Ferrari handed $1 million fine for Austrian GP rules breach - On This Day

On this day 24 years ago, the FIA's World Motor Sport Council handed Ferrari a $1 million fine for breaching podium protocol at the 2002 Austrian Grand Prix, one of the most controversial moments in modern F1 history.

The penalty stemmed not from the team orders themselves, which were permitted under the regulations at the time, but from what unfolded on the podium afterwards.

Barrichello dominated the weekend at Spielberg, taking pole position and leading the race comfortably. Yet in the closing laps, Ferrari instructed the Brazilian to cede his position to Schumacher.

Barrichello later described those final laps as a war with the pit wall, but on the last lap, he visibly lifted off the throttle approaching the final corner, allowing Schumacher to cross the line first by a manufactured margin of 0.182 seconds.

The crowd at the A1-Ring responded with a chorus of boos, their displeasure plainly audible as the cars pulled into parc fermé.

What followed made matters worse. On the podium, in an attempt to acknowledge the injustice, Schumacher pushed Barrichello onto the top step and handed him the winner's trophy.

It was a gesture that may have been well-intentioned, but the FIA viewed it as a breach of official podium procedure and, according to reports, an embarrassment to the sport and the host nation.

The fine and its fallout

Of the $1 million penalty, $500,000 was payable immediately, with the remaining $500,000 suspended for 12 months, contingent on no similar offence occurring within that period.

The backlash from Austria proved so intense that the FIA went further later that year, formally banning team orders that interfere with race results from the 2003 season onwards. That ban remained in place until it was lifted in 2011.

Former F1 supremo Bernie Ecclestone, however, saw no issue with team orders at the time. "There are team orders in bicycle racing and whatever," Ecclestone said.

"I don't think we should change it. It's a team event. In this case, it didn't make any difference to the constructors' championship, and as you can now see, it didn't make any difference to the world drivers' championship either."

Ecclestone was right on that count. Schumacher sealed his fifth F1 drivers' title that season with six races still remaining, finishing 67 points clear of his nearest rival.