Michael Schumacher won his 11th race of 2002, becoming the first driver to finish on the podium at every Grand Prix of a season.
Key Facts
- Race winner
- Michael Schumacher (Ferrari)
- Schumacher season wins
- 11 (his 64th career F1 win)
- Winning margin
- 0.506 seconds ahead of Barrichello
- Season championship points
- 144 (a season record)
- Points gap over teammate
- 67 points ahead of Barrichello
- Attendance
- 155,000 spectators
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Ferrari and Michael Schumacher entered the 2002 Japanese Grand Prix having already dominated the season, with Schumacher clinching the Drivers' Championship earlier in the year. He qualified on pole position after recording the fastest lap in the one-hour qualifying session, with Barrichello alongside him on the front row.
Held on 13 October 2002 at Suzuka Circuit, the 53-lap race saw Schumacher lead from pole except for one lap during pit stops. Barrichello finished 0.506 seconds behind in second, and Räikkönen inherited third after Ralf Schumacher's engine failed with five laps remaining, completing a Ferrari one-two finish.
Schumacher became the first driver to podium at every race in a single season and ended the year with a record 144 championship points, 67 ahead of Barrichello. Ferrari won 15 races, equalling McLaren's 1988 record, and scored 221 constructors' points — equal to all other ten teams combined.