Monza 1: Schu keeps flying
Michael Schumacher doesn't like losing much, even when he's just secured a seventh world title. And the Ferrari ace proved it on the first day's testing at Monza by going fastest, having announced to the world that he intends to carry on racing at least until 2006
Ferrari chose to introduce new modifications to its engine at Monza after last weekend's defeat in Spa. After all, during such a successful season as this, the last place the team wants to be beaten is on home turf, and the Italian Grand Prix takes place in just over a week's time.
Today was mainly a tyre test for everybody and while Schumacher concentrated mainly on low fuel qualifying runs, his team-mate, Rubens Barrichello, worked on a race simulations. The Brazilian proved very competitive and ended the day less than a tenth slower than the new world champion.
Anthony Davidson will have been Ferrari's only serious concern today. The little Englishman was super-quick during his BAR-Honda race simulation on Michelin tyres and recorded a lap less than two tenths off Schumacher's best. But there was nothing between him and Barrichello over the long distance runs.
Alexander Wurz was fourth fastest for McLaren ahead of Takuma Sato, who was reported to be running a new specification Honda engine for the first time today.
Juan Pablo Montoya was sixth fastest, 1.5s off the ultimate pace, but ahead of Renault's Fernando Alonso. Christian Klien was eighth fastest, immediately ahead of the man who hit him in Belgium, David Coulthard.
Antonio Pizzonia, fresh in the knowledge that he will be racing in the Italian Grand Prix after all, was 10th fastest, ahead of Sauber's Giancarlo Fisichella, Toyota's Olivier Panis and Renault's Jarno Trulli. Mark Webber was more than half a second slower than Jaguar team-mate Klien, while Ryan Briscoe in 15th, was back in action after his spectacular Eau Rouge shunt last Friday.
Both Jordan and Minardi made rare testing appearances, ensuring that all ten teams were represented for the first time in an unofficial session this year. Giorgio Pantano outpaced Bas Leinders by a tenth, although both were more than three seconds away from the ultimate pace.
Michael Schumacher Ferrari B 1m20.191s 72
Rubens Barrichello Ferrari B 1m20.241s 88
Anthony Davidson BAR-Honda M 1m20.361s 107
Alexander Wurz McLaren-Mercedes M 1m20.582s 94
Takuma Sato BAR-Honda M 1m21.462s 94
Juan Pablo Montoya Williams-BMW M 1m21.652s 88
Fernando Alonso Renault M 1m21.713s 101
Christian Klien Jaguar M 1m21.740s 59
David Coulthard McLaren-Mercedes M 1m21.822s 97
Antonio Pizzonia Williams-BMW M 1m21.862s 81
Giancarlo Fisichella Sauber-Petronas B 1m22.030s 88
Olivier Panis Toyota M 1m22.050s 88
Jarno Trulli Renault M 1m22.300s 58
Mark Webber Jaguar M 1m22.391s 80
Ryan Briscoe Toyota M 1m22.774s 48
Giorgio Pantano Jordan-Ford B 1m23.350s 73
Bas Leinders Minardi-Cosworth B 1m23.450s 62
Schumacher Quickest at Monza - Day One
More from Schumacher: on 2005, Rubens and Retiring
Dennis singles out Jaguar as Porsche's biggest Formula E threat
Jake Dennis says Porsche cannot let off its development of its Gen3 Formula E powertrain, and singled out Jaguar as a threat to the German manufacturer in the coming rounds.
Verstappen buoyed by new handling characteristics of 2023 F1 tyres
Formula 1 world champion Max Verstappen is hopeful the new Pirelli tyres will help further dial out the inherent understeer of the current generation of cars.
Pastrana adds NASCAR Truck Series race to Daytona programme
Travis Pastrana has added the season-opening NASCAR Truck Series race to his appearance at Daytona International Speedway this month.
Turkington continues with WSR BMW for 2023 BTCC season
Four-time British Touring Car champion Colin Turkington will bid for a fifth title in 2023 with the West Surrey Racing BMW squad, the team confirmed on Wednesday morning.
Why Albon won't be "throwing around laptops" to gain a 2023 F1 edge
OPINION: At the Williams 2023 Formula 1 season launch, Alex Albon’s easy-going nature was again a point of focus. But does being “too nice” really matter in modern F1? Albon’s own expressions put that in an intriguing new light
How the last Sauber-built Alfa offers F1 2023 evolution clues
Alfa Romeo has become the first Formula 1 team to reveal a new car for 2023, in addition to a fresh livery. This offered a first look at some of the understated changes produced by the revised regulations, along with points of convergence in the second year of the ground effect rules
The pioneering F1 car that preceded Lotus’s terminal decline
In the hands of Ayrton Senna the actively suspended 99T would be the last F1 race-winning Lotus but, as STUART CODLING reveals, it was a complicated machine that caused more problems than it solved
How Tyrrell became a racing Rubik’s cube as it faded out of F1
Formula 1’s transformation into a global sport meant the gradual extinction for a small team determined to stay true to its low-budget roots. But Tyrrell would eventually be reborn as a world-beating outfit again, explains MAURICE HAMILTON, albeit in different colours…
Assessing Hamilton's remarkable decade as a Mercedes F1 driver
Many doubted Lewis Hamilton’s move from McLaren to Mercedes for the 2013 Formula 1 season. But the journey he’s been on since has taken the Briton to new heights - and to a further six world championship titles
Why new look Haas is a litmus test for Formula 1’s new era
OPINION: With teams outside the top three having struggled in Formula 1 in recent seasons, the rules changes introduced in 2022 should have more of an impact this season. How well Haas does, as the poster child for the kind of team that F1 wanted to be able to challenge at the front, is crucial
The Mercedes F1 pressure changes under 10 years of Toto Wolff
OPINION: Although the central building blocks for Mercedes’ recent, long-lasting Formula 1 success were installed before he joined the team, Toto Wolff has been instrumental in ensuring it maximised its finally-realised potential after years of underachievement. The 10-year anniversary of Wolff joining Mercedes marks the perfect time to assess his work
The all-French F1 partnership that Ocon and Gasly hope to emulate
Alpine’s signing of Pierre Gasly alongside Esteban Ocon revives memories of a famous all-French line-up, albeit in the red of Ferrari, for BEN EDWARDS. Can the former AlphaTauri man's arrival help the French team on its path back to winning ways in a tribute act to the Prancing Horse's title-winning 1983?
Subscribe and access Autosport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.