The 2002 FIA Formula One World Championship was the 56th season of FIA Formula One motor racing. It began on 3 March and ended on 13 October after seventeen races. In the Drivers' Championship, Michael Schumacher finished first or second in every race except for the Malaysian Grand Prix, where he finished third, thus achieving a podium position in every race. He won a then-record 11 Grands Prix, surpassing the previous record of 9 wins, jointly held by himself (1995, 2000 and 2001) and Nigel Mansell (1992). He would also set the record for shortest time in which the World Drivers' Championship had been clinched, securing the title with a win at the French Grand Prix, with 6 races to go in the season. Schumacher took the Drivers' Championship by a then-record 67-point margin over teammate Rubens Barrichello, beating his own previous record for the 2001 season (58 points over David Coulthard) and also gained a new point total record with 144 points, again beating his own previous record of 123 points from the 2001 season. Schumacher and Barrichello helped Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro secure the Constructors' Championship with a points total that equalled the combined sum of points attained by all other constructors collectively. For the 2003 championship, the FIA would change the points system. Teams and drivers The following teams and drivers competed in the 2002 FIA Formula One World Championship. † All engines were 3.0 litre, V10 configuration. Team changes The Prost team was placed into receivership in November 2001, and was liquidated by the receivers in January 2002. This ended the long history of the team which had competed as Ligier from to and as Prost Grand Prix from the following year. The absence of Prost meant that the car numbers 18 and 19 were left unoccupied for the season. Phoenix Finance bought the remains of Prost Grand Prix and attempted to enter Formula One starting at the Malaysian Grand Prix with former Minardi drivers Gastón Mazzacane and Tarso Marques. However, their entry was rejected by the FIA for not purchasing all of the Prost team. They still attempted to race at Malaysia, but race officials prevented them from competing in the event, even with a court appeal. Japanese auto maker Toyota entered the championship as a full works team, after much development work in 2001. The Benetton team had been sold to Renault in 2000, and