The 2002 Formula 1 season got off to a flying start today when Ralf Schumacher drove straight into the back of Rubens Barrichello’s Ferrari and was then launched over it as it slowed for the first corner. Schumacher landed safely in a gravel trap but the chain reaction crash that followed eliminated almost half of the cars in the race before they had gone more than a few hundred feet.
| Position | Driver | Team | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Michael Schumacher (D) | Ferrari | 10 |
| 2 | Juan Pablo Montoya (COL) | Williams BMW | 6 |
| 3 | Kimi Raikkonen (FIN) | McLaren Mercedes | 4 |
| 4 | Eddie Irvine (GB) | Jaguar Cosworth | 3 |
| 5 | Mark Webber (AUS) | Minardi Asiatech | 2 |
| 6 | Mika Salo (FIN) | Toyota | 1 |
| Fastest Qualifier: Rubens Barrichello (BR) | |||
Complete Australian GP results.
Schumacher blamed the crash on Barrichello changing direction several times in front of him to block being passed which is illegal and also commented that while not illegal Barrichello also braked too soon for the corner. Not surprisingly Barrichello who had started from pole position saw things slightly differently and claimed to have braked later than usual and thought that Schumacher was going too fast and would never have made the corner.
Apart from Schumacher’s Williams and Barrichello’s Ferrari both of the Sauber (Nick Heidfeld and Felipe Massa) and Renault (Jarno Trulli and Giancarlo Fisichella) entries were destroyed as was Olivier Panis’ BAR and Allan McNish’s Toyota. Luckily no one was hurt but this was particularly unfortunate for rookies Massa and McNish who have still yet to complete a single racing lap.
Many of the drivers were expecting the race to be red-flagged and restarted so they ran back to the pits to get into their spare cars but it didn’t happen and the race continued behind the safety car until the track could be cleared.
The Arrows team had an equally unfortunate day as both of their cars stalled on the grid before the warm-up lap and did not start the race at all. Although both drivers were eventually able to get started and join the race they were soon both black-flagged and excluded from the results. Heinz-Harald Frentzen for leaving the pit lane when it was closed and Enrique Bernoldi for switching to the spare car after the race had started.
Michael Schumacher who had missed the first corner carnage by running across the grass then started his run to the front. He tailgated Jarno Trulli for a few laps but Trulli was out of his depth and finally spun his Renault off the track.
Then Schumacher caught Juan Montoya and they had several laps of close driving before Schumacher passed him and drove off into the distance. In the post-race press conference he said that his tyres had just got up to temperature and Montoya’s seemed to be going off.
Kimi Raikkonen drove a steady race to a podium placing third in his first start for McLaren and Eddie Irvine made the most of inheriting a points-paying position and drove his Jaguar home in fourth.
Australian Mark Webber had the crowd on their feet when he finished in fifth place in his home Grand Prix in his first ever F1 race. His two points will be a great relief to perennial back-marker Minardi — which had only scored one point in the last five years — as it will mean that they will get some much needed help with their travel expenses from the FIA in the second half of the season.
Mika Salo scored an unexpected point for the new Toyota F1 team in their debut race despite nearly losing it when he spun out chasing Webber for fifth with just a couple of laps to go but he managed to keep the engine running and drove home safely in sixth position.
Jacques Villeneuve had been in sixth place and looking strong when the rear wing on his BAR broke on the 27th lap and he crashed out of the race.
David Coulthard briefly found himself leading the race after the first corner but a faulty gearbox caused him to spin and eventually failed completely on the 33rd lap.