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Defending world champion
Michael Schumacher maintained his winning start to the Formula One
season with a lights-to-flag victory in the second race of the season in
Sepang, Malaysia. The German qualified on pole position but was never
able to relax en route to his 72nd grand prix win, thanks to pressure
from Juan Pablo Montoya (BMW WilliamsF1 Team/Michelin). The Colombian
set fastest lap of the afternoon during his energetic pursuit of the
eventual winner, but he eased up in the closing stages to make sure of
second place. Jenson Button (B•A•R Honda) made it a successful day for
Michelin by finishing third.
 For
Jenson it was the first F1 podium finish in 68 starts. He earned it the
hard way, fighting fiercely with Jarno Trulli (Renault/Michelin) in the
early stages and later fending off a fierce challenge from Kimi
Räikkönen (Team McLaren Mercedes/Michelin). Button’s path to the podium
was eventually eased when the Finn was forced to retire with a gearbox
problem. “There are no words to describe the feeling of your first
podium and this one has been a long time to coming. It’s a fantastic
result for the team in only our second race of the season and I’m
delighted for everyone – the team, Honda and all our partners.” said
Jenson.
Schumacher’s team-mate Rubens Barrichello finished fourth, ahead of
Trulli, David Coulthard (Team McLaren Mercedes/Michelin), Fernando
Alonso (Renault/Michelin) and Felipe Massa (Sauber). Alonso fought his
way all the way through the field. He started at the back of the grid
after spinning off during qualifying. “I am pleased to score two points
after what happened yesterday. Obviously, everything changed for us
after qualifying and in that perspective this is pretty positive result.
However, our strategy didn’t really work out and I think I could have
finished even higher up.” said Fernando.
There was no joy for Michelin-shod Jaguar driver Mark Webber, who
qualified on the front row for the first time in his F1 career. The
Australian was engulfed by the pack on the opening lap and dropped to
10th place. He was beginning to recover when he had to make a pit stop
to replace a damaged right rear tyre. He was then penalised for speeding
in the pits and had dropped almost to the tail of the field by the time
he spun irretrievably into the gravel. His fellow Michelin drivers Ralf
Schumacher (BMW WilliamsF1 Team) and Takuma Sato were also denied likely
points finishes. The German stopped with an engine problem halfway
through the 56-lap race and Sato dropped out for similar reasons in the
closing stages while lying eighth.
The other Michelin drivers all reached the chequered flag. Toyota
team-mates Cristiano da Matta and Olivier Panis were ninth and 12th
while Jaguar rookie Christian Klien maintained his 100 per cent
finishing record by crossing the line in 10th place.
Pierre Dupasquier, Michelin Motorsport Director:
“I would like to pay tribute to Juan Pablo Montoya and Jenson Button for
the way they drove today. Neither put a foot wrong. Juan Pablo chased
hard after the leader and set the quickest lap of the race, more than
two seconds faster than any driver went in last season’s corresponding
fixture. Button faced fierce pressure all race and fully deserved his
first F1 podium finish. This event illustrated the close, competitive
nature of grand prix racing and it was pleasing to see four of our
partner teams record strong points finishes.”
Pascal Vasselon, Michelin F1 Programme Manager:
“Temperatures in the race were not quite as high as we had anticipated
but the two dry-weather compounds we chose continued to deliver
consistent performance, just as they have all weekend. As for the damage
to the right rear tyre of Mark Webber’s Jaguar, there is clear evidence
that this was caused by contact with another competitor.” |
