2002 Brazilian Grand Prix
| 2002 Brazilian Grand Prix | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Race 3 of 17 in the 2002 Formula One World Championship
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| Race details | |||||
| Date | 31 March 2002 | ||||
| Official name | 2002 Grande Prêmio do Brasil | ||||
| Location | Autódromo José Carlos Pace, São Paulo, Brazil | ||||
| Course | Permanent Racing Facility | ||||
| Course length | 4.309 km (2.677 miles) | ||||
| Distance | 71 laps, 305.909 km (190.083 miles) | ||||
| Weather | Clear, Air Temp: 30°C | ||||
| Attendance | 120,000 | ||||
| Pole position | |||||
| Driver | Williams-BMW | ||||
| Time | 1:13.114 | ||||
| Fastest lap | |||||
| Driver | Juan Pablo Montoya | Williams-BMW | |||
| Time | 1:16.079 on lap 60 | ||||
| Podium | |||||
| First | Ferrari | ||||
| Second | Williams-BMW | ||||
| Third | McLaren-Mercedes | ||||
|
Lap leaders | |||||
The 2002 Brazilian Grand Prix (formally the 2002 Grande Prêmio do Brasil) was a Formula One motor race held before 120,000 spectators on 31 March 2002 at the Autódromo José Carlos Pace in São Paulo, Brazil. It was the third round of seventeen in the 2002 Formula One World Championship and the only one to take place in South America. Ferrari's Michael Schumacher won the 71-lap race from second position. Williams's Ralf Schumacher finished in second and McLaren's David Coulthard was third.
Michael Schumacher led the World Drivers' Championship before the race while Williams led the World Constructors' Championship. Williams's Juan Pablo Montoya set the fastest lap time in the one-hour qualifying session to start the race from pole position. Michael Schumacher took the race lead at the start, but Montoya smashed his front wing into Schumacher's left-rear wheel while attempting to retake it, eliminating his chances of victory. He held the lead until he let his lighter-fuelled, one-stopping teammate Rubens Barrichello take the lead on lap 14 before retiring three laps later due to a loss of hydraulic pressure. Michael Schumacher therefore retook the race lead and held it for the most of the race, defeating his brother Ralf Schumacher in the final laps to win by 0.588 seconds.
Michael Schumacher's victory was his second of the season and 55th of his career, extending his World Drivers' Championship lead to eight championship points over Ralf Schumacher in second and ten over Montoya in third. With fourteen races remaining in the season, Ferrari decreased Williams' World Constructors' Championship lead to six points.