Sensational win for Schumacher at Suzuka

SUZUKA, OCT. 14. World champion Michael Schumacher won the season-closing Japanese Grand Prix here on Sunday stretching his career record of victories to 53 and writing another chapter in Formula-One history.

The 32-year-old Ferrari ace, who sealed his fourth World title in August, led from the start to beat Colombian F1 rookie and 1999 US cart champion Juan Pablo Montoya in a Williams-BMW by 3.1 seconds.

He took the flag in 1 hr 27.33.298 secs on the dry, twisty 5.86 km figure-of-eight Suzuka track. His speed averaged 212.664 kph. McLaren's David Coulthard followed him home 20.1 seconds further back but finished second overall in the Drivers Championship ahead of Schumacher's Ferrari teammate Rubens Barrichello of Brazil.

Barrichello finished the race fifth. To finish second overall, he needed to win here with Coulthard placing fifth or lower.

McLaren's Mika Hakkinen came in fourth in his last race before taking a planned one-year sabbatical from F1 although he remains unsure if he will ever come back to the premier motorsport tour.

Schumacher broke Alain Prost's career win record of 51 when he triumphed at the Belgium Grand Prix in early September after sealing his second straight World title one round earlier at Budapest.

With the Suzuka win, the methodical German's career GP points total now stands at 801, topping the previous record of 798.5 also held by Prost.

It was also a record-tying ninth victory of the season, a feat previously achieved by Nigel Mansell in 1992 and by himself last year. For Schumacher, it was a fourth victory at Suzuka, an all- time high itself.

Schumacher bolted head-long around the first bend from pole position and steadily built up his lead over another front- row man Montoya with Barrichello and his younger brother Ralf trailing them.

But the older Schumacher's Ferrari began to waiver on the ninth lap with a visible braking hiccup around the chicane leading into the final corner.

Montoya picked up his pace but Schumacher maintained the lead, going off for his first stop after 18 laps. Schumacher managed to surge in front again on the 23rd lap after the leaders juggled their positions with pitstops.

He led Montoya, Hakkinen and Coulthard as his brother slipped back after being slapped with a 10-second penalty at the end of the 29th lap for short-cutting the chicane in blocking Barrichello.

The older Schumacher made his second pitstop after 36 laps and regained the lead two laps later when Montoya and Hakkinen also pitted.

Barrichello changed tyres and got fuel for the third time on the 41st lap but he kept his fifth spot.

In the final stages, Montoya closed on Schumacher by cutting the German's lead from eight seconds to 4.5 seconds with three more laps to go. But Schumacher stepped on it again and eased up on the final lap, knowing victory was his.

- AFP

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