato, Ralf Schumacher, Trulli, Button and Panis. The top 10 is completed by Coulthard and Webber. The big loser is da Matta who is behind the two Saubers in 13th place. Raikkonen is up to 14th from 19th but Fernando Alonso's hopes of making up places are frustrated when he damages his front wing on another car and has to pit. He drops to the tail of the field.
Lap 8: Kimi Raikkonen goes out with a burst of flame at the back of the car.
Lap 19: Klien pits and falls back behind the Jordans.
Lap 31: The order at the front is stable but the battle between Webber and Alonso is a lively one. Alonso finally forces his way through when Webber makes a slight mistake at the first corner. Further back Ralf Schumacher punts Fisichella into a spin and moves ahead, with da Matta also taking advantage of the situation.
Lap 45: Sixth-placed Ralf Schumacher has his final stop but this drops him behind Sato, Alonso and Coulthard.
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