Formula 1

Italian GP: Minardi race notes

Today's Italian Grand Prix started well enough for the KL Minardi Asiatech team, with drivers Mark Webber and Alex Yoong getting away cleanly at the start and moving steadily up the order while turning consistent, competitive lap times.

Published: Sep 16, 2002, 10:47 PM

Copy link

Share on Facebook

Share on Twitter

Share on WhatsApp

Share on Linkedin

Share on Pinterest

Share on Viber

Add as a preferred source

Today's Italian Grand Prix started well enough for the KL Minardi Asiatech team, with drivers Mark Webber and Alex Yoong getting away cleanly at the start and moving steadily up the order while turning consistent, competitive lap times. Disappointingly, Webber exited the race on lap 21, when his car suffered an engine-related electronic problem, while Yoong fell victim to a software glitch while making his sole scheduled pit stop of the afternoon, and subsequently lost time in the garage while the problem was traced and rectified. The Malaysian eventually rejoined the race, and had the satisfaction of taking the chequered flag in a hard-earned 13th place.

ALEX YOONG

"At the beginning of the race, the car was okay, although I had a lot of understeer in the first three laps, which at least diminished as the race progressed. Once the race settled down, it was going well. I was in front of Sato and I was able to keep him behind me with no problem at all. At that point, I thought there would be a chance to beat him in the race. When I came into the pit lane for my stop, I think we had an electronic problem because the engine died and would not restart. We put the car in the garage, and it then took a few minutes before we could work out what the problem was. In the end, it turned out be very simple. Once it was sorted, I was able to rejoin the race and just pushed as hard as I could for the remaining laps."

MARK WEBBER

"I made a decent start, had a go at Sato at the Parabolica on the first lap, and after a brief mix-up between Alex and myself at the chicane, was able to home in on the Jordans again. The car was going well at that point, but then it just lost drive. This is the first time I have had two DNFs in a row this year, so we'll definitely be looking to make amends at Indianapolis in two weeks' time. I haven't raced there before, but the history of the place is amazing, so I'm really looking forward to it."

PAUL STODDART, Team Principal

"Today was rather disappointing for the KL Minardi Asiatech team, as a loss of drive ended Mark's race prematurely, on lap 21, and an anti-stall problem caused Alex's car to be withdrawn to the garage, costing him several laps during his one and only pit stop. Apart from this, both cars ran competitively today and a top-10 finish would not have been out of the question. Our congratulations go to Jaguar Racing for a well-earned podium after a gutsy drive from Eddie Irvine."

THE ASIATECH VIEW

Mark Webber's race came to a premature halt due to an electrical problem in the engine's ECU. Alex Yoong, however, finished the race.

ALEX YOONG
Chassis: PS02/03 (No. 22)
Position: 13th
Fastest lap: 1 min 27.401secs

MARK WEBBER
Chassis: PS02/04 (No.23)
Position: DNF (lap 21)
Fastest lap: 1min 27.104secs

-minardi-

We want your opinion!

What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?

Take our 5 minute survey.

- The Motorsport.com Team

Read and post comments

Read also :

Share Or Save This Story

Copy link

Share on Facebook

Share on Twitter

Share on WhatsApp

Share on Linkedin

Share on Pinterest

Share on Viber

Previous article Italian GP: Renault race notes

Next article Italian GP: BAR race notes

Top Comments

There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?

View More & Comment

More from

Mark Webber



Oscar Piastri shares how relationship with Mark Webber has evolved since F1 debut

Formula 1

Formula 1

Miami GP

Oscar Piastri shares how relationship with Mark Webber has evolved since F1 debut



Mark Webber’s Oscar Piastri role change was inevitable, says David Coulthard

Formula 1

Formula 1

Saudi Arabian GP

Mark Webber’s Oscar Piastri role change was inevitable, says David Coulthard



What F1 history tells us about three-way title deciders

Formula 1

Formula 1

Abu Dhabi GP

What F1 history tells us about three-way title deciders

More from

Minardi



Alpine may be F1’s best ‘worst team’ of all time

Formula 1

Formula 1

Alpine may be F1’s best ‘worst team’ of all time



Alonso showed championship credentials in first F1 race - ex-Minardi boss

Formula 1

Formula 1

Saudi Arabian GP

Alonso showed championship credentials in first F1 race - ex-Minardi boss



Top 10 Minardi F1 drivers ranked: Alonso, Webber, Badoer and more

Formula 1

Formula 1

Top 10 Minardi F1 drivers ranked: Alonso, Webber, Badoer and more

Latest news



“Just a disaster” – How Isack Hadjar’s nightmare Singapore F1 weekend unfolded

Formula 1

F1 Formula 1

Singapore GP

18 min

“Just a disaster” – How Isack Hadjar’s nightmare Singapore F1 weekend unfolded



Tom Cruise interested in racing ARCA car, per NASCAR CEO Steve O'Donnell

NASCAR Cup

NAS NASCAR Cup

Charlotte II

6 h

Tom Cruise interested in racing ARCA car, per NASCAR CEO Steve O'Donnell



Gibbs, Spire and Gabehart argue over contempt and injunction

NASCAR Cup

NAS NASCAR Cup

Charlotte II

9 h

Gibbs, Spire and Gabehart argue over contempt and injunction



William Byron to run Jeff Gordon throwback Axalta scheme at Phoenix

NASCAR Cup

NAS NASCAR Cup

Charlotte II

9 h

William Byron to run Jeff Gordon throwback Axalta scheme at Phoenix

Feature

Discover prime content



Why Mercedes' latest 2026 F1 update is no downgrade

Formula 1

Singapore GP

By Jake Boxall-Legge

Why Mercedes' latest 2026 F1 update is no downgrade



'Senior moment' or breakdown of trust? The implications of Hamilton's Singapore GP meltdown

Formula 1

Singapore GP

By Stuart Codling

'Senior moment' or breakdown of trust? The implications of Hamilton's Singapore GP meltdown



What we learned from the 2026 F1 Singapore GP sprint and qualifying

Formula 1

Singapore GP

By Jake Boxall-Legge

What we learned from the 2026 F1 Singapore GP sprint and qualifying



How Honda plans a return to being an F1 powerhouse

Formula 1

By Ronald Vording

How Honda plans a return to being an F1 powerhouse

Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.

From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.

You have 2 options:

Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here

Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page

Manage Alerts

Subscribe