The 2001 Spanish Grand Prix (officially the Gran Premio Marlboro de Espana 2001) was a Formula One motor race held on 29 April 2001, at the Circuit de Catalunya in Montmeló, Catalonia, Spain, before 91,000 spectators. It was the fifth round of the 2001 Formula One World Championship, and the circuit hosted its 11th Spanish Grand Prix. Ferrari's Michael Schumacher won the 65-lap race from pole position. Williams's Juan Pablo Montoya finished second for his first Formula One podium finish and British American Racing's (BAR) Jacques Villeneuve finished third.
Going into the race, Ferrari's Michael Schumacher and McLaren's David Coulthard shared the lead of the World Drivers' Championship, but Ferrari led McLaren in the World Constructors' Championship. Michael Schumacher set the fastest lap in the one-hour qualifying session, securing pole position. He held the lead until the two pit stop cycles, when Coulthard's teammate Mika Häkkinen took the lead each time round due to his longer stints than Schumacher's. Häkkinen took the lead after the second round of stops because McLaren told him to push to get ahead of Schumacher, whose rear tyres began to vibrate. Häkkinen led the race and appeared set to win until his clutch failed on the final lap due to a hydraulic leak. Michael Schumacher took the lead and won by 40 seconds over Montoya.
Electronic driver aids including traction control, fully automatic gearboxes, and launch control became legal for the first time since the season at the Spanish Grand Prix. Schumacher's win was his third of the season and his 47th overall. As a result, he led the World Drivers' Championship by eight championship points over Coulthard and 22 over Rubens Barrichello. With 12 races left in the season, Ferrari expanded their lead in the World Constructors' Championship to 18 championship points over McLaren and 32 championship points over Williams.
Background
The 2001 Spanish Grand Prix was the fifth of seventeen Formula One races in the 2001 Formula One World Championship, held on 29 April 2001, at the clockwise Circuit de Catalunya in Montmeló, Catalonia, Spain, Before the race, Ferrari driver Michael Schumacher and McLaren driver David Coulthard were tied for the World Drivers' Championship lead with 26 championship points each. Ferrari's Rubens Barrichello was third on 14 championship points, followed by Williams's Ralf Schumacher and Sauber's Nick Heidfeld with 12 and 7 championship points. Ferrari led the World Constructors' Championship with 40 championship points, and McLaren were second with 30. Williams were third with 12 championship points, followed by Jordan on 10 and Sauber on 8. The return of electronic driver aids was the major point of discussion heading into the race. Several drivers voiced displeasure with the systems' return, but engineers and manufacturers observed that it provided an opportunity for them to demonstrate their technical skills.
Following the San Marino Grand Prix on 15 April, all teams tested aerodynamics, electronic driver aids, engines, mechanical car components and tyres at various European racing circuits to prepare for the Spanish Grand Prix. The British-based teams of Benetton, British American Racing (BAR), Jaguar, Jordan, McLaren and Williams and the Paris-based Prost team tested at England's Silverstone Circuit from 17 to 19 April. Jordan's Heinz-Harald Frentzen set the first day's fastest lap time, Sauber, Ferrari and Minardi tested at Italy's Mugello Circuit between 18 and 20 April. Luca Badoer, Ferrari's test driver, topped the first day's running,
Häkkinen had scored four championship points in the season's first four races due to unreliability and sub-par performances, achieving a then-best result of fourth at Imola. He hoped to extend his winning streak in Spain to four successive victories, adding, "No one is too far ahead and there are still plenty of points to be scored. I hope my championship starts here." His teammate Coulthard said he would be prepared for the race, but was aware of Häkkinen's performance at the circuit and that a victory for the latter would return him to championship contention. Following two subpar races, Michael Schumacher stated that he was not concerned after retiring from the San Marino Grand Prix, but believed Ferrari might regain competitiveness and win in Spain. Williams's Juan Pablo Montoya anticipated a difficult Grand Prix due to his car's pace in recent circuit tests, saying, "I am sure when we get there we will figure it out and hopefully be competitive. It will be quite interesting. For me I am really looking forward to getting to the end of a race to score some points."
The event featured eleven teams (each representing a different constructor) with two drivers each, with two changes from the season entry list. Luciano Burti, who had driven for Jaguar from the beginning of the season, learnt Jaguar had no intention of keeping him at the race team for and was released and replaced by Pedro de la Rosa, the team's test driver. Burti joined Prost as the second driver change, replacing Gastón Mazzacane, who was sacked by Prost for breaching a performance clause in his contract after being off teammate Jean Alesi's pace. Benetton's Jenson Button had been nursing a shoulder injury he picked up at the for more than a month but entered the race after visiting specialists.
