Australian GP:
 
 Mika Salo (Sauber) had crossed the line in sixth position to earn a point, but was disqualified due to an irregularity with the car's bodywork. Sauber dedided not to appeal.
 
 
  Brazilian GP:
 
 For safety reasons, Peter Sauber decided to withdraw his Team from the race: the bumps at the Interlagos circuit made the rear wings on both cars get loose and detach, during practice and qualifying. Both cars had qualified for the race.
 
 D. Coulthard (McLaren) had crossed the line in second position to earn six points, but was disqualified due to an irregularity with the car's front wings. McLaren appealed, but with no effect.
 
 Coulthard's disqualification resulted in that J. Button entered F1 history as the youngest ever to score a point.
 
 
  European GP:
 
 N.Heidfeld (Prost), who had qualified 13th., was not allowed to line up for the race: his car was found to be 2kg under the 600kg minimum weight, in qualifying.
 
 
  Canadian GP:
 
 D. Coulthard (McLaren) incurred a 10-second stop-go penalty: he stalled before the formation lap & McLaren mechanics were claimed not to have left the car quickly enough, after rushing back on to the track to help him. Coulthard was additionally involved in a collision with Verstappen's Arrows, and later knocked Wurz's Benetton off the track, to finish seventh, stuck behind Trulli's gearbox. Coulthard had been running 2^nd (behind M.Schumacher) when called in for his stop-go. Coulthard's eventful race, together with Hakkinen's 4^th place, could hardly be called cellebration of McLaren's 400th GP this Sunday.
 
 After the race, both P.Diniz (Sauber) and J.Villeneuve (BAR) were punished with 25 seconds added to their overall time, as a result of dangerous manoeuvres at overtaking situations, which ended the race for P.de la Rosa (Arrows) and R.Schumacher (Williams), respectively. Villeneuve was reprimanded by the stewards, in addition. In neither case, however, did these extra 25s. alter anything of substance: Diniz still maintained his 10th place finish and Villeneuve his 15^th.   [ Refresh you memory on this incident ]
 
 Ferrari's 1-2 (0.174s by the flag!) was the 6^th closest finish in F1 history, at the same time evoking nostalgic good-ol' style team-working. Barrichello, who raced his 120th GP, and let go what would have been his long sought first F1 GP victory, commented: "I have no problem with backing off to protect Michael and it was a great result for the team. Whenever I have a chance to start in front of Michael and have my race, I am sure the team will let me win. It is just a question of playing by the rules. I respect very much the team." Schumacher, who eased home ahead of Ferrari teammate Barrichello, sparing his own car from a suspected malfunction, praised his teammate: "He protected me at the end, as I was going very slow just to play it safe. I thank the team for having done a perfect job all weekend and Rubens for protecting me. He is a great teammate and one day I will repay the favour." This was Schumacher's 40th career victory, also significant in that it broke the recent tradition of drivers not winning from pole (the past 12 GP's).   [ Check, in contrast, Barrichello's reaction after the 2001 Austrian GP, when, following team orders once more, the Brazilian handed M.Schumacher his second place, and consequently finished third. ]
 
 Fisichella (Benetton), who finished third, exhibits so far an impressive record: he has finished every race this season. BTW, this was the 4^th time in a row that he was on the Podium in Canada.[ Check on Coulthard's similar start of Season start, in 2001 ]
 
 
  Austrian GP:
 
 Jaguar's Brazilian test driver Luciano Burti was suddenly handed over Eddie Irvine's car, on the eve of the race: the Irishman, with abdominal pains, rushed back to England for a medical check up over the weekend. (Irvine is now reported to be OK and expected to race in Germany.) Burti managed to qualify next-to-last, just .600/s away from Herbert, and ran a sober race. Burti, who had to start from the pits (a last minute problem forced Jaguar to get Herbert's spare car ready for Burti), finished next to last, in a racing event where more experienced drivers were involved in a number of incidents.   [ See the 2001 Austrian Grand Prix, which followed another surprising debut in Burti's career ]
 
 3 stop-go penalties were distributed in this racing event: Zonta (BAR), Diniz (Sauber), and Mazzacane (Minardi).
 
 Zonta, who started 6^th (his best qualifying position so far, and ahead of teammate Villeneuve--7^th on the grid), outbraked the 1^st. corner, thus hitting the back of M.Schumacher's Ferrari, whose race ended right there. Truli's Jordan (which had possibly already touched the back of Barrichello's Ferrari) then hit M.Schumacher's spinning Ferrari and was also out of the race. Barrichello's Ferrari, also thrown off track, managed to survive the entire incident, however with a broken car floor, which hindred him from aiming any higher than the 3rd. place he got on the finish line. Fisichella's Benetton was likewise hit from behind (by Diniz's Sauber), on that same 1^st. corner, finding no different fate from Schumacher's, as a result. This is the 1^st. time this year that Fisichella does not cross the finish line.   [ See the 2001 Austrian Grand Prix and the tradition of crashes in this GP ]
 
 Although still a long way from the Ferrari/McLaren performance level, the two Prost cars--J.Alesi's & N.Heidfeld's--have managed to level up with the MaLarens on at least one sad point: recalling the McLaren's, last year, the two Prosts crashed into one another during this year's Austrian GP. J.Alesi holds team communication failure as responsible for the incident. A.Prost was reported to be so frustrated that he declined any comments on the unfortunate occurrence.   [ See the 2001 Austrian Grand Prix and the tradition of crashes in this GP ]
 
      Last Minute!     Hakkinen might be stripped off his 10 points: a post-race inspection has detected a required FIA-seal missing from an electronic box in Hakkinen's car. The box at stake has been taken to London for inspection by FIA officials. Final word on this issue is promised prior to the German GP, at the latest.
 
 
  German GP:
 
 McLaren lost the 10 points it had won for the constructors' championship due to an irregularity found in Hakkinen's car during the post-race inspection (see right above). Hakkinen, however, could keep his 10 points in the drivers' championship.
 
 Barrichello (Ferrari) won this race after having started from 18^th place on the grid. This victory guaranteed Ferrari's lead in the Constructor's Championship, as well as Schumacher's lead in the Driver's Championship. Lending yet a sweeter taste to Barrichello's first win in 124 GP's is the fact that he is the first Brazilian driver to win a GP since the late Ayrton Senna, in 1993, in a total now of 80 Brazilian F1 wins (starting with Emerson Fittipaldi). Barrichello was overcome with emotion on the podium.
 
 As the green lights went on, Coulthard (McLaren), who had lately been making a great deal of noise against Schumacher's start tactics, swerved across the track to block Schumacher (Ferrari). Schumacher was then forced to steer away, and ended up hit by Fisichella (Benetton), who was coming from behind, in a near replay of what Schumacher had already suffered from Zonta in the previous GP. For the 2^nd. time in a row, Schumacher's GP is not longer than a few meters, because he is thrown off track by other drivers' manouvers. He would have good reason to complain, but seems to take it all with good sportsmanship.
 
 Only half of the cars crossed the finish line in this race which was marked not only [1] by a number of accidents (Fisichella on Schumacher, Diniz & Alesi, Zonta & Villeneuve--this time, the two BARs), but also [2] by a spectator suddenly crossing the track (lap 24) and remaining in the vicinity of the track. This forced the safety car out for some three laps, till the invading fellow could be taken away.
 
 
  Hungarian GP:
 
 Michael Schumacher's Pole Position for the Hungarian GP matches Juan Manuel Fangio’s career total: 28 Poles.
 
 
  Belgian GP:
 
 As water from the morning rain was still covering the track, a rolling start (behind the safety car) gave this race its touch of originality.