Michael Schumacher and Ferrari 2001 World Champion
Published on 19 August 2001 by
Michael Schumacher won his fourth world championship title in his impressive career. He won his 51st Grand Prix and shares this record with Alain Prost. Rubens Barrichello secured Ferrari's title in the Constructors' championship by finishing in 2nd place, just in front of David Coulthard. Jos had his usual start (from 21st to 15th) but after that he was rather anonymous. In the end he finished 12th.
51 GP wins and 4 World titles
Michael Schumacher led the race from the start and encountered no problems. His victory was not in jeopardy for one second. This sixteenth GP of Hungary is know for its dull moment. The short, bendy circuit is not made for excitement. Normally you hope for a good start and a lot of retirements to make your way forward. The race for Championship ended in the first corner when Michael kept his position and Barrichello moved from 3rd to 2nd to create a buffer. Jos had a good start, gained six positions but after that his car could not match his competitors'.
The first one to retire was Eddie Irvie who spun off in the first corner, after him another nine would follow. The only hope for position changes were the pitstops. McLaren won the first pitstop by getting Coulthard back on track in front of Barrichello. This was reversed at the second pitstop when Coulthards fuel nozzle got stuck. It was not a real fight anymore, Coulthard was not able to pressurise Barrichello.
Even with his famous start better that 12th was not possible
Further the retirements after Irvine: Burti, Bernoldi, Button and Alonso (spin); Trulli and Panis (technical problem); Frentzen (spin); Marques (technical problem) Fisichello (spin). For a moment it looked like there would be a good fight for fifth place between Mika Hakkinen and Ralf Schumacher, but the Fin was unable to overtake the German. The McLaren was faster on the corners but lacked power to overtake the BMW on the straight. Then Hakkinen goes into the pits for a little fuel and the last bit of excitement has gone.
Jos walks back to the OrangeArrows pitbox after being weighed yesterday
Jos about the race: "We can keep it short, but first my congratulations to Michael and his team. They are unbeatable, the best driver in the best car. I had a good start but if everyone is trying to overtake the car in front of him the only thing you can do is follow. I kept my concentration and finished the race. I am rather pleased about the race. We drove to the max, seen the circumstances. This Tuesday and Wednesday we will be testing on Silverstone again. We will be trying out the new front wheel suspension and we will collect more date with the new front wing."
