|
World champion Michael
Schumacher scored his fourth Formula One victory of the season in
Montreal, and it was also his hardest. The German fought tooth and nail
with brother Ralf (BMW WilliamsF1 Team/Michelin), the early leader, and
was just 0.7 seconds in front by the flag. The result elevated Michael
Schumacher to the top of the points table for the first time this season.
Ralf said: "I think our Michelin tyres were better today. In the latter
stages of the race I could have gone faster if I'd had a clear road ahead
-- but Michael slipped ahead of me at the first stop and after that there
was no way I could pass him. I was n ever quite close enough to try."
This was the most exciting race of the Formula One season so far. Juan
Pablo Montoya (BMW WilliamsF1 Team) recovered from a second lap spin and
dramatically fought his way back into contention. He crossed the line just
half a second behind his team-mate.
Rising Renault star Fernando Alonso was the third Michelin driver gunning
for victory. The Spaniard caught the leading trio with 10 laps of the race
to go and shadowed them almost all the way to the line. "I'm happy with
the result, especially because I finished the race in the leading group.
For the first time this year, we were really fighting for the win, and was
a good feeling!"
Michelin drivers claimed six of the top eight positions. After his
accident in yesterday's qualifying session, pre-race points leader Kimi
Räikkönen opted to start from the pit lane and battled his way through the
field to finish sixth. He is now three points adrift of Schumacher in the
title race. "Today's result is not a disaster at all and the gap to
Michael is only three points with plenty more races to go." From 11th on
the grid, his team-mate David Coulthard worked his way into a strong
points scoring position before a gearbox problem forced him to stop.
Mark Webber (Jaguar) ran as high as fifth in the early stages but
eventually came in seventh, his third points finish of the season, and
Frenchman Olivier Panis (Toyota) overcame a run of poor reliability to
finish eighth and score his first point of the campaign.
Of the other Michelin drivers, Cristiano da Matta (Toyota) was running
eighth when his car stopped with five laps remaining. Antonio Pizzonia
(Jaguar) ran into Jarno Trulli (Renault) on the opening lap. He pitted for
repairs and restarted, but a technical
problem forced him to stop before the end and he was classified 10th, four
laps down. Trulli's car was also damaged and he, too, had to pit. Although
he rejoined, a damaged tyre and a spin subsequently delayed him before he
eventually retired.
Pierre Dupasquier, Michelin Motorsport Director, commented on the race.
BY FAR THE FASTEST
Michelin drivers filled six of the top eight places in today's Canadian
Grand Prix. Pole position qualifier Ralf Schumacher (BMW WilliamsF1 Team)
was second, ahead of Juan Pablo Montoya (BMW WilliamsF1 Team, third),
Fernando Alonso (Renault, fourth), Kimi Räikkönen (Team McLaren Mercedes,
sixth), Mark Webber (Jaguar, seventh) and Olivier Panis (Toyota, eighth).
Michelin motorsport director Pierre Dupasquier said: "Michelin might not
have won this race today, but I think it's clear that our cars were the
quickest on the track -- Fernando Alonso's fastest lap was a measure of
our potential."
STRENGTH IN DEPTH
Pierre Dupasquier was buoyed by his tyres' performance on the Circuit
Gilles Villeneuve. He said: "When one of your teams performs well, people
underline how good the chassis must be and the tyre is credited with
playing a contributory role. When several partner teams run so strongly,
it emphasises what a good job the tyres are doing. The Williams drivers
and Fernando Alonso were both potentially faster than Michael Schumacher
-- and Kimi Raikkonen's McLaren looked very fast, too, given his one-stop
fuel lo ad. In purely technical terms, this was an incredibly strong race
for us."
RUBBER BULLETS
Jarno Trulli (Renault) and world championship contender Kimi Räikkönen
(McLaren-Mercedes) both suffered tyre damage during today's race. Michelin
F1 project chief Pascal Vasselon said: "Trulli's tyre lost pressure
because he suffered valve damage in a firs t-lap collision. As for
Räikkönen, he ran over a piece of debris that cut into the tyre. He had
been losing pressure slowly for a lap before the tread peeled off. It has
been seen on the pressure management system."
GETTING A GRIP AROUND THE WORLD
In addition to its strong performance in Canada, Michelin has celebrated
several major motor sport successes this weekend. Its tyres were fitted to
the Bentleys that finished first and second in the Le Mans 24 Hours.
Michelin cars took the top ten places overall. On two wheels, Loris
Capirossi (MotoGP, Barcelona) and Neil Hodgson (Superbike World
Championship, Silverstone) also scored notable victories. |
