28^th July 2002

german gp. the race.

It was no surprise that M. Schumacher was once again the winner. It would have been a Schumacher one-two as well, had not Ralf’s car needed a little TLC to get him to the end through an unscheduled stop. Instead Montoya took second slot, to put Ralf’s nose out of joint. Ralf was still third , although to listen to him you would think he was last. Everyone got through the first corner, with MSchu in front, which was where he stayed the whole race. A scrap between Montoya and Raikkonen enlivened the early laps. An afternoon to forget for Renault. Jenson moved up to 10^th at the start, but had electronic problems and started going backwards until his retirement with engine problems a few laps later. Jarno made a good start, up to 6^th, until he had major problems with his rear tyres, pitting on lap 16. He acquired a drive through penalty when he was adjudged to have taken too long to let Ralf through under blue flags, whereas Jarno thought he had left enough room but Ralf hadn’t taken the opportunity. To finish a miserable afternoon, Jarno locked up under braking (and avoiding Fisichella) at Turn 13 ( quite!) and crashed into the barrier. Only 9 cars finished. Top 6: M. Schumacher, Montoya, R. Schumacher, Barrichello (after switching to the spare car at the start and a fuel rig problem), Coulthard (after an obscure afternoon), Heidfeld.

Chassis R202-05 Jarno Trulli

R202-01 Spare car (Trulli)

R202-06 Jenson Button

The Renault F1 Team experienced an extremely disappointing German Grand Prix, with both of the Team’s drivers forced to retire following a mixture of technical and sporting incidents.

Jarno Trulli ended his weekend in the gravel trap of Turn 13 following an error whilst he was following close behind Giancarlo Fisichella. After an excellent start that saw him in sixth position at the end of the first lap, he suffered a loss in performance owing to significant levels of tyre wear brought about by the high temperatures. Following his first pit stop, he was handed a drive-through penalty for failing to respect blue flags.

Jenson Button experienced a race full of incident. Running tenth during the opening laps in spite of an off-track excursion at the first corner, he immediately found himself fighting significant amounts of understeer. On lap seven, he experienced a loss of engine power. Although this was resolved by switching off the traction control system, the resultant increase in tyre wear had an additional impact on performance. Just prior to his retirement, which was caused by a currently unidentified engine problem, he was nevertheless setting his fastest laps of the race.

Jarno Trulli, retired:

“I’m extremely disappointed today. I made a good start and kept up with the leaders for a few laps. Afterwards, I started losing time because of the tyres, and had to stop earlier than expected as a result. I don’t really understand why I got the drive through penalty: the team had warned me over the radio, and I felt I’d left enough room. The retirement was my fault: I was following Giancarlo very closely, and got caught up in his braking. There was nothing else I could do to avoid a collision.”

Jenson Button, retired:

“What can I say? I had understeer from the start, possibly because of a problem with the differential. After that, I lost engine power: we fixed the problem by switching off the traction control, but that obviously made it even harder to drive the car. Then the engine cut out on the long straight at the back of the circuit. It’s been a weekend to forget!”

Pat Symonds, Executive Director of Engineering, Renault F1 Team:

“The interesting challenge of this new circuit presented us with some surprises in the race. Jarno’s first set of tyres gave problems which necessitated an early stop while Jenson’s appeared to get better and better. Unfortunately, Jenson experienced some power loss which we have yet to explain, and his engine then cut out. Having started to make progress on his second set of tyres, Jarno went off while challenging for position.”

27^th July 2002

german gp. qualifying.

Another close qualifying session which saw pole position change several times. Once again Ferrari and Williams were fighting out for a change, it was Ralf who was the strongest threat to the Ferrari dominance. The Bridgestone runners were strong today, while McLaren were finding it more difficult to get a good balance. Nice to see Panis qualify 7^th , behind Fisichella in 6^th. After the bad weekend Renault have had, it was good to see Jarno pop up into 8^th position on his last lap, although his team mate was still back in 13^th. Top 6: M. Schumacher, R.Schumacher, Barrichello, Montoya, Raikkonen, Fisichella.

Chassis R202-01 Spare car (JB)

R202-05 Jarno Trulli

R202-06 Jenson Button

Following a difficult start to the weekend, the Renault F1 Team achieved a satisfying result during qualifying for the German Grand Prix. At a sunny Hockenheim, with the highest track temperatures seen so far at this race, the team succeeded in qualifying one of its cars in the top ten.

