2003 French Grand Prix

F1 France French 6 July 2003 2003 European Grand Prix 2003 British Grand Prix Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours.svg Mobil 1 Grand Prix de France 2003 10 16 Magny-Cours, France Permanent racing facility 2.741 4.411Grand Prix de France http://www.fia.com/archive/F1/2003/010.html Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile 2023-07-21 https://web.archive.org/web/20100915021855/http://www.fia.com/archive/F1/2003/010.html 2010-09-15 70 191.746 308.586 Cloudy, Air: 26 C F, Track 35 C F 101,537 Ralf Schumacher Williams-BMW 1:15.019 Germany Juan Pablo Montoya Williams-BMW 1:15.512 36 Colombia Ralf Schumacher Williams-BMW Germany Juan Pablo Montoya Williams-BMW Colombia Michael Schumacher Ferrari Germany FRA The 2003 French Grand Prix (officially known as the Mobil 1 Grand Prix de France 2003)https://www.formula1.com/en/results/2003/races/746/france/race-result France Formula1.com 28 July 2025 was a Formula One motor race that took place on 6 July 2003 at the Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours. It was the tenth round of the 2003 Formula One World Championship. Ralf Schumacher of BMW Williams took pole position for the race and went on to take the race win. His teammate Juan Pablo Montoya finished second and his brother Michael Schumacher, driving for Ferrari, was third. This was Ralf's second consecutive victory but it would turn out to be his last in Formula One. As of 2025, this is also the last 1–2 finish for Williams. Background The event was held at the Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours in Magny-Cours, France for the 13th time in the circuit's history, across the weekend of 4–6 July 2003. The Grand Prix was the tenth round of the 2003 Formula One World Championship and the 53rd running of the French Grand Prix as a round of the Formula One World Championship.Grands Prix France https://www.statsf1.com/en/grand-prix-france.aspx 10 August 2025 StatsF1 Circuit changes thumb|The Lycée section of the circuit was modified ahead of the 2003 event. Earlier in the year, the circuit was upgraded. Château d'Eau a sharper right hand corner and the Lycée section were completely modified, now featuring a sharp right hand turn after the back straight, which then leads to a difficult final chicane next to the pit entrance. The pit lane was significantly shortened as a result of the upgrades.Magny-Cours https://www.racingcircuits.info/europe/france/magny-cours.html 10 August 2025 RacingCircuits.Info Championship standings before the race Going into the weekend, Michael Schumacher led the Drivers' Championship with 58 points, seven points ahead of Kimi Räikkönen in second and fifteen ahead of his brother Ralf Schumacher in third.Jones Bruce https://archive.org/details/formulaonegrandp0000jone_i0o1/ The Official ITV Sport Guide: 2004 FIA Formula One World Championship Carlton Books 2004 1-84442-811-7 100–101 Final Tables 2003 registration Internet Archive Ferrari, with 95 points, led the Constructors' Championship from BMW Williams and McLaren, who were second and third with 82 and 76, respectively. Practice Three free practice sessions were held for the event.Domenjoz Luc Formula 1 Yearbook 2003–04 Sporting regulations https://archive.org/details/formula1yearbook0000unse_x6v8 2003 Parragon Bath, Somerset 220–221 978-1-4054-2089-1 Internet Archive registrationhttps://www.newsonf1.com/2003/races/france/main.htm 2003 French Grand Prix - Results and Reports NewsOnF1.com 5 August 2025 Jaguar driver Mark Webber set the fastest time in the first session, more than a second quicker than