Most Formula One observers will agree that round 3 of the 2003 Championship, the Brazilian Grand Prix, was the most exciting race in a very long time but we still can not credit the radical rule changes for the excitement; rain was...

Friday practice sessions set the tone for the week end with tropical downpours reducing the number of laps drivers were able to run, wiping off most of the advantage for the teams who had opted for extra friday practice at the price of fewer private testing in 2003.

Mark Webber during a difficult race. Photo Jaguar Racing / Mark Thompson-Getty Images

By the time the green flag waved for the first qualifying session, the rain had stopped but the track was still wet raising questions about the new qualifying format... It turned out to be a big break for Jaguar's Mark Webber who ran his lap late in the session, on a slightly dryer track. That was the first surprise of the weekend... Jaguar on top of the Friday time sheets! Because the friday qualifying session is only used to set the saturday qualifying order, having one of the R4 ahead of the pack was nothing more than a morale boost for the team and Jaguar fans who were eagerly awaiting the real thing... saturday qualifying.

Until last year, F1 qualifying was truly a breathtaking, edge of seat affair with drivers allowed to run up to 12 laps during the hour long session. With the track usually getting faster as the session progressed, the final 5 minutes of the session were like rush hour... drivers strugling for clear track and the coveted pole position often switching hand many times until the very last second. As of 2003, this is all gone and in many ways, qualifying has lost its appeal because drivers only do one lap in the reversed order of their friday times...

Saturday would bring some much needed sunshine at the Interlagos circuit with times gradually going down in the hour long qualifying session as the faster drivers posted their lap times. When the next to last driver, hometown favorite Rubens Barichello, clinched pole position, the crowd went wild until Webber started his hot lap and posted faster times in the first two sectors. To the delight of the Brazilian fans, he lost ust over 1/10" in the final sector bringing Jaguar Racing its best qualifying ever with a 3rd place, only 5 hundredth of a second of the pace. On the other hand, Antonio Pizzonia ended up a disapointing 16th...

The rain came back big time on sunday soaking the track and forcing a 15 minute delay; for safety reasons the start took place behind the safety car which stayed on for a few laps until conditions improved. Laps after laps, a dryer line started to form on the track except in the first two downhill corners when water kept running off the hill onto the track causing extremely slippery conditions. This caught a number of drivers, including 5 time World Champion Michael Schumacher (his first DNF since 2001), Jenson Button, Jos Verstappen, Juan Pablo Montoya, and Jaguar's Antonio Pizzonia who spun out and hit Montoya's parked Williams against the wall. Mark Webber also spun in that very same spot but was the only driver able to catch it and survive the spin rejoining the track having lost just a few seconds.

For a while, it looked like pole sitter Rubens Barichello was finally going to finish his home race until he slowed down and pulled his Ferrari off the track because of a fuel feed problem. The Brazilian has yet to finish his home GP since 1994!

Then all hell broke loose on lap 54 when Mark Webber, running in 7th place, lost it in the high speed flat out left hander leading on the front straight impacting the walls on both side spraying debris and wheels all over the track. Mark was okay, the monocoque having held up to the forces of the crash, but seconds later Fernando Alonso was unable to avoid one of the Jaguar's wheel and impacted the wall hard, then spinning across the track. The amount of debris and damage to the tirewall was such that the red flag came out stopping the race..

Another tough week end for Jaguar Racing driver Brazilian Antonio Pizzonia Photo Jaguar Racing / Mark Thompson -Getty Images

For a while, it looked like the Cosworth powered Jordan of Giancarlo Fisichela had won the race until a somewhat obscure FIA rule came into play... in case of a red flag, the final results will be those taken TWO laps before the red flag. With Fisichella having passed the McLaren of Kimi Raikonen just a lap and a half before, the dramatic ending to the race turned into a heartbreaker for one of the few private team left in F1 when after a few minutes of confusion, official scoring showed the McLaren in first place.Eddie Jordan's team, in a difficult financial position, could have used the win; the team's first since 99... It would also have been a boost for the Ford / Jaguar F1 program since Jordan is running a Cosworth engine similar to the one in the Jaguar R4. But in racing, would could should and ifs... don't bring trophies home...

For those who've been complaining about F1 being boring, well, I hope you were watching the Brazilian Grand Prix... it was anything but boring. Plenty of passing, pushing it to the edge and beyond, near misses, drama and heartbreak. The empty third step of the podium was a reminder that racing is dangerous business and that anything can happen. Luckily, Renault driver Fernando Alonso is ok and was only taken to the hospital as a precaution. Those who were complaining about Ferrari's dominance over the past couple of years can now celebrate and watch F1... Ferrari has yet to win in 2003, is currently 3rd in the constructor championship. Micheal Schumacher is experiencing the worst season start of his 11 year carreer, being tied for 5th.

Looking at the big picture, things have changed over the winter... big time! The young guns like Kimi Raikonen, Fernando Alonso, and Mark Webber are knocking on the door with race wins and front row qualifying. Teams that were strugling last year, like Renault or even Jaguar, seem to have taken a step forward and now fighting on track with Ferrari, McLaren and Williams.

The next race is the San Marino Grand Prix at Imola, on April 21st, where the Ferrari F2003GA is expected to make its race debut. It will be a crucial race for Ferrari hoping to rebound but it will also be a important race for Jaguar Racing which need to prove that the pace of the R4, so far, was no accident and that it can add points to the 2 the team received in Brazil.

Stay tuned...

 

Brazilian GP Results 1. Raikkonen, McLaren Mercedes (M) 1h29:53.179 2. Fisichella, Jordan Ford (B) + 0.831 3. Alonso, Renault (M) + 6.695 4. Coulthard, McLaren Mercedes (M) + 7.391 5. Frentzen, Sauber Petronas (B) + 9.392 6. Villeneuve, BAR Honda (B) + 17.910 7. Webber, Jaguar Cosworth (M) + 20.070 8. Trulli, Renault (M) + 23.500 9. R.Schumacher, Williams BMW (M) + 33.500 10. da Matta, Toyota (M) + 1 la

Driver Championship 1. Raikkonen 26 2. Coulthard 15 3. Alonso 14 4. Trulli 9 5. Montoya 8 -- Barrichello 8 -- Fisichella 8 -- M.Schumacher 8 9. Frentzen 7 10. R.Schumacher 6 11. Villeneuve 3 12. Webber 2 -- Button 2 14. Heidfeld 1

Constructor Championship 1. McLaren-Mercedes 41 2. Renault 23 3. Ferrari 16 4. Williams-BMW 14 5. Jordan-Ford 8 -- Sauber 8 7. BAR-Honda 5 8. Jaguar-Cosworth 2