Schumacher On A Roll, Ralf That Is
Grand Prix of France, July 6, 2003

By Erik Nielsen

Pictures copyright and courtesy Ferrari Media

If there was any question as to whether the Williams-BMW had figured out how to win races again, the 1-2 finish at the French Grand Prix has put them to rest. Ralf took his second win in a row (after being criticized for not pushing his brother in Canada) and has shuffled the standings in the championship, being just 11 points out of first place. Having won 28 points in the last three races, it doesn't seem to be that big of a gap.

Montoya brought his blue and white car home in second giving Sir Frank another 1-2 in a row. The team's performance allowed them to leap frog McLaren-Mercedes who seem to be in a bit of a funk lately. Talk up and down the pit lane has centered on the performance of the Michelins in the heat, but the boys from Woking can't seem to make them work to their advantage. The silver arrows finished 4 and 5 with Kimi getting more points, but still losing ground to the reigning world champion.

If Jean Todt thought last week was the worst performance of the season, there's no telling what words will comes flying out of his mouth after this one. In French, Italian and English, it’s all the same, we're in trouble. Schumacher Sr. did manage to get the last spot on the podium, but it did seem that his car was no match for the BMW powered Williams. A bit of a slow start didn't help his chances. Rubens, aka the most unlucky man in F1, spun at the last chicane of the first lap and ended up in last place. He did manage to bring it home in 7th place which was good enough for 2 points.

The surprise finisher was Mark Webber in the Jaguar. Well, it is a surprise that he finished, but it is almost amazing that he managed to finish on the lead lap. The kid definitely has talent. Too bad he's stuck in that car.

The last point of the day went to the Frenchman Olivier Panis in the Toyota. I think that even Ove Anderson has figured out that firing last year's drivers probably wasn't the best thing to do. Da Matta finished in 11th, behind both Jaguars and Jacques Villeneuve. At least he finished ahead of both Minardis.

Villeneuve did finish the race in 9th. Out of the points. Another "also ran" finish.

Speaking of poor performances in front of your native-tongue fans, Renault engineers yelled merde after both motors went kapluie (not to be confused with the kaput sound German engines make when they fail).

So, past the middle of the season, things are staying interesting. This time last year, we knew who was going to win the championship. This year the crystal ball is a little cloudier. The circus jumps the Channel and will be at Silverstone on July 20.