Ralf Schumacher and Fernando Alonso, in second and third places respectively.https://www.newsonf1.com/2003/races/france/f1res.htm 2003 French Grand Prix - Friday Practice Session Results NewsOnF1.com 5 August 2025https://www.formula1.com/en/results/2003/races/746/france/practice/1 MOBIL 1 GRAND PRIX DE FRANCE 2003 - PRACTICE 1 Formula1.com 5 August 2025 The second session was topped by Alonso in the Renault ahead of Rubens Barrichello and Ralf Schumacher.https://www.newsonf1.com/2003/races/france/s1res.htm 2003 French Grand Prix - First Saturday Practice Session Results NewsOnF1.com 5 August 2025https://www.formula1.com/en/results/2003/races/746/france/practice/2 MOBIL 1 GRAND PRIX DE FRANCE 2003 - PRACTICE 2 Formula1.com 5 August 2025 Finally, the Williamses of Ralf Schumacher and Juan-Pablo Montoya led the third practice session, ahead of David Coulthard in third.https://www.newsonf1.com/2003/races/france/s2res.htm 2003 French Grand Prix - Second Saturday Practice Session Results NewsOnF1.com 5 August 2025https://www.formula1.com/en/results/2003/races/746/france/practice/3 MOBIL 1 GRAND PRIX DE FRANCE 2003 - PRACTICE 3 Formula1.com 5 August 2025 Qualifying thumb|Jos Verstappen set the fastest time in Friday qualifying. Qualiyfing consisted of two one-hour sessions, one on Friday and one on Saturday afternoon. The first session's running order was determined by the Drivers' Championship standings, with the leading driver going first. Each driver was allowed to set one lap time. The result determined the running order in the second session: the fastest driver in the first session was allowed to go last in the second session, which usually provided the benefit of a cleaner track. Drivers were again allowed to set one lap time, which determined the order on the grid for the race on Sunday, with the fastest driver scoring pole position.https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/article/deciding-the-grid-a-history-of-f1-qualifying-formats.1oh1hemlnZ4x9rt2nff8vn Deciding the grid - A history of F1 qualifying formats formula1.com 25 July 2025 Qualifying report Courtesy of a drying track, Jos Verstappen ended up quickest in the first qualifying session, almost three seconds ahead of anyone else. This was the only time a Minardi topped the timesheets at a race weekend.https://www.formula1.com/en/results/2003/races/746/france/qualifying/1 MOBIL 1 GRAND PRIX DE FRANCE 2003 - QUALIFYING 1 Formula1.com 5 August 202515 May 2013 Provisional pole for Verstappen in French GP qualifying Motorsport.com http://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/provisional-pole-for-verstappen-in-french-gp-qualifying/ 15 May 2013 28 April 2014 https://web.archive.org/web/20140428054447/http://www.motorsport.com/f1/news/provisional-pole-for-verstappen-in-french-gp-qualifying/ dead His teammate Justin Wilson had set the second-fastest time but it was deleted after scrutineering found his car was 2.5 kg lb on underweight.4 July 2003 Wilson Stripped of Qualifying Time https://www.atlasf1.com/news/2003/jul/report.php/id/11021/.html 10 August 2025 AtlasF1 Normal service resumed in second qualifying on a dry track, in which Williams teammates Ralf Schumacher and Juan-Pablo Montoya clinched the first row on the grid. It was Schumacher's third pole position in four races.5 July 2003 Qualifying: Another pole for Ralf https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/qualifying-another-pole-for-ralf-5025659/5025659/ 10 August 2025 Autosport Qualifying classification Pos No Driver Constructor Q1 Time Q2 Time Gap Grid 1 4Germany Ralf Schumacher Williams-BMW 