Blundell's view: 2002 F1 season review - part one.

Mark Blundell may not have raced in Formula One since 1995 with McLaren-Mercedes, but the Brit is still a big fan, and here in the first of a three-part interview, MB looks back on the 2002 F1 season, revealing his rookie of the year and loads, loads more. Enjoy...

Q:
Mark, the 2002 Formula One season was, in many ways, a difficult year. If you had to sum it up in a few words, what would you say?

Mark Blundell:
Hmm... interesting that one... What can I say? Interesting and controversial...

Q:
How do you think the fans will remember 2002?

MB:
I think the fans will remember 2002 for the dominance of Michael Schumacher and Ferrari. They will also probably recall the Austrian race, which will stick out in their minds and the fact that grids were reduced [to less than 20 competitors on occasions] for the first time in a long time.

Q:
Continuing with the year as a whole, what was the single biggest disappointment and what was the best thing about 2002...

MB:
I think, in couple of ways, it was much of the same. I think the single biggest disappointment was the dominance of [Michael] Schumacher and Ferrari, and that nobody could step up and go against them. And then you could also look at it another way, and say that was paradoxically the best thing about it, because it's not very often you get to see brilliance at that level - and it was certainly brilliant, from Schumacher as a driver and Ferrari as a team.

Q:
Looking at the drivers, if you had to pick out your top six drivers' who would they be, and why?

MB:
[Michael] Schumacher would be top obviously because of his total dominance, then [pause] ...it would probably have to be Rubens [Barrichello], because he put some outstanding drives in and had to go second fiddle and did it quite well. I'd probably have [Juan Pablo] Montoya down third, for his outstanding laps in qualifying, but he needs to shape up for the races. Fourth would have to be DC [David Coulthard], who had a tough year but kept everything solid. [Kimi] Raikkonen would have to be fifth for showing outstanding flair and speed. Finally... maybe somebody like...[Mark] Webber, who kept his head down and got on with job - which has been repaid by getting a more fulfilling drive [with Jaguar].

Q:
Noticeably no mention of Ralf [Schumacher], why is that?

MB:
I just don't think he did anything that stood out or gave me a buzz. I think, at the beginning of the year, he made a few errors, and there was nothing there that stood out that said he was doing a great job.

Q:
Which driver or drivers were the biggest disappointments in 2002? Would you stick with Ralf?

MB:
In the overall scheme of things, I think Ralf was expected to do more than he did. I think, also, that Montoya could have done more in the races but, you know, in some respects, that was made up in qualifying. I'm sure some good race results would have been much more pleasing for everybody. I think that's really it... I think probably Ralf Schumacher.

Q:
Who was the rookie of the year - Mark Webber, Felipe Massa, Takuma Sato, Anthony Davidson or Allan McNish?

MB:
I think the rookie of 2002 would have to be Webber, because I think he was the most complete of them all. In many respects, Sato got to the end of the season and then pulled off one good result. McNish had a lot of experience under his belt, a year of testing with Toyota but wasn't really in the same class as the other rookies. Although he did a very solid job, he got let down. Davidson I expected a bit more from, he didn't quite turn it on when it came to doing the [two] races [standing in for Alex Yoong]. I think, in the overall scheme of things, Webber would probably be my rookie of the year.

Q:
Why not Felipe Massa?

MB:
Massa, I think, showed some great speed, but just got himself involved slightly to much in a few incidents, which he could probably have done without. He would be a close second to Webber in that respect, but I think Webber was the most complete, considering what he had to drive [a Minardi].

Coming soon: Part two of Mark Blundell's 2002 F1 season review.