Another Alternate Formula One History

[MansellsEyebrows]

Yet another alternate championship....however this one is totally fictional and fantasy based, though ofcourse will take alot of elements from real life as well as exploring a lot of 'what ifs?'. We will begin at the start of a new milleneum with the year 2000 and work our way up to the current day, however the 20th century may be explored afterwards.

So before we start, lets take a recap of the champions of the first 50 seasons of the Formula One Grand Prix World Championship:
Drivers Champions and Constructors Champions are listed, Bold indicates the WDC was in the WCC team:

1950: G Farina
1951: JM Fangio
1952: A Ascari
1953: A Ascari
1954: JM Fangio
1955: JM Fangio
1956: S Moss
1957: JM Fangio
1958: M Hawthorn, Vanwall
1959: J Brabham, Cooper
1960: B Mclaren, Cooper
1961: W Von Trips, Ferrari
1962: G Hill, Aston Martin
1963: J Clark, Lotus
1964: J Surtees, Ferrari
1965: J Clark, Lotus
1966: J Brabham, Brabham
1967: D Hulme, Brabham
1968: G Hill, Lotus
1969: J Stewart, Matra
1970: J Rindt, Lotus
1971: J Stewart, Tyrrell
1972: E Fittipaldi, Lotus
1973: J Stewart, Lotus
1974: E Fittipaldi, Mclaren
1975: N lauda, Ferrari
1976: J Hunt, Ferrari
1977: C Reutemann, Ferrari
1978: M Andretti, Lotus
1979: J Scheckter, Ferrari
1980: A Jones, Williams
1981: N Piquet, Williams
1982: K Rosberg, Ferrari
1983: G Villeneuve, Ferrari
1984: N Lauda, Mclaren
1985: A Prost, Mclaren
1986: N Mansell, Williams
1987: N Piquet, Williams
1988: A Senna, Mclaren
1989: A Prost, Mclaren
1990:A Senna, Mclaren
1991: A Senna, Mclaren
1992: N Mansell, Williams
1993: A Prost, Mclaren
1994: A Senna, Williams
1995: M Schumacher, Benetton
1996: D Hill, Williams
1997: J Villeneuve, Williams
1998: M Hakkinen, Mclaren
1999: M Hakkinen, Ferrari

[MansellsEyebrows]

January 1st, 2000
The 2000 Season schedule, originally released in October 1999, is officially confirmed, meaning the rumoured change to make Sepang the season finale will now not occur. With the release of the newly unified INDYCART Indy Car World Series calendar, the FIA and INDYCART have also confirmed that the two series will run on alternate weekends with the exception of those events that have both series at the same track on the same weekend as below, meaning it is possible for racing drivers to compete in both series. Hence, the F1GP 2000 season calendar is as follows:
1. Australian (Melbourne)
2. Argentine (Buenos Aires)
3. Brazilian (Sao Paulo)
4. South African (Kyalami)
5. Mediterranean (Imola)
6. British (Silverstone)
7. Spanish (Catalunya)
8. Monaco (Monte Carlo)
9. European (Nurburgring)
10. Canadian (Montreal)*
11. North American (Road America)*
12. French (Magny Cours)
13. German (Hockenheim)
14. Austrian (A1 Ring)
15. Belgian (Spa)
16. Italian (Monza)
17. United States (Long Beach)*
18. Mexican (Mexico City)*
19. Malaysian (Sepang)
20. Japanese (Suzuka)

*Denotes weekend is shared with the newly unified INDYCART Indy Car World Series.

January 2nd, 2000
Ever since the cooperation between F1GP and INDYCART for 2000 and beyond was announced rumours have been rife that Gil De Ferran will finally enter Formula One, possibly with either the Fittipaldi or Benetton team. Today, Emmerson Fittipaldi has confirmed that Gil De Ferran has signed a two year contract with the Brazilian outfit, confirming the speculation that has been going on for weeks. De Ferran has also announced he intends to compete in the INDYCART ICWS with Penske in 2000 as well, becoming the first driver to announce his particiaption in the two best open wheel racing series in the world. His team mate Jimmy Vasser has yet to confirm his plans regarding a return to INDYCART. This news along with the announcement that Nick Heidfeld would be alongside Jean Alesi in the Ligierprost team this season just a week ago means the latest entry list is as follows: (engine supplier in brackets)

West Mclaren Mercedes (Mercedes)
Mika Hakkinen
David Coulthard

Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro (Ferrari)
Michael Schumacher
Rubens Barrichello

B&H Jordan (Honda)
Heinz-Harald Frentzen
TBA

Jaguar Racing (Ford)
Eddie Irvine
Johnny Herbert

Williams BMW F1 Team (BMW)
Norberto Fontana
Jenson Button

Fittipaldi Motorsport (Renault)
Gil De Ferran
Jimmy Vasser

Team Brabham (Ford)
David Brabham
Ralf Schumacher

Mild Seven Benetton Renault
Giancarlo Fisichella
TBA

Gauloises Ligierprost Peugeot (Peugeot)
Jean Alesi
Nick Heidfeld

Red Bull Sauber Petronas (Ferrari)
Mika Salo
Jarno Trulli

Lucky Strike Tyrrell-Reynard Honda (Honda)
jacques Villeneuve
Ricardo Zonta

Team Arrows (Cosworth)
Pedro De la Rosa
Jos Verstappen

MTV Pacific-Simtek Racing (Cosworth)
TBA
TBA

Minardi Fondmetal (Fondmetal)
TBA
TBA

[MansellsEyebrows]

Latest headlines from GPgrapevine.com:

January 4th, 2000
Eddie Jordan has today announced that the second Jordan seat in 2000 will go to an 'extremely talented rookie from North America', ending speculation that Olivier Panis would get the second Jordan seat.