Jarno Trulli qualified eighth after a challenging session. Thanks to the hard work of his engineering team, he succeeded in tuning the car’s set-up according to the changing circuit conditions, making solid progress before claiming his final position on the last run of the afternoon.

Jenson Button lost half this morning’s free practice following an error at the first corner. The consequent spin and engine failure meant he sat out most of the second session as the engine was changed. During qualifying, he therefore had to make up this lost set-up time as well as following his usual programme, with thirteenth place in the final standings being the result.

Jarno Trulli, 8th position, 1:15.885 :

“It was a tough qualifying session for me. The engineers worked hard on the set-up all the way through, particularly for the last two runs when we changed quite a lot on the car. The track got better and better throughout the session, and we had to change the car to suit that. We have been struggling a bit this weekend, and eighth is a very good result which should allow us to fight for points tomorrow.”

Jenson Button, 13th position, 1:16.278:

“After what happened this morning, thirteenth is not too bad. I want to thank the boys for all their work - they did a great job today. I made a couple of small mistakes on my last run, which meant I couldn’t improve my time. The car isn’t exactly how I want it, but we haven’t had enough running time to solve the problems.”

Pat Symonds, Executive Director of Engineering, Renault F1Team:

“We have struggled a little bit this weekend to get grip and balance. However, the team has worked solidly and Jarno’s eighth place is a reflection of this. Unfortunately, Jenson paid the price of a mistake this morning by having to qualify with an older specification engine. The race tomorrow will certainly be hard, but we feel well prepared for it.”

Denis Chevrier, Head of Race Engineering (Engine), Renault F1Team:

“Today we made a good recovery compared to yesterday’s performance and saw our hard work pay off. We built up our level of performance during today’s sessions, culminating in eighth place on a very tight grid. It’s worth noting that our competitors have experienced a disparity in performance between their two cars, which suggests some difficulty in optimising set-up for this circuit. Having said that, finding the optimum race set-up will be another fresh challenge, especially as we don’t yet know how the circuit is likely to change during the race.”

27^th July 2002

german gp. saturday practice.

The first session saw the Renault boys still attempting to find a good balance of chassis and tyres. They finished 15^th (Button) and 17^th (Trulli). Close to the end of the session, Button made a mistake and hit a wall, causing him to lose most of the second session, due to a forced engine change. This left him in 20^th place overall, while Trulli made it up to 11^th. Overall top 6: M. Schumacher, R.Schumacher, Barrichello, Montoya, Heidfeld, Massa.

26^th July 2002

german gp. friday practice.

The new Hockenheim proved a challenge for all the drivers, as the new track surface tested their levels of grip. Most of them slipped and spun their way through both sessions, but most managed to recover on the new tarmac run offs that have replaced most of the gravel traps. Unfortunately Jarno was not one of them….another two feet and his tyres would have gripped on the grass, but it was not to be. This meant that he missed most of the second session, but judging by Jenson’s times, it wouldn’t have made much difference……back to the drawing board. Top 6: Barrichello, M. Schumacher, Panis, Raikkonen, Heidfeld, Montoya.

Chassis R202-01 Spare car (JB)

R202-05 Jarno Trulli

R202-06 Jenson Button

The Renault F1 Team experienced a very disappointing opening day of practice for the German Grand Prix. On the revised Hockenheim circuit, the Team was penalised by low-grip conditions that made it difficult to find the optimum set-up. Following an opening day of learning about the new track, Jenson Button finished 19th while Jarno Trulli, who lost the second session following a spin on his first run of the afternoon, was 20th .

Jenson Button, 19th position, 1:18.211, 43 laps:

“A difficult day for me. The new circuit is OK, but we had trouble finding the balance we need to go quickly. We can’t find any grip at the front or at the rear of the car - as soon as we get it at one end, we lose it at the other, and vice versa. There’s lots of work to do before tomorrow.”

Jarno Trulli, 20th position, 1:18.658, 24 laps:

“It’s very simple: I made a mistake at Turn 13 on my first run this afternoon, and spun. It’s a shame that I managed to find one of the few gravel traps still left here. In terms of the new layout, it’s not very exciting, just a question of braking, turning and accelerating. Only the last section is a little bit interesting. It hasn’t been a good day for me: we need to work well this evening.”

Pat Symonds, Executive Director of Engineering, Renault F1 Team:

“A difficult day for the team, during which we struggled to find grip and a good balance. We were troubled by understeer, and have a lot to do in order to resolve the situation. However, in terms of positives, the tyre choice proved fairly obvious.”

