2004 F1 Season
18 races · Ferrari F2004
The 2004 season was the last great roar of Ferrari's golden era and, by the numbers, second only to 2002 in terms of dominance. The F2004 was an almost perfect car, and Michael Schumacher wrung it dry until he shattered his own records.
The German opened by winning twelve of the first thirteen races, a simply unreal streak, and posted thirteen wins across the eighteen rounds of the calendar. He secured the championship very early, at the Belgian Grand Prix, on the mythical Spa-Francorchamps circuit.
It was his seventh world title and fifth in a row, a record that seemed destined to stand unbeaten for generations. No one imagined then that it would be his last crown, nor that the red dynasty was about to break.
Drivers' Champion
Michael Schumacher
Ferrari F2004
Constructors' Champion
Ferrari
18 races
Key moment
"Schumacher wins 12 of the first 13 races, one of the most incredible streaks in sporting history."
The 2004 grid, car by car
The 10 teams that raced in 2004, ordered by how good we rate the car. It is our own judgement, not an official figure: what it is worth is that the same yardstick is applied to every season since 1988, so you can compare eras.
| # | Team | Our rating | Drivers |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ferrari | 99 | Michael Schumacher · Rubens Barrichello |
| 2 | Renault | 91 | Fernando Alonso · Jarno Trulli |
| 3 | Williams | 90 | Juan Pablo Montoya · Ralf Schumacher |
| 4 | BAR | 89 | Jenson Button · Takuma Sato |
| 5 | McLaren | 89 | Kimi Räikkönen · David Coulthard |
| 6 | Sauber | 81 | Felipe Massa · Giancarlo Fisichella |
| 7 | Jaguar | 79 | Mark Webber · Christian Klien |
| 8 | Toyota | 78 | Olivier Panis · Cristiano da Matta |
| 9 | Jordan | 73 | Nick Heidfeld · Giorgio Pantano |
| 10 | Minardi | 68 | Gianmaria Bruni · Zsolt Baumgartner |
How 2004 actually ended
The official final standings, from Australian Grand Prix to Brazilian Grand Prix. This is the real result, not the simulation above.
| Driver | Points | Wins | Podiums | Poles |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Michael SchumacherFerrari | 148 | 13 | 15 | 8 |
| 2Rubens BarrichelloFerrari | 114 | 2 | 14 | 4 |
| 3Jenson ButtonBAR | 85 | 0 | 10 | 1 |
| 4Fernando AlonsoRenault | 59 | 0 | 4 | 1 |
| 5Juan Pablo MontoyaWilliams | 58 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
| 6Jarno TrulliToyota | 46 | 1 | 2 | 2 |
| 7Kimi RäikkönenMcLaren | 45 | 1 | 4 | 1 |
| 8Takuma SatoBAR | 34 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Schumacher took it by 34 points with 13 wins and 8 poles across 18 races. 5 different drivers won that season, and the last Grand Prix went to Juan Pablo Montoya.
Official FIA standings via Jolpica (formerly Ergast).
What if 2004 had been raced 100 times?
We took the real 2004 grid (every car with its performance and reliability, every driver with his rating) and re-ran the full 17-race championship 100 times.
| Driver | Avg. finish | Titles |
|---|---|---|
| Michael Schumacherreal championFerrari | P1 | 100% |
| Rubens BarrichelloFerrari | P2.3 | 0% |
| Fernando AlonsoRenault | P2.7 | 0% |
| Kimi RäikkönenMcLaren | P4.8 | 0% |
| Juan Pablo MontoyaWilliams | P5.3 | 0% |
| Jenson ButtonBAR | P5.5 | 0% |
Michael Schumacher wins 100% of the simulated championships. Runner-up Rubens Barrichello manages 0%: with that machinery, the real result was very nearly the only one available.
Tags
What if Senna, Hamilton or Alonso had driven the 2004 championship-winning car?
Hypotheses from 2004
Drivers of 2004
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What we have measured about 2004 and about what decided it, with our own numbers.
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