In some ways, Formula One came of age in 2001. With each successive year under the management of Nicolo di San Germano, the U.I.M.'s premier circuit racing formula has achieved another advance in terms of professionalism and coverage and the ten race series last year represented as well balanced a spread of national hosts and competitors as the sport has seen. From February in Johore Bahru. Malaysia, through Europe to Abu Dhabi in October on the Arabian Gulf, F.1 was full of surprises, a smattering of new faces, fantastic racing and some sadness, as riveting a mixture as you see in any branch of motorsport.

Latvia’s Victor Kunitch demonstrated commitment and performance to equal his peers but made an error in Dunaujvaros and failed to score there. The F.1 season ended on a sad note when he was involved in a fatality at the end of what had been a promising entry to the formula. Photo: Formula Photographic/Davies

Most people expected a three-way fight between defending World Champion, Scott Gillman, past champion Guido Cappellini and young charger, Francesco Cantando but the crowds in Malaysia saw all three left on the line, Gillman and Cappellini later retiring with broken equipment, Latvia's Victor Kunitch featuring in the early laps and Sami Selio coming through to finish second from tenth on the grid. Cantando could do no better than third and it was left to the Saudi businessman, Laith Pharaon, to take the closest of races and record a famous win in only the seventh start of his F.1 career.

Many thoughts were with the young Italian, Fabio Comparato, who after a remarkable start to his professional career in Cappellini's DAC team in 2000, suffered a devastating barrel roll in the penultimate round in Sharjah, hospitalising him with multiple injuries. All set to join Gert Ladefoged in the Molgaard/Viking team, Comparato's re-entry into F.1 was delayed further on doctor's orders and he did not race in Malaysia.

Having failed to score in Johore Bahru, Cappellini must have wished that all his races could mirror what happened in Portim‹o in the second round of the championship, when the DAC/Assicom driver led from flag to flag and never really looked troubled despite the attempts of Massimo Roggiero and Pharaon to get on terms. Neither Gillman nor his team mate, Al Qubaisi managed to finish and Pharaon dropped out later in the race which let France's Philippe Dessertenne into second place to lead the championship after Portugal. Jari Honkala showed well in his ABG/Siemens/Castrol boat and Franco Leidi had a good weekend but Comparato could only manage seventh place for his new team.

Unusual in having made the switch from top class offshore racing to circuit boats, Saudi Arabia’s Laith Pharaon exceeded all expectations by winning the Malaysian Grand Prix in Johore Bahru in only the seventh start of his F.1 career and finished fifth overall in the World Championship. Photo: Formula Photographic/Davies

Twenty-three drivers from fifteen countries gathered in Dunaujvaros for Round 3 and having secured pole, Roggiero raced to the front where he jousted with Pharaon, Gillman, in a badly handling package, and Cappellini, who struggled through from fourth to take the lead. Gillman's rig expired on Lap 25 - still no points in defence of his title - but Cappellini hit his stride posting a succession of 41 second laps on the two pin, 1.6 kilometre course before getting sub-40 seconds and posting his second successive win. Cantando placed a good second, Roggiero slipped to third, Dessertenne crept in to fourth, ahead of Finland's Seliš in the 3-litre Johnson powered Exide rig and Japan's Yutaka Sugihara, making a welcome return to F.1, placed sixth.

Scott Gillman’s year was punctuated with disappointment for the Emirates Team. Scoring no points in the first five races of the season, his luck was epitomised by the happenings in Riga where, on a challenging course, rough conditions allowed him into the lead before submarining out of contention. He eventually finished sixth overall. Photo: Formula Photographic/Davies

Emirates drivers, Al Quabaisi and Al Qamzi suffered mixed fates, the former just getting into the points, the latter failing to complete the distance, while Fabrizio Bocca and Carlos Maidana struggled against Cappellini's undisputed pace so the Italian past champion went into the Latvian GP leading the title chase.

Riga and the fourth race produced wind and rain over the challenging 7-pin course on the Daugava River but Roggiero took another pole position and led for the first quarter of the race, with Cappellini slow away, Gillman pushing hard and local driver, Kunitch in close attendance to the joy of his home crowd. Having got into the lead, Gillman promptly submarined to retirement and in the ensuing melee, Antonio Feu and Ivan Torta split around the foundering boat only to come together in spectacular fashion the other side and take no further part in the hostilities. On the re-start, Dessertenne hit the front, only to be passed by Cappellini, while Kunitch cruised home in third followed by Sugihara, Al Qubaisi, Cantando and Portugal's Duarte Benavente.

