The 2005 United States Grand Prix was one of the most controversial Formula One motor races in modern history. It was held on June 19, 2005 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and was the ninth race of the 2005 Formula One season. Out of 20 cars entered for the race, only the six cars from the teams using Bridgestone tyres (Ferrari, Minardi and Jordan) competed. The remaining fourteen entrants, all using Michelin tyres, completed the parade lap (thus having technically taken part in the race, avoiding punishment), but retired to the pits before the race started.
Following several tyre failures before the race, most spectacularly on Ralf Schumacher's Toyota during Friday practice, Michelin advised its seven customer teams that the tyres provided for the race were not safe to use for the entire race, even though they had been providing working tyres for the race since 2001. The situation was worsened by the 2005 Formula 1 rules, which forbade tyre changes during the race; and also by a resurfacing of the circuit, which resulted in greater tyre wear.
The Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA), the sport's governing body, refused a compromise proposal from Michelin to allow a chicane to be installed, maintaining that such rule changes would be grossly unfair to the Bridgestone-shod teams, who had come prepared with properly working tyres, and that a last-minute change to the track layout would be dangerous in case of crashes. The Michelin teams, unable to come to a compromise with the FIA, decided not to participate.
Of the six competitors, Ferrari's Michael Schumacher was the eventual winner, with his team mate Rubens Barrichello finishing second. The result significantly boosted his championship standing, placing him third overall – no driver above him in the table took part in the race. It also had a significant effect on the outcome of the 2005 Constructors' Championship; without the easy 18 points Ferrari gained from this race they almost certainly would have finished below Toyota at the end of the season. Although controversial, it was the 24th and last one-two finish for Ferrari team mates Michael Schumacher and Rubens Barrichello. They remain the most successful Formula 1 team mates, as far as one-two finishes are concerned. The situation created enormous negative publicity for the sport of Formula One, especially in the United States, a market in which Formula One had struggled to establish itself over the preceding 20 years, leading some to label the race as "Indygate". This race also marked the Toyota team's first Formula One pole position, although it is thought highly likely that Ralf Schumacher's crash meant that Toyota was the only team who entered qualifying knowing their cars would not race. With fuel used in qualifying at this time and therefore weight of the fuel load often contributing to qualifying times, it is possible that Jarno Trulli only had a couple of laps of fuel in the car.
Read more about 2005 United States Grand Prix: Race Report, Aftermath, Friday Drivers, Standings After The Race
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