1:29.327 1:15.019 1 2 3Colombia Juan Pablo Montoya Williams-BMW 1:28.988 1:15.136 +0.117 2 3 1Germany Michael Schumacher Ferrari 1:27.929 1:15.480 +0.461 3 4 6Finland Kimi Räikkönen McLaren-Mercedes 1:29.120 1:15.533 +0.514 4 5 5UK David Coulthard McLaren-Mercedes 1:28.937 1:15.628 +0.609 5 6 7Italy Jarno Trulli Renault 1:29.024 1:15.967 +0.948 6 7 8Spain Fernando Alonso Renault 1:29.455 1:16.087 +1.068 7 8 2Brazil Rubens Barrichello Ferrari 1:27.095 1:16.166 +1.147 8 9 14Australia Mark Webber Jaguar-Cosworth 1:25.178 1:16.308 +1.289 9 10 20France Olivier Panis Toyota 1:24.175 1:16.345 +1.326 10 11 15Brazil Antônio Pizzonia Jaguar-Cosworth 1:24.642 1:16.965 +1.946 11 12 16Canada Jacques Villeneuve BAR-Honda 1:24.651 1:16.990 +1.971 12 13 21Brazil Cristiano da Matta Toyota 1:26.975 1:17.068 +2.049 13 14 17United Kingdom Jenson Button BAR-Honda 1:30.371 1:17.077 +2.058 14 15 9Germany Nick Heidfeld Sauber-Petronas 1:24.042 1:17.445 +2.426 15 16 10Germany Heinz-Harald Frentzen Sauber-Petronas 1:26.151 1:17.562 +2.543 16 17 11Italy Giancarlo Fisichella Jordan-Ford 1:28.502 1:18.431 +3.412 17 18 12Ireland Ralph Firman Jordan-Ford 1:23.496 1:18.514 +3.495 18 19 19Netherlands Jos Verstappen Minardi-Cosworth 1:20.817 1:18.709 +3.690 19 20 18United Kingdom Justin Wilson Minardi-Cosworth 1:20.9681 1 1:19.619 +4.600 20 Sources:2003 Mobil 1 Grand Prix of France – Qualifying 1 https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2003/races/746/france/qualifying-1.html Formula1.com 30 September 20232003 Mobil 1 Grand Prix of France – Qualifying 2 https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/2003/races/746/france/qualifying-2.html Formula1.com 30 September 20232003 French Grand Prix Classification Grid https://www.motorsportstats.com/results/fia-formula-one-world-championship/2003/french-grand-prix/classification/grid Motorsport Stats 30 September 2023 Notes 1 1 – Justin Wilson drove a time of 1:20.968 but his time was removed because his car was underweight. Race The race was held on 6 July 2003 and was run for 70 laps.StatsF1 10. France 2003 https://www.statsf1.com/en/2003/france.aspx 5 August 2025https://www.motorsportmagazine.com/database/races/2003-french-grand-prix/ 2003 French Grand Prix MotorsportMagazine 5 August 2025 Race report At the start, the Williamses of Ralf Schumacher and Juan Pablo Montoya kept their places in front, while Kimi Räikkönen managed to get by Michael Schumacher for third position. The German was also challenged by the second McLaren of David Coulthard but stood his ground. His teammate Rubens Barrichello was running eighth at the end of the first lap when he spun his Ferrari coming out of the newly designed final corner.https://www.atlasf1.com/2003/fra/elizalde.html The 2003 French GP Review AtlasF1.com Elizalde Pablo Spain 9 July 2003 5 August 2025https://maxf1.net/en/france-2003-dream-week-for-ralf-last-williams-1-2/ 2003 French GP – Dream week for Ralf, last Williams 1-2 MaxF1 Petric Darjan 6 July 2022 5 August 2025 https://web.archive.org/web/20250522221225/https://maxf1.net/en/france-2003-dream-week-for-ralf-last-williams-1-2/ 22 May 2025 dead Ralf Schumacher took full advantage of running in clear air and stretched his lead to four seconds in ten laps. After the first round of pit stops, this was up to seven seconds. Coulthard had stopped earlier than his rivals and managed to jump Michael Schumacher. There were little changes in position up to and including the second round of pit stops. Afterwards, however, both the Renaults suddenly retired. Fernando Alonso's engine expired in a big cloud of smoke on lap 43 and Jarno