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| June 2, 2003 | Monday | Rabi-us-Sani 1, 1424 |
Montoya wins to end Williams 20-year jinx
MONACO, June 1: Colombian Juan Pablo Montoya won the Monaco Formula One Grand Prix on Sunday to end a 20-year Williams jinx.
It was the second win of Montoya’s 41 race career and the first of the season for BMW-powered Williams, whose last triumph in the Mediterranean principality was in 1983 with Finland’s Keke Rosberg.
Finland’s Kimi Raikkonen finished runner-up for McLaren, 0.6 of a second behind Montoya, to stretch his championship lead over Ferrari’s world champion Michael Schumacher to four points after seven races.
Raikkonen has 48 points, Schumacher 44.
Schumacher finished a close third, his hopes of equalling the late Brazilian Ayrton Senna’s record of six Monaco wins in tatters after a highly strategic race on a tight street circuit where overtaking is almost impossible.
It was the first time since Ferrari introduced their new F2003-GA car last month that the Italian team had been beaten and ended Schumacher’s quest for a fourth victory in a row after a poor start to the season.
Montoya’s team mate Ralf Schumacher was fourth, after starting from pole, with Spaniard Fernando Alonso fifth for Renault ahead of Italian Jarno Trulli in the French manufacturer’s other car.
McLaren’s David Coulthard was seventh, a disappointment for the Scot who has won twice in the last four years, while Brazilian Rubens Barrichello claimed the final point for champions Ferrari.
McLaren regained the lead in the constructors’ championship with 73 points to Ferrari’s 71.
Briton Jenson Button did not start after bring withdrawn by his BAR team following a heavy crash in Saturday’s free practice.
Results
1. Juan Pablo Montoya, Colombia, Williams-BMW, 1 hour 42 minutes 19.010 seconds (average speed 152.772 kilometres per hour) 2. Kimi Raikkonen, Finland, McLaren-Mercedes, 0.602 seconds behind 3. Michael Schumacher, Germany, Ferrari, 1.720 4. Ralf Schumacher, Germany, Williams-BMW, 28,518 5. Fernando Alonso, Spain, Renault, 36.251 6. Jarno Trulli, Italy, Renault, 40.972 7. David Coulthard, Britain, McLaren-Mercedes, 41.277 8. Rubens Barrichello, Brazil, Ferrari, 53.266 9. Cristiano da Matta, Brazil, Toyota, one lap 10. Giancarlo Fisichella, Italy, Jordan-Ford, one lap 11. Nick Heidfeld, Germany, Sauber-Petronas, two laps 12. Ralph Firman, Britain, Jordan-Ford, two laps 13. Olivier Panis, France, Toyota, four laps.—Reuters/dpa
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