Meanwhile, rumours have stepped up a gear regarding reigning INDYCART champion Juan Pablo Montoya and the second Benetton seat, with the young Colombian supposedly being seen entering the Benetton team home in Enstone today. JPM has a full season contract for the Ganassi team in INDYCART this season, as well as an F1 contract for the Williams F1 team for 2001 and beyond. It is possible that Williams will lend him to Benetton for this season to gain experience, however several tests with Williams throughout the season have already been prepared and agreed to let the young star gain experience. It was rumoured that he would be with the Williams team this year, however team boos Frank Williams plumped for Jenson Button instead. Alex Wurz has also been lined up as a possible option for Benetton.

January 6th, 2000
Tora Takagi will get a 3rd season in F1 with a 3rd different team, as the Minardi Fondmetal team have announced their driver line up for 2000. Takagi will be number one driver alongside Argentine rookie Gaston Mazzacane, a regular midfield runner in the F2GP International Championship. Mazzacane will be the second Argentine F1 driver on the grid in 2000 along with star driver Norberto Fontana who took his first win in 1999 with the Williams team at Kyalami. There could yet be a third driver from the country with Esteban Tuero in contention for a seat in the Pacific-Simtek team if he can find the funding for the Japanese registered team. Other contenders for a place in the Pacific-Simtek team include Stephane Sarrizan, Luciano Burti, Alex Wurz and Enrique Bernoldi.

[MansellsEyebrows]

Latest Headlines from GPgrapevine.com:

January 10th, 2000
FIA President Max Mosley has stated that he now plans to see his new rules formula implemented for the 2002 season and beyond. This is after two failed attempts to bring it to Formula one for the 1998 and 2000 seasons before. The new rules formula would include the width of the car being reduced by 20cm and tyres having grooves fitted to them, 3 at the front and 4 at the rear, all in the pursuit of safety with these plans being made to produce less grip, thus lowering cornering speeds. The plans were originally announced in 1997; however the teams and tyre manufacturers rejected these rules, Jacques Villeneuve even calling them a ‘joke’. This came just months after the first Concorde agreement was signed, in which a clause was put that the teams had the power to reject a rule the FIA put forward if all the teams unanimously agreed. This resulted in the FIA not being able to implement the new rule set, and sure enough the same rules from 1997 were applied for 1998. After another failed attempt last year to create the same rules package, It is believed Mosley is to start a series of talks with the teams in order to persuade them, with a meeting scheduled at next months first pre season test at Imola. With the FIA presidency up for election next year, It is quite possible Mosley will try to change his ways as he tries to make peace and work with the teams this year in order to gain their and his organisations confidence, after years of dispute between himself and team principles, along with murmurings of FIA members being displeased with Mosley’s leadership.

January 11th, 2000
Following a week of as he put it ‘A load of bloody irritating pestering from journalists’ regarding the mystery ‘extremely talented North American rookie’ that will join the Jordan team for 2000, Eddie Jordan has come out and said his second driver will not be unveiled until the official F1 season launch in Milan, the day before next months first pre season test at Imola. This means that Jordan will be the last team to announce their full driver line up along with Pacific-Simtek, with Benetton expected to announce their second driver next week. EJ went on, ‘Hopefully now people can stop asking me about it, I know it’s exciting and everyone is going to love this new guy, but I hope me and my team can be left alone for a few weeks so we can concentrate on making the car better’.

[Vepe]

I think that the INDYCART Champ Car World Series should be called IndyCar World Series, because
A) the series was called IndyCar before the split
B) the Champ Car started in 2003
and C) it seems quite stupid to me to read INDYCART Champ Car World Series

But it seems interesting, keep it up

[James1978]

Don't really understand the list of champions at the start to be honest - how on earth do McLaren win the constructors' title in 1993? Who was driving for them instead of Michael Andretti? Was Andretti driving for Williams instead of Hill?

Also I doubt Gilles Villeneuve would have stayed at Ferrari in 1983 had he lived, given the events of Imola 1982....

[MansellsEyebrows]

Don't really understand the list of champions at the start to be honest - how on earth do McLaren win the constructors' title in 1993? Who was driving for them instead of Michael Andretti? Was Andretti driving for Williams instead of Hill?

Also I doubt Gilles Villeneuve would have stayed at Ferrari in 1983 had he lived, given the events of Imola 1982....

All fair points, but these all will be explained when/if we go back there, as I have already thought some eventualities through . (remember some of this is complete fantasy/wishful thinking)

Just a couple of hinters though:
-Andretti certainly didn't race for Williams in 1993
-Maybe Gilles wasn't the one to leave Ferrari at the end of '82

I think that the INDYCART Champ Car World Series should be called IndyCar World Series, because
A) the series was called IndyCar before the split
B) the Champ Car started in 2003
and C) it seems quite stupid to me to read INDYCART Champ Car World Series

But it seems interesting, keep it up

You are completely right and to be fair I'll change it because I'm nice, however the reasoning behind it was because Champ Car just sounded cool to me

[MansellsEyebrows]

January 14th, 2000
GPgrapevine.com has learnt that the 2000 season launch show will start at 14:00 GMT+1 in Milan on February 10th, With all the cars and drivers being officially presented and shown off, before the Pre Season dinner and Party in the late afternoon and evening respectively.

January 17th, 2000
The Benetton second seat speculation frenzy has finally come to an end, with the announcement that Alexander Wurz will drive alongside Fisichella in 14 of this year’s twenty championship races. However, in a strange twist, he will not race in any of the North American rounds or the last two races of the season at Sepang and Suzuka. Here, the Colombian super star Juan Pablo Montoya will race. In the North American rounds, Montoya will compete in two races per weekend as he also races in the Champ Car World Series for Ganassi. The Williams team have said that the six race deal ‘ensures Juan Pablo gets enough preparation for the 2001 season in which he will drive for Williams BMW F1 Team, without directly affecting Williams’ championship chances in the year 2000 in a major way’. Furthermore, Jenson Button will drive for the Benetton team in 2001 as part of the deal but will have the contractual option to return to Williams in the future when the opportunity arises, if he performs to Williams’ standards in the 2000 season.