Denis Chevrier, Head of Race Engineering (Engine), Renault F1 Team:

“A laborious day of learning a new circuit which gave disappointing results. We were a little surprised by the characteristics of the new track, meaning our preparation proved less than perfect, with obvious consequences for today’s programme. Our knowledge of the circuit was also limited by Jarno’s spin: unlike many other drivers, he was unlucky not to be able to recover the situation. The data we have collected today will allow us to establish our programme for tomorrow, when we should demonstrate a more normal level of performance.”

22^nd July 2002

german gp. preview.

As the Formula 1 World Championship makes its twelfth stop of the year, Renault F1 Team drivers Jarno Trulli and Jenson Button are hoping to build on successful past form in Germany in order to score further points on a revised Hockenheim circuit.

Following a solid performance at the French Grand Prix, where the Team reinforced its fourth position in the Constructors’ Championship with a sixth-place finish, both drivers believe this level of competitiveness should be maintained at the forested German track.

Jarno Trulli:

“We have not yet both finished in the points so it would be nice for that to happen in Germany. I have a good record there - I won six races out of six from pole position in Formula 3, and finished fourth on my F1 début - and hopefully that will continue at the new circuit. It is hard to judge a track from pictures alone, but the simulations we have done give a good idea of what the changes will be like.”

Although Trulli and Button will only get their first sight of the circuit proper on Thursday morning, both have studied the team’s computer simulations closely and are fully briefed on what to expect.

Jenson Button:

“I have seen the new track in drawings and I had a look at it on the computer at the factory. We have been trying to work out the gear ratios and set-ups, but it is still difficult to know what it is going to be like until you drive it. It’s good to have a new circuit, though, to have something different. It is always interesting to see who learns a new circuit fastest, and it should give the fans a bit of excitement on the Friday as we try and find the limits. It looks like it has some interesting areas: the long curved straight into the hairpin is good, although it seems a bit scary because it’s so tight and we will be carrying a lot of speed into the braking area. There should be a lot of overtaking there, but I think we’ll probably see a few people out-braking themselves too.”

The German Grand Prix is the second race of a double-header begun at Magny-Cours in France. But Trulli believes the pressure of a quick turn-around between the two races is no inconvenience.

Jarno Trulli:

“It is not really much different to testing between races. You can cope with it once a year because we are used to going testing straight after the races anyway. It is very similar - there is no difference in how we prepare for the race. I just think that, as always, we really need to concentrate on our job and keep working as we have done up to now, because the team has done a great job. We need to keep on pushing to get closer and closer to the best teams.”

20^th July 2002 MILD SEVEN RENAULT F1 TEAM OUTLINES 2003 STRATEGY

At a press conference held today at the Magny-Cours circuit, Mild Seven Renault F1 Team President Patrick Faure outlined the team's strategy for 2003 and announced that Fernando Alonso has been selected as 2003 race driver for the Mild Seven Renault F1 Team alongside Jarno Trulli. The young Spaniard, currently the team's test driver, will take the seat of British Jenson Button, who has been part of the team for the past two seasons. Alonso will partner Italian Jarno Trulli, who joined the Mild Seven Renault F1 Team this season and is under contract with the team.

"The choice between Jenson and Fernando has been a very difficult one," said Patrick Faure. "Jenson has done a great job this year, scoring points regularly whilst showing commitment and team spirit. We have all greatly appreciated his efforts and achievements.However, long-term strategy is based on investing in drivers who can guarantee stability and continuity to the team as it grows in competitiveness. While Jenson is contracted to another team, Fernando is part of the RDD (Renault Driver Development) programme. We feel that his performance this year as our test driver has been so promising that his great potential needs to be exploited straight away.”

He concluded: "I believe that we will have a very strong driver line-up next season, combining Jarno's experience and technical expertise with Fernando's impressive natural talent. They will be crucial as our 2003 car will be more competitive and capable of achieving real results."

Mild Seven Renault F1 Team Managing Director Flavio Briatore added, "This season we have been very lucky to have three of the best current F1 drivers in the team. Unfortunately we cannot keep all of them and a decision had to be taken. Fernando has done an excellent job behind the scenes, impressing the team. He is ready to drive next year. I am sorry to see Jenson go, as he

has done a superb job for us this season. I have no doubt he has a brilliant future ahead of him in Formula One. On behalf of the whole team I would like to thank him for the commitment he has shown so far and, I am sure, will continue to show until the end of the season."