Some teams did not use some electronic driver aids in their cars because of reliability issues, and there was less emphasis on cooling the brakes. Teams disputed the legality of the Williams FW23's diffuser after learning of it, but FIA technical delegate Jo Bauer declared it legal. Ferrari employed temperature sensors inside the F2001's wheels to monitor their temperatures and the identical front wing as at the San Marino Grand Prix. McLaren used smaller and cleaner front brake ducts to cool the disc and caliper during qualifying and the race. Sauber's C20 cars remained without power steering because it was deemed too unreliable during testing. BAR tried upward-exiting exhausts on both Olivier Panis and Jacques Villeneuve's 003 cars, as well as a triangular fin behind the front wheels and small gurney flaps on the front wing. Jaguar again installed a revised front wing as seen at Imola. Arrows's spare car included a new front suspension, various steering locations for improved geometry and weight reduction, and redesigned front wing endplates with horizontal flip-up winglets. Benetton, Minardi, Prost and Williams made no external changes to their cars. The quickest lap times were recorded early in both Friday sessions' one-hour periods, and the abrasive track surface resulted in heavy tyre wear. The first practice session was held in the morning, in dry and sunny weather following early morning rain. Drivers reported low grip and oversteer, so teams adjusted their traction control systems.
thumb|left|[[Heinz-Harald Frentzen (pictured as a Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters driver in 2006) crashed his Jordan car against the tyre barrier in the second practice session.]]
Coulthard led the opening session with a lap of 1:20.107, half a second faster than Barrichello. Michael Schumacher, Ralf Schumacher, Häkkinen and Panis, Montoya, Jordan's Jarno Trulli, his teammate Frentzen and Heidfeld completed the top ten. Montoya spun his car entering turn seven after locking his front-left wheel. Frentzen lost control of his vehicle's rear, skidded into the turn seven gravel trap and collided with the tyre barrier. Engine components penetrated Villeneuve's undertray and punctured the tarmac. Jaguar's Eddie Irvine missed most of the session with two hydraulic gearbox leaks. Coulthard went quicker than in the previous session and led with a time of 1:20.107, Minardi's Tarso Marques locked his brakes and spun into the gravel 20 minutes in. Michael Schumacher was the fastest in the third practice session, at 1:18.634; Häkkinen was second, despite locking his tyres and running off into turn one's gravel trap before returning to the race track en route to the pit lane late in the session. Coulthard, Barrichello, Trulli, Frentzen, Heidfeld, Räikkönen, Ralf Schumacher and Panis followed in positions three to ten. four hundredths of a second ahead of teammate Barrichello in second. Coulthard, Räikkönen, Heidfeld, Trulli, Panis, Häkkinen, Ralf Schumacher and Villeneuve rounded out the top ten. After ten minutes, De la Rosa was on the pit lane straight with the speed limiter on when his Jaguar unexpectedly veered to the right and into the barrier at the pit lane exit owing to a power steering failure, removing the front-right wheel. De la Rosa's car was stranded,
Qualifying
thumb|right|upright|[[David Coulthard, who qualified third, despite suffering from car balance issues (picture taken in 2007, while driving at Red Bull Racing)]]
Each driver was limited to twelve laps during Saturday's one-hour qualifying session, with the starting order determined by their fastest laps. The 107% rule was in force during this session, which required each driver to set a time within 107% of the fastest lap to qualify for the race. and with softer tyre compounds and traction control, the quickest lap was six seconds faster than Häkkinen's pole position time in 2000. Michael Schumacher increased downforce in his Ferrari and completed eight of his twelve laps on three sets of soft compound tyres. He secured his fourth pole position in five races of the 2001 season and the 36th of his career with a lap of 1:18.201, Coulthard took third after being demoted from second by teammate Häkkinen. He could not lap quicker owing to car balance concerns and Heidfeld bulking his final run. Ralf Schumacher was the highest-placed Michelin-shod entrant in fifth. Villeneuve, seventh, spun into the gravel trap at the end of the pit lane straight due to disconnected rear brakes. and took 21st as the slower Benetton driver because late-qualifying car setup alterations took longer than expected, and he missed the final run. He could not find a proper chassis balance because of excess oversteer in some turns and he lost a lot of time approaching a slower car on his final run, in which he almost spun.