[MansellsEyebrows]

January 21st, 2000
F1 great Ayrton Senna has hit out at Max Mosley's plans for grooved tyres and slimmer cars saying 'They will make it easier for the slowest drivers, and reduce the ability to overtake as they will be very twitchy. Luckily the teams wont agree to him ruining F1 like that'. Senna has been linked as a candidate for next years FIA presidential elections, whilst notable others include Jackie Stewart (despite currently being set to leave Jaguar F1), Carlos Reutemann (now a politician in his native Argentina), Bobby Rahal and Ligierprost team principle Alain Prost.

January 26th, 2000
David Richards is reportedly lining up an attempted purchase of the Tyrrell-Reynard team if the season does not go to plan for the British American Tobacco owned outfit. Rumours of a higher investment in the team from Honda in the future have also been muted, just a year after Honda shelved its own F1 factory team effort.

[BlindCaveSalamander]

How in the world did Aston Martin pick up a Constructors' title in 1962? Also, I find the lack of more Jim Clark titles disappointing, but that's more of a personal point than anything else.

[MansellsEyebrows]

How in the world did Aston Martin pick up a Constructors' title in 1962? Also, I find the lack of more Jim Clark titles disappointing, but that's more of a personal point than anything else.

Well you must remember Clark was competing in a fantasticly competitive era, whilst that Aston project that was cancelled in reality in 1958 wasn't in this universe and was continued until 1969.

[MansellsEyebrows]

January 31st, 2000
Jaguar has today announced sponsorship from major beer company Braurie Beck and Co, Better known as Beck’s. In addition, DHL has been named as another associate sponsor as Jaguar get set for their ‘debut’ year, with many in the paddock expecting big things from the team, especially after the very successful 1999 in the team’s former guise, Stewart.

February 3rd, 2000
Arrows have announced sponsorship from major telecommunications company Orange for the 2000 season and beyond. Having struggled with finances in recent years, this is major news for Arrows who can now look forward to having a bigger chance of developing their car, as the money the team are set to receive from their new associates is rumoured to be very large. Hence a livery change is in order, with the bright orange and black of Orange likely adorning this year’s car.

[MansellsEyebrows]

February 7th, 2000
DaimlerChrysler have announced that they have bought 40% of the Mclaren Racing team. Ron Dennis remains in control of the organisation, himself having 30% of the shares whilst the TAG group keeps its 30% shareholding.


February 10th, 2000
In a mesmerising display of light, dry ice, glamour and all the usual F1 clichés, The F1 season launch in Milan got us all ready for the 2000 season. After the usual ceremonial dancing and music, the teams took it by turn to officially launch their new cars. Though many teams had already held private tests for their latest machines, this was the first time the press and public got to see the cars on display. First up was the Pacific-Simtek, launching its PSR00. Once again MTV are the title sponsors with backing from Sony, with their logos prominent on the purple liveried car. Once team principle Nick Wirth had finished presenting the car with his colleagues, he then turned his attentions to his drivers, who he had yet to name. Without further ado, he turned his attention to the back of the stage, as out stepped Shinji Nakano and Esteban Tuero, the team’s two drivers for the new season. Marc Gene was also present as he was announced as the team’s reserve driver. Next up were Minardi Fondmetal, as their drivers Toranosuke Takagi and Gaston Mazzacane revealed the Minardi M02, complete with bright yellow livery thanks to new sponsor Telefonica. The highly anticipated Arrows A21 was up next, with everyone eagerly awaiting the new livery thanks to Orange. They weren’t disappointed as the new car came into view out of the dry ice, complete with a vibrant orange and black colour scheme. Tyrrell-Reynard, Sauber, Ligierprost and Benetton all followed, with highlights including the all new and far simpler Tyrrell-Reynard silvery white livery for 2000 and Juan Pablo Montoya appearing alongside Alex Wurz and Giancarlo Fisichella at the Benetton launch. Brabham were next up complete with their by now customary all gold livery, with the car featuring a very low nosecone design compared to many other ‘higher’ designs. It was in the Brabham launch that David Brabham confirmed what we had all been expecting; that he would retire from Formula 1 at the end of the 2001 season, seeing out his final two years at Brabham after having spent the last 2 seasons in the team named after his father. The all-black car of Fittipaldi was next up, with De Ferran and Vasser revealing the FR2200. Big news here was that like De Ferran with Penske, Vasser would return to America to compete in Indy Car for the first time since his title season in 1996, returning to the Ganassi team. Both said they would put Formula One first, even though some quarters have questioned how competitive a driver can be when being committed to two major series. Only time will tell with that issue. The Williams FW22 was next to be launched, with Jenson Button, Norberto Fontana and Mario Theissen lifting the cover of the first BMW powered F1 car since 1986. BMW’s return season has been discussed hotly over the past year as a thing to watch in 2000. The Jaguar team then proceeded to show off the shiny British Racing Green of their Jaguar R1, a car expected to take Jaguar close to the Williamses and Jordans of this world at least. However, it was also confirmed that Jackie Stewart (who was in the audience) would indeed be stepping down from the operation, with no specific reason being given. It was then time for the hotly anticipated Jordan. After the new car had been presented, Eddie Jordan welcomed Heinz-Harald Frentzen to the stage, before turning his attentions to his new second driver. After a brief speech, EJ proclaimed that his new driver would be the Mexican Adrian Fernandez, who then proceeded to join EJ and HHF on stage. A lot of applause was received by Fernandez, who also announced a full time Indy Car program with the Patrick team once again. Fernandez is already 34 and is one of the oldest F1 rookies in a while, however his success in Indy Car, with includes winning the 1998 championship, is proof of his ability. Whether he can translate that ability to F1 though, time will tell. The penultimate presentation was from Ferrari, with their Ferrari F1-2000. Journalists have called this car ‘The machine that can finally take Schumacher to his second World Championship’. We must wait and see if this is the case. As only Ferrari could do, their presentation was one of the longest, as Jean Todt, Ross Brawn, Michael Schumacher, Luca Di Montezemolo and New signing Rubens Barrichello all took turns of have their say on their expectations of the 2000 season. Rubens looked particularly excited, as it would seem he finally has a car that can challenge for the World Championship. And so finally on to Mclaren, as they launched their MP4/15. This is the car in which Mika Hakkinen will challenge for his third straight championship, but with early speculation that Ferrari are looking formidable, it could be very tough for Mika to achieve this. Ron Dennis reiterated the team’s intentions to grab the Constructors championship back from Ferrari, as the fight between all four Mclaren and Ferrari drivers look to be red hot this season. Following the presentations the after show dinner and party began, as everybody gets set for what promises to be a fantastic first season of the new millennium.

