Michael Schumacher clinched Ferrari's first Drivers' Championship in 21 years, ending a fierce season-long battle with McLaren's Mika Häkkinen.
Key Facts
- Season number
- 54th FIA Formula One season
- Races held
- 17
- Season duration
- 12 March – 22 October 2000
- Title decided at
- Japanese Grand Prix, 8 October 2000
- Drivers competing
- 23 (record low at the time)
- Peugeot F1 points in 2000
- 0
By the Numbers
Cause → Event → Consequence
Ferrari and McLaren entered 2000 as the dominant forces in Formula One for the third consecutive year. Schumacher won the opening three races, but McLaren's Mika Häkkinen and David Coulthard capitalised on Schumacher's mid-season mechanical retirements to push Häkkinen six points clear in the championship standings.
The 2000 FIA Formula One World Championship ran across seventeen races from March to October. Schumacher recovered from mid-season setbacks to win the final four races, claiming pole position at each. He sealed the Drivers' title at the penultimate round in Japan after passing Häkkinen at the final pit stop and holding the lead to the finish.
Schumacher's title ended Ferrari's 21-year Drivers' Championship drought, and the Scuderia also retained the Constructors' title. Peugeot withdrew from Formula One as an engine supplier after failing to score a point in their final season with Prost, while their engine assets were acquired by Asiatech for use in 2001 and 2002.