Guido Cappellini’s year started badly in Malaysia before he took four straight wins to give him the championship lead, but it was on home ground in Sardinia that he came unstuck and let Cantando steal a points lead at the mid-point. Photo: Formula Photographic/Davies

In the pressurised atmosphere of Italy, Cappellini took the Campione race from Cantando and Pharaon, leading from the start until simultaneous crashes by the two young Emirates drivers brought a re-start. Gillman pushed hard and was lying second until tagged by Sugihara in a passing manoeuvre that didn't come off while Kunitch, Roggiero, Dessertenne and Seliš kept Cappellini honest in the middle order. Sardinia was next and it proved expensive for Cappellini, who barrel rolled out whilst avoiding Paul Gaiser, leaving the field clear for the opposition to close up on him in the points race. Sugihara destroyed his boat and five laps run under caution while they cleared up the pieces left Kunitch, Pharaon and Gillman in front until the Saudi's engine cried enough on the final lap, leaving Kunitch to record his maiden F.1 win from a relieved Gillman, the persistent Dessertenne, Cantando, Benavente, Torta, Bocca and Elliott.

One month later, the hot-shots gathered in Stralsund, Germany for Round 7 and it was Cantando who shone, taking his first win of 2001 and the fourth of his career in a boat that he had virtually re-built in the lay-off. Already the pole sitter, he rushed off the start line and was never seriously challenged despite the efforts of Gillman struggling with visibility, Cappellini struggling for performance, Dessertenne struggling to keep in touch and returnee Jonathan Jones. Germany did not deliver for Sugihara, Al Qubaisi who hit Cappellini late in the race, Benavente and Kunitch who took each other out, Pharaon whose engine expired again, Gaiser and Bocca, who failed to start in his new DAC/Rainbow rig and Austria beckoned.

It was in Vienna that Cappellini lost his championship points lead to Cantando, having been disqualified for removing two turn mark buoys but the Singha Beer team driver had already got past the old maestro having enjoyed an unusual rolling start in two rows of boats after a pontoon start was declared too risky on a turbulent River Danube. With a course shortened following Cappellini's misdemeanour, Cantando headed Gillman who found himself under pressure from Kunitch and Hankala in his new 2.5-litre Mercury Siemens boat and the pressure told when Gillman also clipped a turn buoy and was disqualified. Gaiser crashed out heavily and on the re-start, under darkening glowering skies, Cantando beat Kunitch and Honkala, with Dessertenne and Bocca showing well. The European rounds now over, the championship was still nicely poised as the fleet made their way to the Gulf for the final two races of the year and all to play for.

Sharjah and the ninth race of the year saw Cappellini and Gillman fighting it out for the win after Kunitch, Cantando and Roggiero took each other out on the first turn. Pharaon made the early running until the two ex-champions swept past him to establish the real order but it was the performance of Gillman's prodigy, Thani Al Qamzi from Abu Dhabi that surprised everyone when he came home third having followed his teacher throughout the race. Cantando dropped out leaving Dessertenne well placed until his engine expired on the last lap and Honkala placed fourth after another good drive.

The last race of the season in Abu Dhabi was overshadowed by the fatal crash of Victor Kunitch, in one of four boats to come together on the first turn in an accident involving the Latvian, Britain's Andy Elliott, Italy's Franco Leidi and Emirates driver Awad Al Qubaisi. Amidst the flying machinery, the safety cell of Kunitch's boat came off worst and he was hospitalised in critical condition to succumb later from his injuries. On the re-start, Pharaon hit the front until passed by Cantando who led to the flag and he was followed home by the strongly finishing Dessertenne, Pharaon, Roggiero and Cappellini, cruising home at his own pace and keeping out of trouble as he sought and delivered his sixth world title. All three Emirates drivers failed to finish but Honkala took rookie of the year honours with a sensible sixth and eighth overall, Benavente, Dubai's Salem Al Khattal in his Werner prepared rig, Russia's Stanislav Kourtsenovsky and Malaysia's K.Y.Loi.

Guido Cappellini (centre), Francesco Cantando (left) and Philippe Dessertenne recieve their World Championship trophies for first, second and third, from Saif Al Shaffar in Abu Dhabi. This was Cappellini’s sixth Formula One world title and the maestro will be back to deffend in 2002. Photo: BPRC/Davies

Cappellini's skill and mechanical reliability saw him home to his latest and probably not his last success in Formula One but the younger drivers are circling for another attempt in 2002.