World champion Michael Schumacher claimed a hollow victory at the U.S. Grand Prix on Sunday after only six cars started the race because of a fiasco over tyre safety. Seven of the 10 teams pulled out after the warm-up lap. They had pleaded in vain for an extra chicane (safety barrier) to slow the cars because of concern over the durability of Michelin’s tyres. Boos rang out from the stands at the Brickyard track, which were packed with an estimated 120,000 spectators, during and after the race. Many fans had left before the end and some threw cans and bottles on to the track in disgust. Germany’s Schumacher claimed his first win of the season by 1.5 seconds from Ferrari team mate Rubens Barrichello of Brazil. They were never troubled by the much slower Jordan and Minardi drivers, who finished one lap and two laps behind respectively. The six finishers were all on Bridgestone tyres. ‘‘It was a bit of a strange Grand Prix and it was not the way I wanted to win my first one this year’’, said Schumacher. He is now third in the drivers’ standings on 34 points behind leader Fernando Alonso of Renault on 59 and McLaren’s Kimi Raikkonen on 37. The previous lowest number of cars on the starting grid was 10 for the Argentina Grand Prix in January 1958. Many blamed the sport’s supremo Bernie Ecclestone for not sorting out a problem he had been aware of since Friday. Schumacher’s younger brother Ralf was forced to miss the race after crashing heavily in Friday’s practice when his Toyota’s rear left tyre suddenly deflated on the high-speed banked final corner before the pit straight. Reuters And now, the blame game After the race, the Michelin teams and also the tyre manufacturer put out statements apologising to fans. In a joint statement, the teams said they ‘‘deeply regret the position that they have been put in today’’ and apologised ‘‘to all the spectators, TV viewers, Formula One fans and sponsors for not being able to take part’’. But F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone pointed the finger of blame firmly at Michelin. ‘‘You can’t tell people to do something when their tyre company said you can’t race on those tyres’’, he told reporters on the grid minutes before the race. Asked about the future of Formula One in the US and the future of Michelin in F1, Ecclestone said: ‘‘Not good, on both counts.’’ — Agencies
