The F1 Moments That Defined The 2000s

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The 2000s was one of the most interesting decades in the history of Formula 1, which saw enormous changes in both sporting and regulatory terms. V10 engines gave way to V8s, and cars became taller and narrower, as the category sought to modernize and become a benchmark for the future.

It was also one of the most controversial decades of all, with numerous scandals that tarnished the image of Formula 1, involving drivers, teams, and organizers, and which served to strengthen the category for the coming years.

The 2000s began with the golden era of Ferrari, which made Michael Schumacher the best driver in history, and during the second half, the category was characterized by great equality between teams and emerging new talents, who starred in some of the best title fights of all time.

That said, let\’s look at the F1 moments that defined the 2000s.

1. Hakkinen’s Double Overtake – 2000 Belgian GP

Mika Hakkinen and Michael Schumacher lived a fierce rivalry between the late 1990s and early 2000s, with the Finn winning the 1998 and 1999 titles, while the German succeeded him as the new world champion.

During the 2000 Belgian Grand Prix, both were fighting for the victory. On lap 40 Schumacher was leading, and Hakkinen was following him closely, trying to overtake on several brakings but without success.

Finally, on the next lap, the Finn took advantage of the slipstream on the long straight after Eau Rouge to get closer to Schumacher and used the lapped Ricardo Zonta to surprise the German and overtake him on the inside at the chicane to take a magnificent victory.

2. Ferrari Staged Finish – 2002 Austrian GP

One of the most controversial episodes in Formula 1 history occurred during the 2002 Austrian Grand Prix. Michael Schumacher was leading the championship, doubling in points second-placed Juan Pablo Montoya, while his teammate Rubens Barrichello had not had a good start to the championship.

In Austria, things were different, and Barrichello was far superior, taking the pole position and dominating the race on his way to what would be his second Formula 1 victory. However, Ferrari had other plans, and Jean Todt, head of the Italian team at the time, ordered him to hand over first place to Schumacher for the championship, something the Brazilian did just before crossing the finish line.

At the podium ceremony, Schumacher, who saw the crowd\’s reaction, pulled Barrichello up to the top step of the podium, who later admitted that after the race he threw up in anger. The FIA fined Ferrari $1 million for the team orders, and after that they were stricter about it, allowing people to listen to the teams\’ radios.

Ferrari itself later admitted that this order was a mistake, as in the end Schumacher won the championship quite comfortably, and this decision tarnished its image to a great extent.

3. F1 In The Middle East For The First Time – 2004 Bahrain GP

In 2004, Formula 1 raced for the first time in the small country of Bahrain, located in the Persian Gulf. The prestigious circuit architect Hermann Tilke designed a very complete and varied circuit, to which modern infrastructure was added, at a total cost of $150 million.

Thus, Formula 1 made its first visit to the oil-rich countries of the Middle East. Bahrain was the first of four circuits built in this region of the world, which has gained great importance in the category in the last decade and a half. Yas Marina in the United Arab Emirates, Jeddah in Saudi Arabia, and Losail in Qatar are the other three Middle Eastern circuits that have been included in the calendar.

Bahrain has remained on the calendar ever since, with the exception of the 2011 edition which was canceled due to the civil unrest in the country, and also hosts the pre-season sessions.

4. Michael Schumacher Wins His 7^th Title – 2004 Season

The 1980s and 1990s were Ferrari\’s darkest decades, in which they won no drivers\’ titles and only two constructors\’ titles. German Michael S Schumacher, after winning two consecutive titles with Benetton in 1994 and 1995, joined the Prancing Horse in 1996, looking to take the Italian team to the top again.

After 4 seasons of fighting unsuccessfully for the championship, everyone lost confidence in Ferrari and Schumacher. However, with the turn of the millennium, the Italian team would experience a great boom, which for 5 seasons completely dominated the category, living its most golden age.