GPgrapevine.com’s official season preview will be released soon.

[MansellsEyebrows]

February 12th, 2000
Season Preview:
1999 threw up one of the most competitive and exciting seasons in years. 5 constructors saw their cars on the top step of the podium at least once throughout the season (Ferrari, Mclaren, Jordan, Stewart and Williams). This was despite Schumacher’s horrendous leg breaking accident at Silverstone which took him out of the title race, yet it still came down to a 4 way championship fight between Hakkinen, Irvine, Coulthard and Frentzen.
The first season of the new millennium promises to be just as good, with the many changes in team line ups creating much anticipation and unpredictability. One place with such change is at constructor world champions Ferrari, as Rubens Barrichello joins the team as second driver alongside Michael Schumacher, with Eddie Irvine now at the Jaguar team. After narrowly missing out on the 1999 Drivers championship, Ferrari are more prepared than ever as they attempt to complete the double and get Schumacher his second world crown. Barrichello will also fancy his chances, if Ferrari will let him.
World Champion Mika Hakkinen is going for his third straight championship, as he hopes his new Mclaren can propel him to glory again. David Coulthard is confident going into this season despite his disastrous last 3 races of 1999. The battle between Ferrari and Mclaren will be intriguing, as no one really knows who has the best car. These two will certainly be in the title fight, but there are plenty of teams hoping to step up and take it to the current top two.
Williams are one of those teams, as they start 2000 with all new BMW engines and backing. Suggestions are already rife that the BMW engine will be amongst the most powerful of engines on the grid this year. The driver line up is also changed, as young hotshot Jenson Button takes the place of the departed Alex Zanardi who returns to Indy Car after an awful 1999. Norberto Fontana remains after having a very strong season last year, including a win at Kyalami. Williams will be trying to fight for wins this year and some team members have proclaimed aims of being world champions, but how optimistic this is, is yet to be seen.
Last year, Stewart Grand Prix took their first win at the Nurburgring with Johnny Herbert. This year the team has a new guise after being bought out by Ford, being renamed and reliveried as Jaguar Racing. Herbert has been joined by 1999 Championship runner up Eddie Irvine. Jackie Stewart has recently left the team, but that doesn’t stop the team’s aims of race victories in 2000. Rumour has it that it could be a few races before Jaguar are able to do that with tweaks needing to be made to their new car to make it victory worthy, yet the team remain confident for the season ahead. Similar expectations for this season can be found at Jordan, third place finishers in both championships last year thanks to Heinz-Harald Frentzen, who won 3 times during 1999. Frentzen is joined this year by the 34 year old Mexican Adrian Fernandez, who has high hopes of podium places in his debut season. He replaces Damon Hill, who retired at the end of 1999.
The Brazilian Fittipaldi team were inconsistent in 1999 with a car that was fast on twisty circuits but lacked overall power with Cosworth engines resulting in struggles at circuits like Monza and Spa. This year they hope for more consistency, as Jimmy Vasser is joined by Gil De Ferran on the driving front with new Renault engines. Brabham are unchanged this year, once again with David Brabham and Ralf Schumacher on the driving front, and using the same Ford engines as the Jaguar team. The Brabham Vs Fittipaldi rivalry that grew through the season became a hot topic last year as the battled to be the best of the rest behind the top 5, and this year it looks like they will reignite this rivalry, however Schumacher and Vasser will be hoping to not clash this year like happened on several occasions in 1999. Attempting to join them in this position will be the Tyrrell-Reynard team, who after a dire 1999 will hope for better things this year, with new Honda engines and a new, more discreet livery. The new incarnation of Tyrrell with British American Tobacco ownership and cars designed by Reynard did not get off to a good start despite a lot of promises for 1999, and this year the team are more modest about their expectations.
Benetton have announced intentions to at least step up to challenge the likes of Jordan and Williams this year after a disappointing 1999. Giancarlo Fisichella and Alexander Wurz return on the drivers front, except in the North American and final two rounds where the much publicized Juan Pablo Montoya will drive for the team in Wurz’s place as he prepares for his full debut season next year with Williams, in a deal between the two teams that will see Jenson Button drive for Benetton in 2001. Ligierprost suffered from a lot of unreliability last year despite flashes of speed, and the French outfit run by Alain Prost are hoping for better luck this year, with Peugeot putting in a lot of work over the winter to make their engines better built. Jean Alesi joins the team from Sauber alongside reigning F3000 champion Nick Heidfeld, a very highly rated driver amongst experts.
With new backing from Orange and a new livery as a result, Arrows are expecting big things this year. Jos Verstappen joins Pedro De La Rosa in the driver line up, a partnership Tom Walkinshaw has much faith in. The team have also switched from their own engines to Cosworth units, a decision which will no doubt be scrutinized throughout the course of the year. Also using Cosworths are Pacific-Simtek, who have Esteban Tuero and Shinji Nakano as drivers this year. In 1999 the team struggled financially after a successful 1998, and a similarly tight budget is expected again. The result could be that the best chance to grab points being early in the season as the team are expected to lose out in the development race as they search for new associate sponsors alongside long-time title sponsor MTV. The smallest team on the grid though are Minardi, who have scored a coup this year with the capture of sponsorship from Telefonica. Drivers are Tora Takagi arriving from Arrows and Argentine rookie Gaston Mazzacane, who brings money to the team. The M02 will once again be powered by Fondmetal engines thanks to Gabriele Rumi’s partial ownership of the team. They will face the toughest job this year the team seem the most likely to spend the year at the back, though undoubtedly matching Pacific-Simtek will be their aim during the season.
And so the 14 teams and 28 drivers are ready for 2000. The World Championship will once again span 20 races on 6 continents in 17 countries, as the highly anticipated first season of the new millennium is about to get underway.

