reduce vs. for loop

[m2 at plusseven.com]

Just out curiosity, 
why is fact2 a bit faster than fact1?

def fact1(n):
    return reduce (operator.mul, range(1L,n + 1))

def fact2(n):
    result = n * 1L
    for i in range(1 , n):
        result *= i
    return result



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