Michael's Record Year: The Official Review Of The 2002 FIA Formula One World Championship

The 2002 FIA Formula One World Championship was a highly anticipated season, following on from Michael Schumacher's impressive 2001 campaign. Ferrari, the dominant force in the sport at that time, had made significant changes to their car in an attempt to maintain their stranglehold on the championship. Schumacher, having stamped his name in the history books in 2001 by clinching his fourth consecutive World Championship, set his sights on an unprecedented level of dominance in 2002. Ferrari unveiled their new car, the F2002, at the first pre-season test, and it quickly became apparent that the car was a major improvement on the previous year's model. Schumacher and his teammate, Rubens Barrichello, were prolific in testing and showed a remarkable level of speed and consistency. The 2002 season got underway with the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne, and Ferrari took an early control of the championship with Schumacher claiming a comfortable victory. The Ferrari driver continued to extend his lead in the early rounds, with victories at the second race in Malaysia and the third round in Brazil. The team's dominance was so stark that they accumulated 66 points by the end of the third round, while their closest rivals struggled to get within sight of the Ferrari duo. However, as the season progressed, other teams began to close the gap. McLaren, which was once thought to be on the brink of collapse after a poor 2001 season, showed significant improvements under the stewardship of Ron Dennis. The team's lead driver, Juan Pablo Montoya, had a particularly standout season, showcasing the immense talents that made him one of the most exciting drivers on the grid. Montoya, the Colombian driver, had joined McLaren from Williams and brought his experience and speed to the British team. While Montoya was a strong force, there was no doubting the dominance of Ferrari, with Schumacher consistently taking the chequered flag. As the season went on, the Ferrari driver went on a remarkable 11-race winning streak that took him to an unprecedented level of performance. Schumacher's form was so impressive that he finished every single Grand Prix event in the podium, with 8 of those being victories. The only other driver to achieve such a feat was Juan Manuel Fangio, who won multiple championships with Alfa Romeo in the late 1950s, a feat Schumacher felt he emulated. By the end of the season, Ferrari secured their fifth constructors' World Championship title in six years, with Schumacher sealing the drivers' title in an uncontested situation. He accumulated 144 points in 17 Grands Prix, which broke Alain Prost's 1993 record of 99 points. The Ferrari driver finished every single point on the board, achieving 11 wins from 17. Montoya, the driver who consistently pushed Schumacher and Ferrari throughout the season, had a memorable campaign that ended on a high note when he became the seventh driver in Formula One history to drive over 200mph. However, in qualifying for the Belgian Grand Prix, in which he was set a new lap record, he went over a 19,000 rpm, which had never been seen before by many. In the following season, Montoya had a very eventful season with his Williams and later his McLaren team, where many thought he was the next driver to succeed Michael Schumacher.