21^st July 2002

french gp. race.

Would Michael Schumacher win his fifth World Championship today? One of the potential obstacles was removed when Rubens Barrichello failed to start the parade lap and then the race. Pole-sitter Montoya led until the many pitstops took their toll. Massa had jumped the start which also helped him get past Jarno, so Felipe had to take a drive-through penalty for that. Other penalties during the race were for Ralf and Michael Schumacher, and DC for crossing the white line at the pit lane exit. These made little difference to their positions. Most drivers were on two stop strategies. All the Michelin runners except Williams were on the softer compound. Jordan’s only runner Sato, came together with Panis at the start and later crashed out all on his own. The McLarens ran strongly throughout the race, while the Williams struggled later in the race. A few engines decided they’d had enough….Villeneuve’s, Salo’s and Jarno’s. Irvine’s rear wimg fell off, so he stopped. Massa retired with a car problem, so did McNish. After the second pit stops, Kimi was leading Michael Schumacher, and looked like winning the race until Kimi slipped on oil from McNish’s car and ran wide. So Michael lucked in again and carried on to win the race and his World Championship. At least that’s over with. After Jarno’s retirement, Renault changed some switches on Jenson’s car and he proceeded to take a point in 6^th place. Top 6: M. Schumacher, Raikkonen, Coulthard, Montoya, R. Schumacher, Button.

Chassis R202-05 Jarno Trulli

R202-01 Spare car (Button)

R202-06 Jenson Button

The Renault F1 Team reinforced its fourth position in the Constructors Championship at the French Grand Prix today, with Jenson Button’s sixth place gaining the Team an additional point. Starting from the fourth row of the grid on a two-stop strategy, both drivers lapped competitively with the leaders for the early part of the race, even though Felipe Massa delayed Jarno Trulli during the opening laps. The race progressed without incident from this point onwards until Trulli’s retirement following his second stop owing to an engine problem. Holding a significant lead over his nearest competitor, Jenson Button made an unplanned third pit stop late in the race because of difficulties with his third set of tyres.

Jenson Button, 6th position:

“It’s good to score another point for Renault, and particularly here in France. I was managing to keep up with the leaders at the start of the race, even though I had a little less fuel onboard. After my first stop, I was delayed by Heidfeld, who was much slower. As for the extra stop, I had major oversteer on the third set of tyres, particularly into turn three. Given that we were a long way in front of the next car, we made sure of getting to the end of the race and changed tyres. I’m pleased to have scored more points, but there’s still a gap to the top three teams.”

Jarno Trulli, retired:

“What can I say? Of course, it’s extremely disappointing to retire here at Magny-Cours. I made a very good start, but it was all for nothing after Massa nearly pushed me off the track thanks to his jump start. He then held me up for five or six laps, which obviously cost me time. After he was penalised, I managed to lap at my true pace, which was significantly more competitive even though I encountered traffic before each stop. Following the second of these, the car was really well balanced before the engine problem forced me to retire.”

Jean-Jacques His, Managing Director, Renault F1 Team France:

“On the positive side, we managed to demonstrate a good level of performance during the race, which saw us lapping close to the times of the quickest teams. Jenson drove a very good race to finish in the points. However, we must also recognise the mechanical problem experienced by Jarno. The race gives mixed results for us: one more point for Renault, but another engine problem as well.”

Mike Gascoyne, Technical Director, Renault F1 Team:

“It’s good to score a point at our home race after running competitively, especially in the early stages. We lapped consistently during the opening stint, but backmarkers cost us time following the first stops. After Jarno’s retirement, we wanted to make sure of Jenson’s sixth place, which is why we stopped for a third time. After changing tyres, he once again set competitive times. Overall, a good solid race, but we still need more performance in order to push the teams in front, both in qualifying and the race.”

20^th July 2002

french gp. qualifying.

Saturday practice saw the Renault F1 drivers finish 5^th (Button) and 10^th (Trulli). Top 6: M.Schumacher, K. Raikkonen, D. Coulthard, R. Barrichello, J.Button, J.P. Montoya.

