Monaco Grand Prix 2002 - Race Schedule and Countdown

David Coulthard broke Ferrari's stranglehold on the 2002 season with a brilliant victory at Monaco, leading Juan Pablo Montoya across the line in what would have been a McLaren-Williams one-two before the Colombian was disqualified for a technical infringement. The Scot drove a flawless race through Monte Carlo's unforgiving streets, managing his tires perfectly and maintaining concentration through the two-hour marathon. His victory ended Schumacher's winning streak at six races and provided a much-needed morale boost for McLaren after a difficult start to the season.

Michael Schumacher could only manage second place after a rare strategic error by Ferrari, his team miscalculating tire degradation in the unique Monaco conditions. The championship leader pushed hard to catch Coulthard but found overtaking impossible on the narrow street circuit, forced to settle for six points. Ralf Schumacher inherited third place after Montoya's disqualification, the Williams driver having crossed the line second before being excluded for an illegal endplate modification discovered in post-race scrutineering.

Coulthard's Monaco triumph represented the only non-Ferrari victory between Malaysia in March and Germany in July, a brief ray of sunshine in an otherwise processional season. The victory demonstrated that the F2002 was not invincible on tracks where outright power and aerodynamic efficiency mattered less than precision and driver skill. For McLaren, the win offered hope that development might close the gap to Ferrari, though this optimism would prove misplaced as the red cars resumed their dominance immediately afterward.