Trulli pulled off with engine failure three laps later. During the third round of stops, Ralf Schumacher was held up by backmarkers, but still rejoined ahead of his teammate and then steadily extended his lead to up to ten seconds at the finish. Coulthard left his box when the fuel hose was still attached to his McLaren. He left no one injured but lost a lot of time. This left third place open to Michael Schumacher, who passed Räikkönen when the Finn was suffering from issues with his rear brakes. Post-race Michael Schumacher's lead in the World Drivers' Championship slightly increased to eight points, while his brother Ralf remained third, reducing his deficit to just eleven points. Fourth-placed Montoya was only 17 points behind Schumacher. Following their second consecutive one–two finish, Williams narrowed the gap to Ferrari to three points, while McLaren was another 18 points behind Ferrari in third. Race classification Pos No Driver Constructor Tyre Laps Time/Retired Grid Points 1 4 Germany Ralf Schumacher Williams-BMW Michelin 70 1:30:49.213 1 10 2 3 Colombia Juan Pablo Montoya Williams-BMW Michelin 70 +13.813 2 8 3 1 Germany Michael Schumacher Ferrari Bridgestone 70 +19.568 3 6 4 6 Finland Kimi Räikkönen McLaren-Mercedes Michelin 70 +38.047 4 5 5 5 UK David Coulthard McLaren-Mercedes Michelin 70 +40.289 5 4 6 14 Australia Mark Webber Jaguar-Cosworth Michelin 70 +1:06.380 9 3 7 2 Brazil Rubens Barrichello Ferrari Bridgestone 69 +1 lap 8 2 8 20 France Olivier Panis Toyota Michelin 69 +1 lap 10 1 9 16 Canada Jacques Villeneuve BAR-Honda Bridgestone 69 +1 lap 12   10 15 Brazil Antônio Pizzonia Jaguar-Cosworth Michelin 69 +1 lap 11   11 21 Brazil Cristiano da Matta Toyota Michelin 69 +1 lap 13   12 10 Germany Heinz-Harald Frentzen Sauber-Petronas Bridgestone 68 +2 laps 16   13 9 Germany Nick Heidfeld Sauber-Petronas Bridgestone 68 +2 laps 15   14 18 UK Justin Wilson Minardi-Cosworth Bridgestone 67 +3 laps 20   15 12 Ireland Ralph Firman Jordan-Ford Bridgestone 67 +3 laps 18   16 19 Netherlands Jos Verstappen Minardi-Cosworth Bridgestone 66 +4 laps 19   Ret Retired 7 Italy Jarno Trulli Renault Michelin 45 Engine 6   Ret Retired 8 Spain Fernando Alonso Renault Michelin 43 Engine 7   Ret Retired 11 Italy Giancarlo Fisichella Jordan-Ford Bridgestone 42 Engine 17   Ret Retired 17 UK Jenson Button BAR-Honda Bridgestone 21 Out of fuel 14  Source:2003 French Grand Prix http://www.formula1.com/results/season/2003/27/ Formula1.com Formula1.com Limited 26 December 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20141226073615/http://www.formula1.com/results/season/2003/27/ 26 December 2014 Championship standings after the race Drivers' Championship standings +/– Pos Position Driver Points 10px 1 Germany Michael Schumacher 64 10px 2 Finland Kimi Räikkönen 56 10px 3 Germany Ralf Schumacher 53 10px 4 Colombia Juan Pablo Montoya 47 10px 1 5 Brazil Rubens Barrichello 39Source:https://www.statsf1.com/en/2003/france/championnat.aspx France 2003 - Championship • STATS F1 www.statsf1.com 17 March 2019 Constructors' Championship standings +/– Pos Position Constructor Points 10px 1 Italy Ferrari 103 10px 2 UK Williams-BMW 100 10px 3 UK McLaren-Mercedes 85 10px 4 France Renault 52 10px 5 UK BAR-Honda 13Source: Note: Only the top five positions are included for both sets of standings. References External links Comments on 2003 French GP French Grand Prix 2003 2003 European Grand Prix 2003 British Grand Prix 2002 French Grand Prix 2004 French Grand Prix 46 51 51 N 3 09 49 E source:kolossus-nowiki title French Grand Prix Grand Prix Category:French Grand Prix French Grand Prix