[MansellsEyebrows]

Final Entry list:

West Mclaren Mercedes (Mercedes) (GBR)
1. Mika Hakkinen (FIN)
2. David Coulthard (GBR)

Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro (Ferrari) (ITA)
3. Michael Schumacher (GER)
4. Rubens Barrichello (BRA)

B&H Jordan (Honda) (IRE)
5. Heinz-Harald Frentzen (GER)
6. Adrian Fernandez (MEX)

Jaguar Racing (Ford) (GBR)
7. Eddie Irvine (GBR)
8. Johnny Herbert (GBR)

Williams BMW F1 Team (BMW) (GBR)
9. Norberto Fontana (ARG)
10. Jenson Button (GBR)

Fittipaldi Motorsport (Renault) (BRA)
11. Gil De Ferran (BRA)
12. Jimmy Vasser (USA)

Team Brabham (Ford) (AUS)
14. David Brabham (AUS)
15. Ralf Schumacher (GER)

Mild Seven Benetton Renault (Renault) (GBR)
16. Giancarlo Fisichella (ITA)
17. Alexander Wurz (AUT)

Gauloises Ligierprost Peugeot (Peugeot) (FRA)
18. Jean Alesi (FRA)
19. Nick Heidfeld (GER)

Red Bull Sauber Petronas (Ferrari) (SWZ)
20. Mika Salo (FIN)
21. Jarno Trulli (ITA)

Lucky Strike Tyrrell-Reynard Honda (Honda) (GBR)
22. Jacques Villeneuve (CAN)
23. Ricardo Zonta (BRA)

Orange Arrows (Cosworth) (GBR)
24. Pedro De la Rosa (ESP)
25. Jos Verstappen (NED)

MTV Pacific-Simtek Racing (Cosworth) (JAP)
26. Esteban Tuero (ARG)
27. Shinji Nakano (JAP)

Minardi Fondmetal (Fondmetal) (ITA)
28. Toranosuke Takagi (JAP)
29. Gaston Mazzacane (ARG)

[MansellsEyebrows]

Firstly apologies for not posting this much earlier, it's been a busy week but the season opener is (belatedly) here:

Round 1-Melbourne, Australia

Qualifying:
1. Mika Hakkinen (Mclaren Mercedes)
2. David Coulthard (Mclaren Mercedes)
3. Michael Schumacher (Scuderia Ferrari)
4. Rubens Barrichello (Scuderia Ferrari)
5. Heinz-Harald Frentzen (Jordan Honda)
6. Eddie Irvine (Jaguar Ford)
7. Norberto Fontana (Williams BMW)
8. Jacques Villeneuve (Tyrrell-Reynard Honda)
9. Giancarlo Fisichella (Benetton Renault)
10. Mika Salo (Sauber Ferrari)
11. Adrian Fernandez (Jordan Honda)
12. Pedro De La Rosa (Arrows Cosworth)
13. Gil De Ferran (Fittipaldi Renault)
14. Jimmy Vasser (Fittipaldi Renault)
15. Jarno Trulli (Sauber Ferrari)
16. Ralf Schumacher (Brabham Ford)
17. Jenson Button (Williams BMW)
18. Jos Verstappen (Arrows Cosworth)
19. Nick Heidfeld (Ligierprost Peugeot)
20. Ricardo Zonta (Tyrrell-Reynard Honda)
21. Jean Alesi (Ligierprost Peugeot)
22. David Brabham (Brabham Ford)
23. Toranosuke Takagi (Minardi Fondmetal)
24. Alexander Wurz (Benetton Renault)
25. Esteban Tuero (Pacific-Simtek Cosworth)
26. Johnny Herbert (Jaguar Ford)
27. Shinji Nakano (Pacific-Simtek Cosworth)
28. Gaston Mazzacane (Minardi Fondmetal)

Report: The Mclarens dominated the first qualifying session of the year, locking out the front row, Hakkinen 3 tenths ahead of Coulthard, who was in turn 2 tenths ahead of Schumacher. Wurz had handling issues that left him 24th, Herbert had limited running due to a gearbox issue, Trulli spun at the penultimate turn on a lap that would have seen him comfortably within the top ten, And Barrichello beat Frentzen to fourth by four hundredths of a second.


Race:
1. Michael Schumacher (Scuderia Ferrari) 58 Laps
2. Norberto Fontana (Williams BMW) +11.675
3. Heinz-Harald Frentzen (Jordan Honda) +12.544
4. Jacques Villeneuve (Tyrrell-Reynard Honda) +14.447
5. Giancarlo Fisichella (Benetton Renault) +16.213
6. Ricardo Zonta (Tyrrell-Reynard Honda) +16.578
7. Gil De Ferran (Fittipaldi Renault) +18.915
8. Adrian Fernandez (Jordan Honda) +20.243
9. Mika Salo (Sauber Ferrari) +21.455
10. Pedro De La Rosa (Arrows Cosworth) +22.988
11. Eddie Irvine (Jaguar Ford) +24.101
12. Jimmy Vasser (Fittipaldi Renault) +27.721
13. Ralf Schumacher (Brabham Ford) +29.012
14. Esteban Tuero (Pacific-Simtek Cosworth) +1 Lap
15. Toranosuke Takagi (Minardi Fondmetal) +1 Lap
16. Jos Verstappen (Arrows Cosworth) + 2 Laps
DNF Jenson Button (Williams BMW) (Engine) (46 Laps)
DNF Jarno Trulli (Sauber Ferrari) (Transmission) (41 Laps)
DNF Nick Heidfeld (Ligierprost Peugeot) (Engine) (41 Laps)
DNF Gaston Mazzacane (Minardi Fondmetal) (Gearbox) (40 laps)
DNF Shinji Nakano (Pacific-Simtek Cosworth) (Spun Off) (32 Laps)
DNF Rubens Barrichello (Scuderia Ferrari) (Hydraulics) (25 Laps)
DNF Mika Hakkinen (Mclaren Mercedes) (Engine) (18 Laps)
DNF Jean Alesi (Ligierprost Peugeot) (Collision) (14 Laps)
DNF David Brabham (Brabham Ford) (Collision) (14 Laps)
DNF David Coulthard (Mclaren Mercedes) (Engine) (11 Laps)
DNF Alexander Wurz (Benetton Renault) (Collision) (2 Laps)
DNF Johnny Herbert (Jaguar Ford) (Clutch) (1 Lap)