From 2000 to 2004, Michael Schumacher and Ferrari won it all: 5 drivers\’ and 5 constructors\’ titles in a row. At the end of 2004, the German won his seventh world title, after winning 13 of the 19 races, beating all records and becoming the best driver in history, leaving figures that are very difficult to beat, and that only Lewis Hamilton has been able to match.

5. Alonso Defies Schumacher – 2005 San Marino GP

The absolute domination of Michael Schumacher and Ferrari ended in 2005, when new teams and young promises such as Fernando Alonso and Kimi Raikkonen emerged as the new protagonists of the category.

After a bad start to the season, Schumacher returned to fight for victory in the fourth round, the San Marino GP, held at the Imola circuit. The German qualified fourteenth but completed a spectacular comeback to the second position, and after his last pit stop, began his pursuit of the race leader, Fernando Alonso.

Schumacher spent the last 12 laps of the race right behind Alonso, giving his all to try to overtake him, but the Spaniard\’s relentless defense and the narrowness of the Imola circuit made it impossible, so the German finished second, just two-tenths behind the Spaniard, after one of the most iconic battles of recent times.

6. The Indianapolis Scandal – 2005 US GP

Undoubtedly, the 2005 United States Grand Prix was the most controversial race of all time, considered by many as the worst race in the history of Formula 1, in which only six cars took the start after safety problems were detected on the steep part of the circuit by teams mounting Michelin tires.

For that season, there were two tire suppliers, Michelin, and Bridgestone. During Friday\’s free practice sessions, some cars with Michelin tires had accidents in the banked, high-speed turn 13 of the track, because they could not withstand the enormous pressure of the corner. What followed was a disaster, caused by inaction on the part of F1, the FIA, and the lack of agreement between the teams.

Michelin did not ensure the safety of their tires for the race, proposing a modification of the corner, or some other solution, but nobody did anything, so on Sunday, the Michelin cars, at the end of the formation lap, went straight to the pits, leaving only 6 cars (those with Bridgestone tires) on the starting grid.

The race, with only 6 cars, was really boring, with the Ferraris dominating, while the modest Jordan of Thiago Monteiro finished third. Spectators demanded a refund after this sad spectacle, which tarnished the image of F1 and the FIA for a long time.

7. Raikkonen Drives Through The Field – 2005 Japanese GP

Kimi Raikkonen staged one of the greatest comebacks in Formula 1 history during the 2005 Japanese Grand Prix. The Finn, who was driving for McLaren at the time, was Fernando Alonso\’s biggest rival for the title, and he started from the seventeenth position, so he had to overtake many positions in order not to lose too many points to the Spaniard.

However, on Sunday, after the lights went out, the Finn completed a historic drive, overtaking all the drivers in front of him, including Fernando Alonso, and not settling for second place, he overtook race leader Giancarlo Fisichella on the last lap after a spectacular move around the outside of the first corner.

Thus, the Finn not only did not lose points with respect to Alonso, but he even cut him down, achieving his ninth victory in F1 and his last with McLaren, in a day to remember.

8. F1 Switches To V8 Engines – 2006 Season

For the 2006 season, one of the most drastic changes of the decade took place, which was the switch from V10 to V8 engines. The reduction in capacity was designed to give a power reduction of around 20% from the three-liter engines, to reduce the increasing speeds of F1 cars, although despite this, in many cases the performance of the car improved.

The V8 engine era lasted until 2013 when the FIA decided to switch to V6 turbo hybrid engines for the 2014 season. Renault was the most successful team of this era, winning the title in 2006 and dominating the category from 2010 to 2013 with Red Bull.

9. Alonso Double World Champion – 2005 & 2006 Seasons

Spaniard Fernando Alonso was Michael Schumacher\’s successor, winning two consecutive titles with Renault in 2005 and 2006, becoming the leading figure of the new generation of drivers. The first year he won it after an intense duel with Kimi Raikkonen, who had a faster McLaren, but was also very unreliable.

