British rookies shine without reward

Jordan's Firman ran in the points for a portion of the race, and held up a train of cars that included star names such as Michael Schumacher and Fernando Alonso. He just held off the Jaguar of Mark Webber in the closing stages on his way to 13th.

"The team made a really good call with the first pit-stop and we were up there in a points position for a while," said Ralph. "Obviously it's a shame not to score any in the end, but we needed to be a bit quicker. All in all, it was quite a good first British GP so I'm pretty happy."

Minardi's Wilson was battling with Firman on the opening lap when his upshift failed at Club Corner, allowing the Jordan past and leading to a moment with his team-mate, Jos Verstappen.

"Jos drifted wide at one point and hit my front wing," said Wilson. "The damage meant the car understeered until the guys were able to change the nose at the first pit-stop. After that, I just pushed as hard as I could with the aim of getting the car to the finish. Despite the problems, it was nice to finish ahead of a Sauber today."