An exciting qualifying session saw pole position change several times, between Michael Schumacher and Juan Pablo Montoya, with Montoya eventually taking his fifth consecutive pole position……not that it’s done him much good yet. The Renault drivers were challenging the McLarens until they had to settle for 7^th (JB) and 8^th (JT) on the grid. Fisichella was unable to take part in the session on medical advice after a big crash in practice when his front wing fell under the front wheels. Jordan are hoping he will be allowed to race, although that is clearly against the rules. Arrows only did one run after only an installation lap in practice, failed to make the 107% rule, apparently deliberately, and will not race tomorrow. Top 6: J.P. Montoya, M. Schumacher, R. Barrichello, K. Raikkonen, R. Schumacher, D. Coulthard.

Chassis R202-01 Spare car

R202-05 Jarno Trulli

R202-06 Jenson Button

The Renault F1 Team achieved a pleasing performance during the hour-long qualifying session for tomorrow’s French Grand Prix at Magny- Cours. In sweltering conditions, Jenson Button and Jarno Trulli claimed the fourth row of the grid, with seventh and eighth positions respectively. Bolstered by the support of an enthusiastic home crowd tomorrow, the team is looking to add to their current score in the Constructors’ Championship.

Jarno Trulli, 8th position, 1:12.761:

“I made the best I could of the session. We have been struggling with the balance of the car since the start of the weekend, and it still isn’t quite right. I couldn’t push to the maximum today as I didn’t feel completely confident in the car on the limit. Tomorrow morning, we will have a lot of work to do in order to try and catch up some of the time we lost yesterday, but I still think that we will be capable of scoring points.”

Mike Gascoyne, Technical Director, Renault F1 Team:

“Seventh and eighth are pretty much where we expected to be today. Jenson suffered from some oversteer early in the session, but we nevertheless managed to qualify in our usual positions. We still need to improve our package further in order to compete with the top three teams, but this solid qualifying performance should allow us to score points tomorrow.”

Denis Chevrier, Head of Race Engineering (Engine), Renault F1 Team:

“A useful day without any surprises! We experienced no technical problems throughout the three sessions, which meant we were able to complete preparations for both qualifying and the race. The most important things to note are the equal performance of our two cars, as well as the fact that we managed to confirm our status as fourth team at a circuit where the time gaps are traditionally small.”

19^th July 2002

french gp. friday practice.

The Renault F1 Team experienced an arduous opening day at the French Grand Prix. Competing at its home race for the first time, the Team suffered from the low grip of the Magny-Cours circuit, with the prevailing conditions creating handling difficulties for the two cars and the rest of the field. Jenson Button set the ninth-fastest time, whilst Jarno Trulli lost the afternoon session after spinning in the chicane at turns 6/7. Consequently, he ended the day in nineteenth position. Top 6: DC, Kimi, MSchu, Rubens. Ralf, Irvine.

Jenson Button, 9th position, 1:15.218, 42 laps:

“It was a satisfactory day for me. We tried lots of different options in terms of car set-up, but we still have to find some more speed. The car works well on new tyres, but I’m struggling with grip once they are a little worn. There’s plenty of work to do in order to improve before tomorrow.”

Jarno Trulli, 19th position, 1:16.763, 18 laps:

“I’m very disappointed after today’s sessions. We concentrated on improving car balance during the morning. The spin was simply my mistake. I am confident things will improve for tomorrow."

Pat Symonds, Executive Director of Engineering, Renault F1 Team:

“There’s not much grip out there today, but as these are also the conditions we expect on Sunday, it was necessary to persevere with our race set-up work. Despite losing Jarno’s input after his spin at the start of the second session, we were able to complete a tyre comparison with Jenson and we now know what we need to do for Sunday.”

Denis Chevrier, Head of Race Engineering (Engine), Renault F1 Team:

“We are disappointed that Jarno managed to complete so few laps, and even more so because the second session is when track conditions allow us to collect the most useful data. The fact that we lack half our usual amount of information penalises us in terms of the overall programme as well as Jarno’s. We nevertheless experienced a normal day in terms of engine performance, which allowed us to evaluate certain parameters, such as slipstreaming on the long back straight, in conditions close to those we expect for the race.”

15^th July 2002

french gp. preview.

Renault F1 Team drivers Jarno Trulli and Jenson Button are aiming for a competitive performance as the Team competes in its first home Grand Prix since Renault’s full works return to Formula 1.

For Trulli, who celebrated his 28th birthday last Saturday, this weekend’s race at Magny-Cours will represent a high point of the 2002 season.

Jarno Trulli:

"I am very excited to be racing for Renault in the French Grand Prix. It feels a bit like a home race for me, too, because I have raced there a lot, and having spent a few seasons in another French team, I have lots of supporters there. I am definitely looking forward to this race and it would be great to do well at home. I am feeling confident and although there is a little more pressure, I am sure we can deal with it."

