2003 Formula One World Championship

The 2003 FIA Formula One World Championship was the 57th season of FIA Formula One motor racing. It featured the 2003 Formula One World Championship for Drivers and the 2003 Formula One World Championship for Constructors, which were contested concurrently over a sixteen-race series that commenced on 9 March and ended on 12 October.

Defending champions Michael Schumacher and Scuderia Ferrari were again awarded the World Drivers' Championship and World Constructors' Championship , respectively. [ 1 ] Schumacher's closest competitors were Kimi Räikkönen , driving for McLaren , and Juan Pablo Montoya , driving for Williams . It was Schumacher's sixth World Drivers' title overall, breaking Juan Manuel Fangio 's 46-year-old record.

† All engines were required to have ten cylinders and an engine capacity not exceeding 3000 cc, [ 6 ] and all were of V10 configuration. [ 7 ]

Three constructors entered Friday-testing-only drivers over the course of the season.

The 2003 FIA Formula One World Championship was contested over the following sixteen races:

The Belgian Grand Prix scheduled for 31 August was cancelled due to a row over tobacco advertising, despite multiple races taking place without such advertising. [ 11 ]

The 2003 season is notable for being the third and last season that fully-automatic gearboxes and launch control were allowed to be used. Both electronic driver aids had been used since the 2001 Spanish Grand Prix , but a change in the technical regulations saw the FIA banning both systems for 2004 . [ 15 ] The ban on traction control was ultimately delayed until the 2008 season.

Furthermore, the 2003 season saw the introduction of new regulations intended to increase F1's excitement, to halt falling global television audiences that had occurred during the previous season, and to help alleviate the financial difficulties of the smaller teams:

Going into the season, Ferrari was the team to beat, having won the previous four Constructors' Championships . There was a lot of speculation about the effect of the new regulations on their dominance and overall form.

In qualifying for the first race, the Australian Grand Prix , nothing seemed to have changed at the front. Reigning Drivers' Champion Michael Schumacher started in pole position , with his teammate Rubens Barrichello beside him. Juan Pablo Montoya in the Williams started in third, but the other Williams and McLaren drivers (Ferrari's main rivals in 2002 ) started way further down the grid. So the new qualifying format did shake up the order somewhat. After heavy rainfall, the race started in ha...

At the Malaysian Grand Prix , it was the Renault team that blocked out the first row. Fernando Alonso , being the then-youngest driver to achieve pole position, started ahead of Jarno Trulli . Michael Schumacher started in third and tried to pass Trulli into the first corner, but tapped him into a spin. The Italian rejoined in last place, but Schumacher had to pit for repairs and was given a driving-through penalty on top of that. His main rivals were just as unlucky: Montoya was rear-ended by J...

Practice for the Brazilian Grand Prix was held in torrential weather conditions. For qualifying, it was no different, and the majority of drivers signed a petition, mandating the FIA to cancel the session if track conditions did not improve. [ 21 ] When the rain eased off, however, the session went ahead as planned. [ 22 ] The second qualifying session on Saturday was held in warm and dry conditions. Rubens Barrichello achieved pole position for Ferrari. Behind him stood David Coulthard for McLa...

After three eventful races, Räikkonen (McLaren) was leading the championship with 24 points, ahead of his teammate Coulthard (15 points) and Alonso (Renault, 14 points). Reigning champion Michael Schumacher was down in sixth place.

For the San Marino Grand Prix , Michael Schumacher achieved pole position . His brother Ralf and his teammate Rubens Barrichello started behind him. At the start, Ralf overtook Michael but eventually fell back to fourth position. The Ferrari driver won the race, ahead of championship leader Räikkönen and Barrichello.

The next race in Spain saw Ferrari debut their new car and their drivers taking up the front row in qualifying. Behind them were the Renaults of Fernando Alonso and Jarno Trulli . At the start, Alonso overtook Barrichello for second and the top three went on to finish in this order. Trulli made contact with David Coulthard and retired. Räikkönen crashed into the stalled Jaguar of Antônio Pizzonia .

In Austria , Michael Schumacher started on pole and won the race. It was the third consecutive weekend that he achieved this. He did have to cope with a slow pit stop and small fire , but he was unchallenged by his rivals, as Räikkönen slowed down with engine-related performance problems and Montoya retired with a blown engine. The Finn held on to second, ahead of Barrichello in third.

