2003 Austrian Grand Prix

The 2003 Austrian Grand Prix (formally known as A1 Grand Prix von Österreich 2003 ) was a Formula One motor race held on 18 May 2003 at the A1-Ring . It was the sixth round of the 2003 Formula One season and the 27th Austrian Grand Prix . The 69-lap race was won by Michael Schumacher driving a Ferrari car after starting from pole position . Kimi Räikkönen finished second driving for McLaren with Rubens Barrichello third in the other Ferrari. It was the last Austrian Grand Prix to be held until i...

It was Ferrari's last win in Austria until 2022 .

Background

The Grand Prix was contested by ten teams with two drivers each. The teams (also known as constructors ) were Ferrari , Williams , McLaren , Renault , Sauber , Jordan , Jaguar , BAR , Minardi and Toyota . [ 2 ] It was announced in January 2003 that the Austrian Grand Prix would be dropped from the Formula One calendar in 2004, three years before the contract for the race was due to expire. This was because an exit clause was enabled in response to the European Union pushing forward a ban on toba...

Race

Fernando Alonso chose to start from the pitlane in the spare car, and Mark Webber chose to start from the pitlane in his regular car. This meant Webber could not change tyres or add fuel until the race started, whereas Alonso could. His Jaguar broke this rule, and so Webber received a 10-second stop/go penalty. [ 8 ]

Race

At the start, Jos Verstappen 's launch control broke, and he retired. This caused the safety car to be deployed. Michael eventually led Montoya and Räikkönen when the green flag came out at the end of lap 4. The field remained relatively stable for the next several laps.

After 11 laps, it started to rain lightly, although it was not enough to force cars into the pits. Moments later, Jarno Trulli 's Renault spun at turn one and he rejoined without problems. On lap 23, Michael pitted and there was a problem with his fuel filler, possibly caused by the fact that the team had used it to fill up Rubens Barrichello 's car, which had a very slow first stop. Some of the fuel that actually did come out of the nozzle hit the bodywork on the sidepods, causing a small fire....

On lap 32, everything turned into Michael's favour. Räikkönen was having engine-related performance problems, and this allowed Schumacher to catch and eventually pass him. On the straight between turns two and three, leader Juan Pablo Montoya 's engine blew up. He made it back to the garage, and Michael was back in the lead. Alonso was on a good run despite starting from the pit lane, and was running in the top five when he spun off course at turn one, on what turned out to be his own oil caused...

After the second round of stops, Barrichello closed up on second-place Räikkönen, but was unable to pass him due to some good defensive moves by Kimi, despite his car being clearly faster. Michael eventually went on to win the race, his third successive of the season. [ 10 ] Jenson Button finished fourth for BAR despite being disappointed in qualifying, and David Coulthard 's race was uneventful in fifth place. Ralf Schumacher was sixth, Webber finished a brilliant seventh despite his penalties,...

External links

47°13′11″N 14°45′53″E / 47.21972°N 14.76472°E / 47.21972; 14.76472

Quick Facts

2003 Austrian Grand Prix Race 6 of 16 in the 2003 Formula One World Championship← Previous raceNext race →

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2003 Austrian Grand Prix Course

2003 Austrian Grand Prix Course length

2003 Austrian Grand Prix Distance

Table 1

Pos	No	Driver	Constructor	Q1 Time	Q2 Time
1	1	Michael Schumacher	Ferrari	1:07.908	1:09.150
2	6	Kimi Räikkönen	McLaren-Mercedes	1:08.978	1:09.189
3	3	Juan Pablo Montoya	Williams-BMW	1:08.839	1:09.391
4	9	Nick Heidfeld	Sauber-Petronas	1:09.479	1:09.725
5	2	Rubens Barrichello	Ferrari	1:08.187	1:09.784
6	7	Jarno Trulli	Renault	1:09.450	1:09.890
7	17	Jenson Button	BAR-Honda	1:08.831	1:09.935
8	15	Antônio Pizzonia	Jaguar-Cosworth	1:09.024	1:10.045
9	11	Giancarlo Fisichella	Jordan-Ford	1:09.281	1:10.105
10	4	Ralf Schumacher	Williams-BMW	No time1	1:10.279

