Results from the 2005 Japan Grand Prix
With the Constructors' Championship hanging in the balance and just two races left, the Japanese Grand Prix was always going to be a thrilling race and indeed turned out to be a drama packed one. But in the end it was the incredible drive by Kimi Raikkonen from 17th on the grid to snatch victory from Giancarlo Fisichella on the last lap that the race will be remembered for.
Team Renault were the real winners however, finishing second and third to restore a nail-biting two point lead in the Constructors' Championship, setting up a thriller in China next week which will depend on all four drivers finishing, and well. Juan Pablo Montoya had another miserable race after being shunted off the track on lap one by Jacques Villeneuve, ending McLaren’s hopes of another one-two finish to seal the championship.
Ralf Schumacher, who started in pole position, only managed an eighth place finish at Suzuka. Mark Webber finished well in fourth behind World Champion Fernando Alonso, with Britain's Jenson Button in fifth for BAR-Honda. David Coulthard and Michael Schumacher took sixth and seventh respectively.
The race was full of incidents and some excellent driving, showcasing the best of F1. An untimely downpour in the middle of qualifying saw to it that many of the bigger names and points scorers from Interlagos posted poor times and had to start nearer the back of the grid. On lap one the safety car was called out as Jacques Villeneuve and Juan Pablo Montoya collided in the last corner. Villeneuve ended up taking the corner wide and pushed Montoya off the track, causing him to crash and retire. Villeneuve went on to finish the race in 11th place, but was given a 25 second penalty after the race for forcing Montoya off the track, which ultimate placed him in 12th place.
Dramatic overtaking and jockeying for position was enhanced by varying pit stop strategies. Ralf Schumacher opted for a three-stop strategy, which didn’t fare well and many were wondering if Raikkonen was on a one-stop strategy, until he finally pulled in to re-fuel with eight laps left in the race. Fisichella had a 5.4 second lead at this point, but Raikkonen yet again proved how quick his McLaren-Mercedes was and how good a driver he is. Mark Webber could have had a podium finish if he hadn't let his guard down in lap 49, allowing Alonso to overtake him and clinch the third place finish away from him.
Alonso proved exactly why is the new world champion with some thrilling duelling with the man who he took the crown from – Michael Schumacher, passing him twice in the middle laps of the race.
Home fans who may have been hoping for a victory for their 'home-boy' Takuma Sato had high hopes when he qualified fifth, but he collided with Jarno Trulli's Toyota on lap 10, and was later disqualified from his eventual 13th place. It may be the last they see of the Japanese driver, with BAR-Honda dumping him in favour of Rubens Barrichello for the 2006 season.
Full race result from Suzuka (2005)
- Kimi Raikkonen - McLaren-Mercedes 1h 29m 02.212s
- Giancarlo Fisichella – Renault +1.6s
- Fernando Alonso – Renault +17.4s
- Mark Webber – Williams-BMW +22.2s
- Jenson Button – BAR-Honda +29.5s
- David Coulthard – Red Bull Racing +31.6s
- Michael Schumacher – Ferrari +33.8s
- Ralf Schumacher – Toyota +49.5s
- Christian Klien – Red Bull Racing +51.9s
- Felipe Massa – Sauber-Petronas +57.5s
- Rubens Barrichello – Ferrari +60.6s
- Jacques Villeneuve – Sauber-Petronas +83.2s
- Tiago Monteiro – Jordan-Toyota +1 lap
- Robert Doornbos – Minardi-Cosworth +2 laps
- Narain Karthikeyan – Jordan-Toyota +2 laps
- Christijan Albers - Minardi-Cosworth +4 laps