The twisty track of Monaco favoured the Michelin runners: Ralf Schumacher ( Williams ) started on pole, ahead of Kimi Räikkönen ( McLaren ) and Juan Pablo Montoya (Williams). The race featured no on-track overtakes , so the order was decided by the start and the pit stops. Montoya took the win, just six tenths ahead of Räikkönen, and Michael Schumacher completed the podium. Ralf finished in fourth.

In Canada , Ralf Schumacher started on pole again, with his teammate beside him. Michael Schumacher started in third, but during the race, managed to get ahead of both Williams drivers. It was a race of attrition , where just nine drivers finished and Schumacher, too, had to nurse his ailing car home. But the German held on to take the win.

The European Grand Prix , held at the Nürburgring , saw Kimi Räikkönen take pole position and lead the race, until his McLaren 's engine broke down on lap 25. Ralf Schumacher in the Williams came through to take a victory on home soil. His teammate Juan Pablo Montoya and his brother Michael Schumacher collided on lap 43, dropping the German down to sixth. Montoya held on to take second on the podium, ahead of Ferrari 's Rubens Barrichello . Williams overtook McLaren for second position in the Co...

At the Circuit de Magny-Cours in France , Ralf Schumacher started from pole, with Montoya and Michael Schumacher behind him. This was also the order of the top three at the finish. This would be Ralf's last win in F1 and, as of 2023, Williams' last 1-2 finish.

For the British Grand Prix , it was Rubens Barrichello who achieved pole position, but Jarno Trulli in the Renault who led into the first corner. There was a brief safety car intervention to clear up debris from David Coulthard 's McLaren, but the race was truly disrupted when, on lap 11, Neil Horan invaded the track. Wearing a kilt and waving religious banners, he ran towards the cars, who swerved to avoid him. A track marshal tackled him and pulled him to the side. The safety car was deployed ...

The F1 circus was back in Germany, this time for the German Grand Prix in Hockenheim . Montoya achieved pole position, just 0.018 seconds ahead of his teammate. At the start, Ralf Schumacher squeezed Räikkönen and Barrichello, who hit each other and crashed out, with Ralf retiring a lap later. He was charged with a ten-place grid penalty , but this was reversed after a successful appeal. [ 25 ] Montoya held on to win, ahead of Coulthard and Trulli, the Renault driver scoring his only podium of t...

The last race of the summer was held on the revamped Hungaroring in Hungary . Alonso scored pole position and held on to win the race. It was his first victory and it made him the youngest winning driver in F1 history. Räikkönen and Montoya joined him on the podium, while Michael Schumacher could only manage eighth.

On home soil at Monza , with the support of the tifosi , the Scuderia Ferrari did what they had to do: Michael Schumacher qualified on pole and won. Juan Pablo Montoya for Williams and Michael's teammate Rubens Barrichello joined him on the podium. Up to the 2023 Italian Grand Prix , this was the shortest-duration (fully completed) race in F1 history, and it is still the race completed with the highest-ever average speed (247.6 km/h (153.9 mph)).

Kimi Räikkönen had not given up his championship hopes and achieved pole position for the United States Grand Prix . Barrichello managed second and Olivier Panis scored Toyota 's best qualifying result when he set the third-fastest time. Montoya and Schumacher started in fourth and seventh, respectively. Räikkönen made a clean start, but Barrichello was passed by Panis when his launch control failed to automatically shift up to second gear. [ 26 ] Montoya was falling back and, on the third lap, ...

Montoya finished sixth, which meant he was now out of contention for the championship . Räikkönen's only hope was to win the last race of the season and Schumacher failing to finish. In the Constructors' Championship , Ferrari was leading Williams with 147 over 144 points.

The Japanese Grand Prix saw Michael Schumacher qualify in 14th, his worst grid position in a Ferrari. Kimi Räikkönen started in 8th, so he faced an uphill battle to take the win that he needed. Räikkönen needed to win and Schumacher not to score a single point in order for him to become Drivers' Champion, since Schumacher held the tiebreaker on wins over Räikkönen, 6 to 1. Rubens Barrichello started on pole, with Montoya beside him. The Toyota 's commenced their home race in third and fourth. On...

Michael Schumacher ended the season on 93 points, ahead of Kimi Räikkönen with 91 and Juan Pablo Montoya with 82. It was a record sixth Drivers' Championship and Schumacher's fourth in a row. Ferrari were Constructors' Champions for the fifth consecutive year.

Points were awarded to the top eight finishing drivers and constructors as follows: [ 28 ]