"You need a car with a good front end and rear stability under braking, plus lots of traction out of the slow corners. All those demands will suit our car, so I think we should put in a good performance.

"I’ve spent a lot of time at this circuit, and it definitely gives an advantage in getting the right set-up and technique. The S-bends after the Adelaide hairpin and prior to the right-hander, Château d’Eau, with the elevation change, are really good.”

Trulli believes that despite both his and Button's failure to score points at Silverstone, a good performance in the British Grand Prix showed that new developments on the car have taken the team a step closer to rivals McLaren.

"We had a very competitive qualifying performance at Silverstone, so I hope we are getting closer. It is difficult to say but the team is certainly improving. McLaren took a big step early on in the season, but we have new aerodynamic parts and engine updates keep coming all the time. We are pushing hard and hope to get as close as possible by the end of the season.”

A lap of Magny-Cours with Jarno Trulli:

At the start of the lap I enter a very fast left-hand corner and I'll be changing into top gear, taking it at 280 km/h. It is quite easy flat, but I need to position the car well on exit as it leads into the important right-hander at Turn Two.

I will be approaching this corner, at just under 290 km/h and due to the camber I almost take two apexes through it, hitting the first one at around 200 km/h and then dropping down to around 175 km/h for the second, while holding fourth gear throughout.

It's a difficult corner since the car will always tend to understeer here due to the high loading on the left hand tyre and my aim will be minimise understeer to get good speed on the main straight that follows.

At the end of this straight, I will be doing around 300 km/h in top gear before braking very hard, typically at 4g, and then dropping down to first gear and 60 km/h for the hairpin.

Exiting the corner is difficult and often during the race the entry to the corner is offline if you have to defend your position. However, on exiting it, I will get up to around 280 km/h in top gear just getting into sixth gear before entering the first of the fast chicanes.

This is a right-left chicane with the first part taken at 215 km/h in fourth gear and the second part being almost but not quite flat with just a small lift as I apex around 230 km/h before reaching the next left-hand hairpin.

I should get to 260kmh in fifth gear before dropping to second at around 88 km/h, which makes this a slightly quicker hairpin than the first one. The exit from this corner is similar to exit from the first hairpin in that I will reach 285 km/h in top gear before entering the second of the very fast chicanes.

This is again a right-left chicane and it differs from the first one in that the first part of the chicane is quicker than the second part. Like the first chicane it is also taken in fourth gear but my apexes will be at 220 km/h and 210 km/h. In addition, there is a

bit of a dip in the track here which adds extra load to the car.

On exiting the chicane, I will hold fourth gear to around 230 km/h before dropping down to second gear and around 95 km/h for another long right hand corner.

As I head back towards the pit area, I should just get into fifth gear at 260 km/h before entering the final chicane, which is much slower than the previous two and is taken in second gear at between 120 km/h and 130 km/h.

On exit, I won't get to full throttle before having to brake again for the final very tight corner, which I will take at 70 km/h in first gear. The start/finish line is very close to the exit corner so for a good qualifying lap I need to pay particular attention

to this exit as I cross the finish line at 140 km/h in second gear.

9^th – 12^th July 2002

valencia testing.

Fernando Alonso tested for Renault this week, completing a great number of laps. Not only testing parts for the French GP, Alonso also ran some development programmes for the 2003 car and was fastest on the final day.

7^th July 2002

british gp. race.

Apologies for the lateness of the report, due to our own attendance at the BGP.

The clouds were low, but all the weather forecasts (including the teams’) said no rain. Everyone set off (on dry tyres), except for Barrichello who didn’t start the formation lap, so it was to the back of the grid for him. In spite of a clear run in front of him, Ralf couldn’t capitalise and Montoya held the lead into the first corner with Michael Schumacher on his tail. With Barrichello out of the way, Jarno moved up to sixth, but couldn’t better his position into the first corner. Jenson made a blinding start, making up 4 places into 8^th place behind Jarno. McNish’s car lost drive and he failed to get off the grid in his first BGP. What a shame. Barrichello made great strides up the field from last position. Then the rain began and the teams and drivers had to make the decision to change tyres. They all poured into the pits for wet, or in the case of Ferrari, intermediates later on. Renault had Jenson queued behind Jarno to make the change. McLaren had problems they later put down to radio interference: Kimi came in before the pit crew were ready, while