Report: Hakkinen lead away from the lights comfortably into turn one, whilst the field remained clean. The big mover on the first lap was David Brabham, jumping from 22nd on the grid to 17th. Mazzacane managed to run wide at turn 14, whilst Herbert’s clutch went at the same time. Wurz then found himself hit up the rear at turn three by the over ambitious Takagi, but whilst Wurz’s race was over the Japanese driver could continue after a nose change. Michael Schumacher then grabbed second from Coulthard in a brilliant move into turn 13 on lap 5, but just six laps later the Scot would be in the pits with engine problems. Unfortunately for him his race was over, elevating Frentzen into third who had jumped Barrichello at the start.

Meanwhile Irvine was struggling and was subsequently overtaken by Fontana. David Brabham then went for an overtake on Alesi into turn 9, but the Frenchman closed the door too hard and they touched wheel to sidepod. Brabham’s suspension and Alesi’s radiators were both damaged, and they were both out. By this time a fascinating battle between Button, Vasser and De La Rosa was ensuing before it was interrupted by the latter suffering a full 360 spin. Then, the race turned on its head: race leader Mika Hakkinen saw victory go up in smoke as his Mercedes engine failed on lap 18.

At the same time, Schumacher slid wide as he took the lead losing vital time and putting Frentzen right on his tail, and then the Jordan driver managed to leap frog his compatriot into the lead after the first pit stops. Barrichello then had a heart break moment as his car slowed to a halt thanks to mechanical gremlins, which later would be confirmed to be down to hydraulics. Zonta had made his way up into 5th before the first round of pit stops, and he was left 3rd behind Frentzen and Schumacher afterwards but yet to stop. Once he had pitted he came out just behind team mate Villeneuve, meanwhile Schumacher was pressurizing Frentzen. Fontana was closing on the pair of them.

Shinji Nakano then spun off into the gravel at turn 12 and out of the race on lap 32. The safety car was deployed halting the good racing that was going on. Fisichella had pitted the lap before and now led, being the only one not to pit under the safety car. The restart saw Frentzen get away well in second but Schumacher had the pace, and after 3 laps the Ferrari driver was past. Just a lap later, Fontana was past too. Soon after Mazzacane, Heidfeld and Trulli would all be out in quick succession, thanks to Gearbox, Engine and Transmission failures respectively.

A few laps later Button’s engine would also go and take him out of 7th position. By this time Schumacher had caught Fisichella, and at turn 3 on lap 48 he sold a dummy on the inside, Fisichella went to block him off and Schumacher switched and stuck to the outside. The German magnificently got out of the corner first and took the lead. Just half a lap later, Fisichella would throw away second with a spin letting Frentzen, Fontana and Villeneuve all past. Schumacher’s last 10 laps would be ferocious, as he pulled away at a pace of 1 second a lap.

Fontana would pressurize Frentzen in these last few laps, and 2 from the end he would finally slip past. Zonta was charging and had got past De Ferran before challenging Fisichella. Schumacher won followed by Fontana, Frentzen, Villeneuve and Fisichella holding off Zonta for 5th. Schumacher hailed his team’s efforts over the winter to produce a ‘brilliant’ car, Whilst the Mclaren drivers were left dejected with the German getting the jump on them at the first race of the season. A fabulous race is over, and now it’s on to round 2 in Argentina.

[Ferrim]

Splitting your text in several paragraphs would make it easier to read.

[MansellsEyebrows]

Splitting your text in several paragraphs would make it easier to read.

Fixed.

[MansellsEyebrows]

Championship Standings after Round 1:

Drivers
1. Michael Schumacher 10 points
2. Norberto Fontana 6 points
3. Heinz-Harald Frentzen 4 points
4. Jacques Villeneuve 3 points
5. Giancarlo Fisichella 2 points
6. Ricardo Zonta 1 point

Constructors
1. Scuderia Ferrari 10 points
2. Williams BMW 6 points
3. Jordan Honda 4 points
4. Tyrrell-Reynard Honda 4 points
5. Benetton Renault 2 points

[MansellsEyebrows]

March 13th, 2000
Jacques Villeneuve has warned the British American Tobacco owned Tyrrell-Reynard team that he will not drive for them beyond 2001 if next year’s car isn’t competitive, despite only being 1 race into the 2000 season, complete with a 4th in Melbourne. There have been rumours linking Villeneuve to Benetton in the past, but a bigger concern in the Tyrrell-Reynard camp remains if the team will be called exactly that, with speculation that David Richards could be a major part of the team.

March 14th, 2000
Arrows have confirmed young Australian hot shot mark Webber will be Arrow’s test driver for the remainder of the season, as he will also compete in F2GP with the Arrows junior team. Webber is famed for his massive flip in a Mercedes sports car at Le Mans last year, but is considered a quality driver and has already been tipped as a possible F2GP champion this year along with other favourites Fernando Alonso, Justin Wilson and Bruno Junqueira.

