Teammate Rubens Barrichello took 3rd in fine form and helped by adding points to the constructors’ race which they trail by only 5. McLaren’s Kimi Raikkonen finished 4th with Marc Gene' substituting for Ralf Schumacher finished 5th, his career best. Interestingly the top 5 drivers all finished exactly as they started.

The race started with an exciting run to the tight chicane and it was negotiated without incident. Montoya tried hard to pass Schumacher but he was out done by the German champion. He made a 2nd attempt as they approached the Curva Bissono complex and was once again held off. The Tifosi were treated to a wire to wire win as Michael was never challenged after the attempts to pass by Montoya.

The other points paying positions are; 6th Villeneuve/BAR, 7th Webber/Jaguar, and 8th Alonso/Renault who started last on the grid. There were no serious incidents during the race, just the normal run offs into the gravel traps in Da Matta’s case and mechanical problems for Trulli and Wilson. Alonso made contact with the stalled Jaguar of Wilson resulting in a brief moment of air time and damage to the Renault’s front wing.

The tire war seems to have calmed down as Michelin provided different tires for their teams that drew no complaints from the Bridgestone teams. According to Michael this was his best race and win of his career. He genuinely seemed pleased with himself and thanked all of the team for their efforts from the engineers to the cleaning lady!

Next race in 2 weeks time is the US GP which I will be attending. The consensus is that the Bridgestone tires will work well there. Schumacher could clinch the drivers’ title there, so it should be a even more special event with that possibility.

Article by: Tony Moffett