At the age of 24 years and 57 days, the Spaniard became the youngest world champion up to that time, being beaten shortly after by Lewis Hamilton and then by Sebastian Vettel.

In 2006, it was Michael Schumacher himself his opponent, who after a good start of the season by Renault, was recovering points, but in the end, could not beat the Spaniard. His two titles made Alonso the most successful Spanish driver in history and consolidated him as one of the most skilled drivers of all, as he has proved ever since.

10. Alonso vs Hamilton – 2007 Season

After winning two consecutive titles with Renault, Fernando Alonso signed for McLaren in 2007, sharing the team with the young Briton Lewis Hamilton, who was making his Formula 1 debut that season. McLaren had the best car, a world champion, and a promising young driver, so everything looked perfect for the championship.

However, despite all this, the 2007 season will be remembered as a nightmare for the British team. Alonso and Hamilton, very young and ambitious drivers at the time, forged an iconic rivalry during the season, in which there were many controversies, battles, and dirty plays, such as the one that occurred at the Hungarian GP, creating a tense atmosphere in the team, which did not know how to handle it.

The team was completely divided, and the tension between both drivers and Ron Dennis, the team manager at the time, was at its highest. Incredibly, both Hamilton and Alonso finished the season with the same points, 109, and were beaten by just one point by Kimi Raikkonen\’s Ferrari, who took advantage of McLaren’s self-destruction to \”steal\” the title.

Alonso ended up leaving the team at the end of the season, returning to Renault, while Hamilton established himself as a title contender for the following years.

11. McLaren’s Spygate – 2007 Season

As if that were not enough, during the 2007 season, in the middle of the war between Alonso and Hamilton, the espionage scandal known as \”Spygate\” broke out in McLaren, which ended with a historic sanction to the team and an unsalvageable fracture.

Halfway through the season, it came to light that a Ferrari mechanic had allegedly provided his team\’s information to McLaren. The FIA requested the collaboration of the 3 McLaren drivers at the time, Fernando Alonso, Lewis Hamilton, and Pedro de la Rosa, and finally decided to sanction McLaren with a $100 million fine and the loss of all points in the constructors\’ championship.

This became the trigger that ended up dynamiting McLaren in the 2007 season, which was left without the constructors\’ title, and as we saw earlier, could not celebrate the triumph of any of its drivers at the end of the season either.

12. Vettel Becomes Youngest Race Winner – 2008 Italian GP

Sebastian Vettel made his Formula 1 debut in the 2007 United States Grand Prix with BMW Sauber, and his good performance earned him a place at Toro Rosso for the second half of the season. However, 2008 was the year in which the young German established himself as one of the most promising of the new generation of drivers.

The German scored five top-10 finishes that season with his midfield Toro Rosso but completed his best weekend at the Italian GP. That weekend was marked from start to finish by rain, and on Saturday, to everyone\’s surprise, Vettel took the pole position, becoming the youngest polesitter in history.

On Sunday, against all odds, Vettel completed a masterful drive and led the entire race, crossing the finish line first and becoming, at 21 years, 2 months and 11 days, the youngest race winner to date, this also being Red Bull\’s first victory in the category, with its \”B\” team.

13. The Crashgate Scandal – 2008 Singapore GP

In the 2008 season, Formula 1 came to Singapore to celebrate the first night race in its history, which will be remembered for more than that. The Renault team and Fernando Alonso demonstrated during Friday and Saturday a pace superior to what they had had during the rest of the season, making everyone think that they could get the pole position.

In the end, however, Alonso could only finish fifteenth, but Flavio Briatore, the then Renault boss, and Pat Symonds, technical director, had a plan to favor the Spaniard in the race, and that was for his teammate, Nelson Piquet Jr. to crash on purpose.

During the race, Alonso was the first to pit on lap 12, and two laps later, Piquet crashed into the barriers at turn 17, causing the Safety Car to come out. This caused all the drivers to pit, while Alonso moved up to the first place, as he had already pitted, eventually winning the race.

The plan happened internally within the team, so no one knew about it. However, almost a year later, after being fired from the team, Piquet testified to the FIA that Briatore and Symonds ordered him to crash on purpose, feeling coerced as his renewal with the team was still pending. Finally, the FIA punished Briatore with a lifetime ban from any F1-related event, while Symonds was banned for 5 years.

On the other hand, neither Alonso nor Piquet were penalized, so the Spaniard retained his victory.

14. The Most Dramatic Season Finale Ever – 2008 Brazilian GP

There has never been a season finale as dramatic as the 2008 Brazilian GP, in which Lewis Hamilton, who was leading the championship with 94 points, faced Brazilian Felipe Massa, who with 87 points was looking for the title in front of his fans.

The Brazilian did everything in his power to win the title: on Saturday he took the pole position and dominated the race from start to finish in one of his best performances in F1, with changing conditions and rain, although, as we will see, that was not enough.

On the other hand, Hamilton started fourth but was involved in many problems during the race, and with one lap to go he was sixth in heavy rain, mathematically runner-up in the championship. However, on the last lap, the Briton ran into the Toyota of Timo Glock, who was the only driver who had not stopped to change to rain tires and was suffering badly.

As Massa crossed the finish line in first position and Ferrari celebrated, Hamilton overtook Glock, getting the position he needed to win the championship, which changed hands in agonizing seconds. Massa, Ferrari, and all Brazilian fans were devastated, having \”won\” the title for a few seconds.

15. Major Regulatory Changes – 2009 Season

The 2009 season saw the biggest regulatory changes to the cars of the decade, which would lay the foundations for the coming years. The aerodynamics of the cars were simplified with the aim of reducing their dependence, which had been increasing in recent years.

To this end, the front wings were made lower and wider, and the rear wings higher and narrower, while elements such as the barge boards, turning vanes, and winglets were subjected to strict scrutiny.

These changes brought about a major aesthetic transformation of the cars, which was heavily criticized by fans and had an effect on the performance of the teams as well. While McLaren and Ferrari got worse, Brawn GP (formerly Honda and later Mercedes) and Red Bull made a step forward and became F1\’s new front-runners.

Also, a \”hybrid\” component, the Kinetic Energy Recovery System (KERS), was introduced for the first time, allowing cars to recover energy from braking heat for reuse as extra engine power deployment.

16. Brawn GP’s Incredible Story – 2009 Season

The history of the Brawn GP team is unusual and reflects that not always having the greatest economic power, the best facilities and infrastructure are synonymous with success. The origin of the team was caused by Honda\’s withdrawal from F1 at the end of 2008 due to poor results and the economic crisis, so it was put up for sale in search of shareholders.

After failing to find buyers, Ross Brawn, who had been Honda\’s sporting director, bought the team for the symbolic figure of one pound, remaining as the owner of the team, which was renamed Brawn GP. As Honda left, the team started using Mercedes engines but remained with the same pair of drivers: Jenson Button and Rubens Barrichello.

The team came into the pre-season with a virtually empty car, no sponsors, and not much hope was pinned on them. However, no one could have imagined what followed. With the major regulatory changes that took place, Brawn took advantage of some loopholes in the regulations, adding a double diffuser to their cars that greatly increased their performance.

The first half of the 2009 season was spectacular for Brawn GP. Jenson Button won six of the first seven races, with a car that had enormous superiority over the rest. Red Bull caught up as the season progressed, but it was not enough, and Button won the drivers\’ championship and Brawn the constructors\’ championship, while Barrichello was third.

After the 2009 season, Brawn GP was bought by Mercedes, which transformed it into its team. Brawn GP is therefore the only team in F1 history to have won 100% of the seasons in which it has competed, making it a unique story in Formula 1.