[MansellsEyebrows]

Round 2-Buenos Aires, Argentina

Qualifying:
1. Norberto Fontana (Williams BMW)
2. Eddie Irvine (Jaguar Ford)
3. Gil De Ferran (Fittipaldi Renault)
4. Rubens Barrichello (Scuderia Ferrari)
5. David Brabham (Brabham Ford)
6. Johnny Herbert (Jaguar Ford)
7. Adrian Fernandez (Jordan Honda)
8. Michael Schumacher (Scuderia Ferrari)
9. Jacques Villeneuve (Tyrrell-Reynard Honda)
10. Ricardo Zonta (Tyrrell-Reynard Honda)
11. Esteban Tuero (Pacific-Simtek Cosworth)
12. Shinji Nakano (Pacific-Simtek Cosworth)
13. Ralf Schumacher (Brabham Ford)
14. David Coulthard (Mclaren Mercedes)
15. Mika Salo (Sauber Ferrari)
16. Jenson Button (Williams BMW)
17. Jean Alesi (Ligierprost Peugeot)
18. Alexander Wurz (Benetton Renault)
19. Giancarlo Fisichella (Benetton Renault)
20. Nick Heidfeld (Ligierprost Peugeot)
21. Toranosuke Takagi (Minardi Fondmetal)
22. Jarno Trulli (Sauber Ferrari)
23. Jos Verstappen (Arrows Cosworth)
24. Pedro De La Rosa (Arrows Cosworth)
25. Mika Hakkinen (Mclaren Mercedes)
26. Jimmy Vasser (Fittipaldi Renault)
27. Heinz-Harald Frentzen (Jordan Honda)
28. Gaston Mazzacane (Minardi Fondmetal)

Report: Heavy cloud and a damp track greeted the drivers at the start of the qualifying session at the Autodromo Juan y Oscar Galvez, thanks to rain all through the morning. Only a few drivers decided to take to the track at the start due to the conditions, namely Fontana, Irvine, De Ferran, Tuero, Nakano, Brabham, Herbert and Villeneuve. Despite the cloud there was no rain forecast and so most stayed in expecting it to dry, except the aforementioned who all set just a few laps each, except Villeneuve who struggled around to 1 full lap before returning to the pits.

After half an hour, Fontana was fastest followed by Irvine, De Ferran, Brabham, Herbert, Villeneuve, Tuero and Nakano. By this time there was light rain, and people had begun to realise a relent in the rain was not going to come any time soon, and hence almost everybody decided to take to the track within a minute. Trouble was, as soon as they had done this, the rain started to get harder and soon enough it was a full blown downpour.

The result was no one being able to set a competitive lap, whilst Mazzacane, Frentzen, Vasser and Hakkinen all found themselves in the gravel on their out laps. The rules prevented them from being put back on the track again, and so they would sit out the rest of the session. Removing these cars to the edges of the run off areas as well as the rain caused the session to be red flagged. Only 8 drivers had set a proper lap time, and this was the way it stayed until the rain died down.

By the end of the session, the track was still quite wet but there was no rain, and so everyone was on track trying to get some good laps in. The track was slightly wetter than at the session start, but most just wanted to get themselves a good grid position. The stars of the last five minutes were the Ferraris, Barrichello and Schumacher claiming 4th and 8th respectively. Fernandez did well to grab seventh and the only other driver to beat a time set by the first 8 was Zonta, qualifying 10th. Coulthard struggled as did the Benetton’s, and so Fontana had claimed only his third career pole, in none other than his home country. The massive crowd went wild with the news, as they got set for a fabulous but likely wet again Argentine Grand Prix.

Race:
1. Michael Schumacher (Scuderia Ferrari) 72 Laps
2. Gil De Ferran (Fittipaldi Renault) +22.435
3. Adrian Fernandez (Jordan Honda) +29.768
4. Jenson Button (Williams BMW) +32.127
5. Norberto Fontana (Williams BMW) +41.542
6. Rubens Barrichello (Scuderia Ferrari) +42.213
7. Jean Alesi (Ligierprost Peugeot) +49.130
8. Jimmy Vasser (Fittipaldi Renault) +51.269
9. Alexander Wurz (Benetton Renault) +56.004
10. Jarno Trulli (Sauber Ferrari) +58.379
11. Nick Heidfeld (Ligierprost Peugeot) +60.924
12. Johnny Herbert (Jaguar Ford) +1 Lap
DNF Esteban Tuero (Pacific-Simtek Cosworth) (Spun Off) (65 Laps)
DNF Eddie Irvine (Jaguar Ford) (Spun Off) (53 Laps)
DNF Jacques Villeneuve (Tyrrell-Reynard Honda) (Spun Off) (42 Laps)
DNF Shinji Nakano (Pacific-Simtek Cosworth) (Spun Off) (40 Laps)
DNF Ralf Schumacher (Brabham Ford) (Engine) (34 Laps)
DNF David Brabham (Brabham Ford) (Spun Off) (27 Laps)
DNF Mika Hakkinen (Mclaren Mercedes) (Clutch) (25 Laps)
DNF Mika Salo (Sauber Ferrari) (Spun Off) (21 Laps)
DNF Ricardo Zonta (Tyrrell-Reynard Honda) (Spun Off) (20 Laps)
DNF Heinz-Harald Frentzen (Jordan Honda) (Spun Off) (8 Laps)
DNF Gaston Mazzacane (Minardi Fondmetal) (Spun Off) (7 Laps)
DNF David Coulthard (Mclaren Mercedes) (Spun Off) (7 Laps)
DNF Giancarlo Fisichella (Benetton Renault) (Collision) (0 Laps)
DNF Jos Verstappen (Arrows Cosworth) (Collision) (0 Laps)
DNF Pedro De La Rosa (Arrows Cosworth) (Collision) (0 Laps)
DNF Toranosuke Takagi (Minardi Fondmetal) (Collision) (0 Laps)

Report: Somehow, it had remained dry until the start of the 2000 Argentine Grand Prix. The massive and loud crowd eagerly awaited the start, for their new hero Norberto Fontana had taken pole. He indeed got a great start to easily lead into turn one, But this was academic as Irvine got a poor start dropping to sixth. Meanwhile Barrichello forced his way into second as the front of the pack were clean at turn 1. However, towards the back all hell broke loose when Takagi missed his braking point after a slow getaway and collected the back of Verstappen, who in turn was spun left into his own team mate, who himself spun and left no where for Fisichella to go who mounted the back of the Arrows. Hakkinen, Vasser and Mazzacane all went into the gravel after trying to avoid the incident but were able to continue.

