2002 French Grand Prix
The 2002 French Grand Prix (formally the LXXXVIII Mobil 1 Grand Prix de France) was a Formula One motor race held at Magny-Cours on 21 July 2002. It was the eleventh race of the 2002 Formula One World Championship, last race on the original layout and the race in which Michael Schumacher secured his fifth World Drivers' Championship title, equalling Juan Manuel Fangio's record set over 40 years before. McLaren-Mercedes drivers Kimi Räikkönen and David Coulthard finished second and third respectively.
| 2002 French Grand Prix | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Race 11 of 17 in the 2002 Formula One World Championship
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| Race details | |||||
| Date | 21 July 2002 | ||||
| Official name | LXXXVIII Mobil 1 Grand Prix de France | ||||
| Location | Magny-Cours, France | ||||
| Course | Permanent racing facility | ||||
| Course length | 4.251 km (2.641 miles) | ||||
| Distance | 72 laps, 305.886 km (190.069 miles) | ||||
| Weather | Warm and sunny, Air Temp: 25°C | ||||
| Pole position | |||||
| Driver | Williams-BMW | ||||
| Time | 1:11.985 | ||||
| Fastest lap | |||||
| Driver | David Coulthard | McLaren-Mercedes | |||
| Time | 1:15.045 on lap 62 | ||||
| Podium | |||||
| First | Ferrari | ||||
| Second | McLaren-Mercedes | ||||
| Third | McLaren-Mercedes | ||||
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Lap leaders | |||||
In a peculiar qualifying session, a heavy crash prevented Giancarlo Fisichella from qualifying for the race on medical grounds, whilst the cash-strapped Arrows, unable to reach an agreement with their sponsors, made a brief appearance in qualifying, only to have both their drivers deliberately set lap times slow enough for them to not qualify for the race.