MARCH 25, 2002

Ferrari's big risk

Ferrari knows that it needs its new F2002 and so one of the cars will be flown to Brazil for the Grand Prix next weekend.

FERRARI knows that it needs its new F2002 and so one of the cars will be flown to Brazil for the Grand Prix next weekend. The car has shown itself to be quick in testing but there are still some question marks over its reliability and it may be that the Italian team decides to use the F2002 in qualifying and one of the older F2001s in the race. The rules state that a team may use "several cars for practice and the race" although a driver can use no more than three cars during qualifying. Cars have to be "of the same make" and they must have been scrutineered in advance. This means that old and new cars can be used in the same event.

The decision to take a new car to Brazil is an indication that Ferrari knows that it must accelerate the program given the competitiveness of the Williams-BMWs, particularly if the weather suits the Michelin tires - which is quite likely to happen.