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Warm-up
A 30-minute warm-up session was held in warm, breezy conditions on race morning. Most drivers practiced their launch control systems with a standing start. Both Ferrari cars maintained their good pace from qualifying; Barrichello set the fastest time of 1:20.680 on his second run. Michael Schumacher was fourth in the other Ferrari car; Häkkinen and teammate Coulthard were second and third, respectively. Frentzen and Panis completed the top six fastest drivers with identical lap times. With two minutes remaining, in cool, cloudy and overcast weather conditions. The air temperature ranged from , and the track temperature was between . Michael Schumacher and both McLaren drivers had new sets of tyres for the race, but two stops gave Schumacher a one-second advantage for two laps after exiting the pit lane. As the field began the formation lap, He raised his hand to signal he could not start, and a marshal waved a yellow flag behind his car.
Fisichella hit Coulthard from behind, breaking the latter's front wing, two floor stays, and the mounting point for the rear jack. Coulthard then hit Bernoldi's rear end, and his front wing folded under the McLaren. On lap six, Frentzen attempted to overtake De la Rosa on the outside at turn ten for 16th, but he lost control of his car's rear on a kerb and understeered. Both drivers retired from the race in the gravel trap off the circuit. His stop took 9.3 seconds, rejoining with no other car around him in third with enough fuel to finish the race. Michael Schumacher was thus promoted into the lead, which he maintained to claim his third victory of the season and the 47th of his career. Despite not finishing the race, Häkkinen was classified ninth. Montoya felt it "really exciting" to get his first podium result and he did not expect to finish on the podium, "The start was really good and moved me up a lot of places and then I just kept pushing all day long." Häkkinen admitted to being "super disappointed" over his last lap retirement, "goddamn it, you know – Jesus. It could have been a fantastic finish for me – it was going so easy. I didn't even have to push. I was just more or less cruising but it just didn't work out this time for me." He added, "I thought about it. I thought 'Wow, I'm going to win for the fourth time in Barcelona. If that happens it's incredible. Then on the last lap I said 'Okay, now I understand, it can't be this good to be true. Sometimes things just don't go like you want them to go."
thumb|right|upright|[[Ron Dennis (pictured in 2000) accused Coulthard of having "brain fade" but later withdrew his remark following analysis of the driver's stall.]]
McLaren team principal Ron Dennis inaccurately told British television station ITV that Coulthard's stall before the formation lap was due to "a bit of brain fade" inside the car. When Coulthard was informed about the comment, his response was "I think it's fair to say that Ron has had a bit of brain-fade to make that comment without talking to me or the engineers first." McLaren technical director Adrian Newey said it was unfair to blame Coulthard and that it was a situation the team had not rehearsed properly. Following further deliberations, Dennis later withdrew his comment about Coulthard after McLaren's final review of the telemetry determined that a software glitch caused Coulthard's stall. Coulthard later stated that there was no need to remedy the issue because it was resolved shortly after the race, and his launch control system software was modified to prevent him from stalling again.
Brawn said Ferrari strategy and his calculations may have allowed Michael Schumacher to win the race if the driver had not been hindered by tyre vibrations after his second pit stop, saying, "It would have been very close." Trulli dedicated his fourth-place finish to fellow Italian Michele Alboreto who died in a sports car accident at the EuroSpeedway Lausitz in Germany in the week of the Grand Prix. Barrichello stated that he was confident he would have finished on the podium if he had not retired due to a rear suspension issue. De la Rosa and Frentzen had different perspectives on their collision. De la Rosa stated that he attempted to provide space but had little room to manoeuvre. Frentzen, however, blamed De la Rosa for not looking to his side, claiming that he had passed him when the accident happened.
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Notes
- – David Coulthard started the race from the back of the grid after stalling on the formation lap.
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;Constructors' Championship standings
{|class="wikitable" style="font-size: 85%;"
|-
! scope="col" |
! scope="col" |
! scope="col" | Driver
! scope="col" | Points
|-
|align="left"| 10px
|align="center"| 1
| Ferrari
| 50
|-
|align="left"| 10px
|align="center"| 2
| McLaren-Mercedes
| 32
|-
|align="left"| 10px
|align="center"| 3
| Williams-BMW
| 18
|-
|align="left"| 10px
|align="center"| 4
| Jordan-Honda
| 13
|-
|align="left"| 10px
|align="center"| 5
| Sauber-Petronas
| 9
|-
!colspan=4|Sources: