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Why did Ferrari opt for one F2002  

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Ferrari decided to take one F2002 car to Brazil and allocated it to Michael Schumacher. They will be taking three F2001 cars, a spare for Michael and a race and a spare for Rubens.

This decision seems unusual, the new car seems very fast in testing and if it is reliable then why not race both ? Barrichello can't be a happy chap now!.
If reliability is a concern, why give it to Michael and risk car failure and no points ? 
Are they planning to test the F2002 on Friday and Saturday practice but race the old car ? That will lose Michael setup time on the old car as the spare can't be used in practice.
Is this decision a gamble or a calculated risk ?

We'd like to hear from you on what you think the reasoning behind this is ?  - Have Your Say (What others are saying)

Doesn't matter what car Barrichello is driving. he just can't win. I feel sorry for the guy, he's just a nice guy, I wish the best for him - Daniel - Uruguay

Michael is better suited in the F2002 for overall performance as BMW have the power for 1-2 finish. If they were playing it safe Barrichello would have the f2002 - Steve - Australia

I completely agree with the Ferrari team decision. On one hand Michael will drive a car that has never been on a tropical track, never in a high altitude and never was challenged by such pressure from opponents. On the other hand, we have Ruben driving with a consistent, strong and reliable car, which will enable him to score points no matter what position he ends up in. Don't forget that Ruben has not scored points yet. He must do it at home. As for Michael, he can certainly handle the pressure. (It's not easy to be Michael!) - Daniel B - Uruguay

 It really makes no difference for Rubens. The F202 car, although much improved, and allegedly a better car, is not tested in a real race and is a risky proposition for the Champ to drive the car now. Rubens will defeat the others as long as his strategy and car hold together. It will be important for Ferrari to insure Ruben's car is in top condition. 
The F2002 car is a gamble. With the point situation the way it is, Rubens is an important facet in Ferrari winning again the drivers and constructors championship. It was clear from the last race Williams-BMW is quite serious to their challenge to the Champ. It would seem that the reliability problems, at BMW, have been alleviated. The F2002 car is supposed to be the equal of the Williams power over time and distance, this remains to be seen. I have no doubt that with F2001 car with Rubens behind it, will finish in the points. He's that good! - Daryl B - USA

Ferrari has no choice but to use the new car. If Malaysia was an indication of Williams performance, Ferrari has to be quicker, have to develop the F2002 in race conditions to stay close to BMW as they develop their car, and have to now play catch up in the Mft. points race. They really should bring 1 for Rubens also. We really don't know what the new McLaren will do as it really has not shown itself, but we know that Williams/BMW are a force to be reckoned with,,,now! - Nova - USA

Firstly let me state why about this topic, and then I would give my reasoning. 
1. This is the first step in introduction of F2002 at no risk. 
2. They want to compare F2002 to competition. 
3. Barring any major problems with F2002, Michael will use F2002 to qualify. 
4. The decision to use F2002 on race day will depend upon two factors - how tough/reliable is the F2002 on Friday and Saturday and how Strong are Williams. 

Ferrari seemed to have made a strategic decision during the off-season that they will race the F2001 for the first three races of the year because there were so little rule changes. They in fact developed the old car to a great extent. But the 1-2 finish by Williams at Malaysia seems to have shaken them. They don't want to lag behind development of their 2002 car and play a catch up the entire year! They now want to get the F2002 to race as soon as possible, so I would assume they have taken the first step to introduce the new car without any risk. Why no risk? Because if you remove the F2002 they still have 3 F2001's which is what I think they had in the previous two races. 
Any car, how much ever you test it will still give problems when you race it, because it is never pushed to its limit in testing. Look at Arrows launch control and Mclaren's engine problems (after more than 5000km testing!!). I believe Ferrari/Michael will use the F2002 during both Friday practice sessions and Saturday practice/qualifying. He will try to push the car as much as possible. I would assume they use Rubens to setup F2001, the data, which Michael could use on Sunday and just fine tune his F2001 a little in case of problems. If F2002 proves reliable enough on Friday and Saturday I strongly believe that Michael will use the car on Race day - Vishy - Canada

It would appear, on the face of it, to be the threat that Williams/Michelin pose. The F2002 needs race mileage and has clearly been quicker in testing than the F2001. If Ferrari didn't think it would perform they wouldn't have taken it, and anyhow if there is any doubt once they get to Brazil then they can always switch to the old car. 
Also Michael has always appeared to have been disappointed at having to use the old car to date this year. Its about time they introduced it anyway, I think - Linda B - England

Call the current F2001 an F2001.5, and since Ferrari has not made things very clear, We can safely assume that they really want to see the Results on the Track, not just at Valencia, considering that the tests will not give a good relative performance. And probably they are willing to take the risk of failing to finish in the race, but that give a much more valuable data for the coming races. And considering that Rubens only had few days of testing, and Mike is anytime better in a new machine, its the best strategy to have him driving F2002. I think Ferrari is moving in the right direction - GOP - The Netherlands

Remember folks, Ferrari is the most professional team in F1, so only 1 car is ready, Michael wants it, he will get pole, he will ,barring incident or mechanical failure will win the race in it. 
People seem to think the F2001 is suddenly uncompetitive, this is bollocks, they ran the harder compound at Sepang and they slid all over the place, except for Michael's last set which seemed to grip really well, but remember he pitted on the first lap and changed his tyres, I believe these may have been the tyres he put back on for the last stint, the old car is still a safe bet. Regards - Cooky - Australia

Difficult to call this one! Obviously MS calls the shots as to which car he wants. I'm sure if he thought the F2001 was better for Brazil, Rubens would have had to race the F2002, if it was purely a Ferrari decision. 
I'm sure the real reason for not racing both F2002's is very simple, they are NOT as reliable as Ferrari claim and MS is by far the best driver to race a car that is not perfect yet, or that develop problems during the race. Remember him finishing 2nd with only 5th gear in the Ford powered Benetton a few years back… If someone can race and win in a less than perfect car it surely must be MS, therefore only one F2002! - Stephan G - New Zealand

Definitely a calculated risk. I agree wholeheartedly with Geoff in everything he says. I would just like to add that in taking both cars, better assessments can be made from a comparative point of view and lets face it, at some stage F2002 will have to race. Lucky for Ferrari to be in a position where F2001 is still competitive and can still play a vital supporting/transitional role. 
But I still think Geoff is right in this respect. MS in F2002 for qualifying and in F2001 for the race - Johan M - South Africa

I'm somewhat confused by Ferrari's decision to take only one F-2002 to Brazil. Even if the idea is to get MS on the pole and then race the F-2001, I don't think he can stay in front of both the Williams cars, unless they take each other out. 
Ralf proved in Malaysia that they are fast and reliable and if JPM had not gotten the drive-thru penalty he may have been further up the order. If the car is reliable enough to race, why not bring four F-2002s? Then they have a good shot at a 1-2 finish. I'm baffled, maybe that's the strategy to confuse everybody - Jeff S - USA

It would have been fascinating to be privy to the conversation when this decision (for Michael to use the F2002) was taken. Michael obviously made the call. Rubens would not have had a say. I suspect that the ‘positive reports’ from the technicians had a few riders regarding reliability and Michael has opted for this outcome. The F2002 is faster; there is no question of that. What odds on a blinding qualifying lap using chassis number 220 in pure qualifying set-up, followed by a race using the F2001, with MS on pole? Rubens has had his chances for a higher grid position sacrificed to provide set-up data from his car for Michael - Geoff H - Australia.

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