Table 2

Pos	No	Driver	Constructor	Laps	Time/Retired
1	1	Michael Schumacher	Ferrari	69	1:24:04.888
2	6	Kimi Räikkönen	McLaren-Mercedes	69	+3.362
3	2	Rubens Barrichello	Ferrari	69	+3.951
4	17	Jenson Button	BAR-Honda	69	+42.243
5	5	David Coulthard	McLaren-Mercedes	69	+59.740
6	4	Ralf Schumacher	Williams-BMW	68	+1 Lap
7	14	Mark Webber	Jaguar-Cosworth	68	+1 Lap
8	7	Jarno Trulli	Renault	68	+1 Lap
9	15	Antônio Pizzonia	Jaguar-Cosworth	68	+1 Lap
10	21	Cristiano da Matta	Toyota	68	+1 Lap

Table 3

+/–	Pos	Driver	Points
nan	1	Kimi Räikkönen	40
nan	2	Michael Schumacher	38
1	3	Rubens Barrichello	26
1	4	Fernando Alonso	25
nan	5	David Coulthard	23
Source:[4][12]	Source:[4][12]	Source:[4][12]	Source:[4][12]

F1ABY Commentary

Consider the rain, not just as a meteorological inconvenience, but as a canvas upon which ambition—and perhaps, a touch of desperation—was painted. Schumacher, a man sculpted by years of relentless pursuit, seemed to absorb the grey, his Ferrari a predator sharpening its senses for the slick track. Did he truly *want* to win, or was it a performance, a meticulously crafted demonstration of power against a rising star like Räikkönen? The silence after that final lap—a palpable weight—suggested something more than victory; it spoke of a battle waged not just on the asphalt, but within the very soul of the sport.

The arrogance of Michael Schumacher’s drive in 2003 wasn’t merely about securing victory; it was a calculated assertion of dominance, a declaration that the shadow of Senna hadn’t diminished, and the legend of Ferrari’s speed remained absolute. Watching him navigate the A1 Ring, a predator in scarlet, one sensed a man wrestling not just with the car, but with the ghosts of history, and the relentless pressure of expectation. This, then, was the heart of a champion—a brutal, beautiful equation of will and engineering.

F1ABY Trivia

The air hung thick with the scent of burning rubber and a palpable tension – a peculiar stillness before the storm at the A1-Ring. Schumacher, predictably, wrestled the F1-MP6’s 840 horsepower, a monstrous displacement from Mercedes-Benz, into a surgical precision, exploiting the McLaren’s slick asphalt with an almost predatory grace. That McLaren, built on the MP4-19 chassis, offered a mere 780 horses, a stark illustration of the subtle but decisive battle waged within the engine room. It was a reminder, wasn't it, that victory wasn’t simply about brute force, but about the devil in the details—the nuance of tire compound selection, the precise calibration of downforce.

The air hung thick with the scent of pine and anticipation – a deceptive calm before the storm of the A1-Ring. Schumacher, a man sculpted by relentless ambition, simply *was* the circuit that day, his Ferrari a predatory extension of his will, claiming victory with a brutal, almost clinical efficiency. This singular triumph, a ripple against a long, arid history, felt almost… defiant.

F1ABY Tales

The rain hadn’t relented, a grey curtain drawn tight over the A1-Ring. Barrichello’s helmet, slick with moisture, reflected the frantic flashes of the pit crew. Schumacher, a ghost in scarlet, was building a buffer, a fragile shield against the McLaren’s relentless charge. Räikkönen, a predator in papaya, was closing, the engine’s scream a tangible threat. You could almost taste the desperation radiating from the Ferrari garage – a calculated risk, a gamble on the German’s experience. It was a brutal ballet of speed and nerve, wasn’t it? A lonely, soaked battle for a nation’s pride.

The rain, a sullen grey smear across the A1-Ring, seemed to mirror the mood in the Ferrari garage. Rubens Barrichello, a man perpetually wrestling with the ghosts of his younger self, stared at the telemetry, a frown etched deep into his forehead. It wasn’t the raw speed – Schumacher’s pace was, as always, a brutal assertion – that troubled him. No, it was the subtle shifts in tire pressure, the almost imperceptible variations in throttle application; a meticulous dance of aggression and restraint that only he, perhaps, truly understood. He felt the weight of expectation, a familiar burden, and a quiet, stubborn refusal to yield. Schumacher, oblivious to the internal battle, simply drove, a force of nature carving a path through the spray. A victory for Ferrari, yes, but also a poignant reminder of the human cost of chasing glory.