The safety car duly came out as the top 10 order was Fontana, Barrichello, De Ferran, Herbert, Brabham, Schumacher, Fernandez, Irvine, Zonta, and Tuero. Villeneuve had found himself at the back of the pack after a spin at turn 7. Everyone remained on dries as this appeared like the correct thing to do, but just a lap after the restart the rain started to come down hard. The first major casualty of the race came within the next lap, as David Coulthard slid off and out of the race at turn 11. Just seconds later, Mazzacane slid sideways into retirement at the same point, as countless others aquaplaned on from the same corner through the gravel.

The drivers were sliding and spinning left right and centre, and Frentzen found himself wide at turn 10, sliding into the barrier and out. To remove the stricken Mclaren, Minardi and Jordan the safety car came out yet again. During the chaos Schumacher had fought his way past Brabham and Herbert and found himself in 4th. Mika Hakkinen meanwhile was already 14th from 25th on the grid. After the restart, Schumacher the ‘rain master’ did his work, Taking De Ferran and his own team mate in quick succession as the rain relinquished.

Just a few laps later, he was in the lead much to the disappointment of the Argentine fans, after diving down the inside at turn 14. He would not let the lead slip for the rest of the race as he brilliantly drove away in the wet conditions. As this had been happening the Pacific-Simteks had fallen down the order, while Button had fought his way into the top 10. Zonta, who had already had a spin at the restart after the second safety car, Spun off at turn 1. Salo then ended his race after spinning into the gravel at turn 9. Clearly, the conditions were challenging for everyone except the Ferrari drivers, as Barrichello soon followed his team mate through past Fontana. Hakkinen, who was storming through the field soon found himself in anger after a clutch failure on his Mclaren. Brabham, who had taken Hakkinen’s 9th place after the Finn’s clutch failure following a spin 3 laps earlier dropping him down the order, spun again and out of the race on lap 27. His team mate Ralf Schumacher would be out 7 laps later with Engine failure.

At the half way point it was Michael Schumacher leading from Barrichello, Fontana, De Ferran, Herbert, Fernandez, Irvine, Button, Vasser, and Alesi in the top 10. The second round of pit stops, (the first being as it started to rain) came about as people started to change from wets to intermediates, and much to the disappointment of the home crowd, Fontana had a major delay in the pit stop thanks to a problem with the air gun on his front right wheel. It left him in 6th position, and a full 360 degree spin on his out lap did not help his cause, as his chances for a second successive podium finish looked slim.

Both Jaguars’ then found themselves half spinning at the same point, but both were able to continue after a large delay. Barrichello was now starting to close on Schumacher, but found himself in major problems when Villeneuve, who was being lapped, spun right in front of the Brazilian’s eyes at turn 1. Barrichello swerved left to avoid him, but Villeneuve continued backwards into the gravel, forcing the Ferrari driver to take a long, cross country trip to successfully avoid hitting the Tyrrell-Reynard and then return to the track. This lost him time and a place to the brilliantly composed Gil De Ferran, and soon after he came into the pits for the third time with damage to the bottom of his car. This lost him more time and his chances of second position.

And so remarkably Jenson Button found himself in third position in his second ever F1 race, with Fernandez, who the young Brit had leap frogged in the pit stops, in close company. Not bad considering he’d started 16th. Eddie Irvine became yet another casualty of the conditions on lap 53, and this left Trulli in the top ten. Barrichello fought his way back past Vasser and Alesi and was now following Fontana in 5th, who himself had done a similar thing on the aforementioned two.

Soon after Fernandez grabbed 3rd from Button, who was stunned to see himself overtaken by the Mexican and ran wide, letting any chance of himself being able to fight back slip away. Tuero was the last retirement of the race on lap 65, spinning off in front of his home fans at turn 3. Schumacher cruised to the end, followed by De Ferran, Fernandez, Button, Fontana and Barrichello. Alesi, Vasser, Trulli and Wurz rounded out the top 10, with the only other runners being Heidfeld and Herbert. The Austrian got past Trulli with two laps to go, by which time the track was nearly dry after having not rained since a brief light shower on lap 55. This was the way an enthralling, chaotic, incident filled race finished, with Schumacher taking another 10 points and the Mclarens again failing to score. The silver cars are going to have to fight back in Brazil.

Championship Standings after Round 2:

Drivers
1. Michael Schumacher 20 points
2. Norberto Fontana 8 points
3. Gil De Ferran 6 points
4. Adrian Fernandez 4 points
5. Heinz-Harald Frentzen 4 points
6. Jenson Button 3 points
7. Jacques Villeneuve 3 points
8. Giancarlo Fisichella 2 points
9. Ricardo Zonta 1 point
10. Rubens Barrichello 1 point

Constructors
1. Scuderia Ferrari 21 points
2. Williams BMW 11 points
3. Jordan Honda 8 points
4. Fittipaldi Renault 6 points
5. Tyrrell-Reynard Honda 4 points
6. Benetton Renault 2 points

[MansellsEyebrows]

Round 3-Sao Paulo, Brazil

Qualifying:
1. David Coulthard (Mclaren Mercedes)
2. Mika Hakkinen (Mclaren Mercedes)
3. Michael Schumacher (Scuderia Ferrari)
4. Rubens Barrichello (Scuderia Ferrari)
5. Eddie Irvine (Jaguar Ford)
6. Gil De Ferran (Fittipaldi Renault)
7. Giancarlo Fisichella (Benetton Renault)
8. Heinz-Harald Frentzen (Jordan Honda)
9. Norberto Fontana (Williams BMW)
10. Jenson Button (Williams BMW)
11. Jacques Villeneuve (Tyrrell-Reynard Honda)
12. Alexander Wurz (Benetton Renault)
13. Ricardo Zonta (Tyrrell-Reynard Honda)
14. Adrian Fernandez (Jordan Honda)
15. Jos Verstappen (Arrows Cosworth)
16. Jean Alesi (Ligierprost Peugeot)
17. Pedro De La Rosa (Arrows Cosworth)
18. Johnny Herbert (Jaguar Ford)
19. Ralf Schumacher (Brabham Ford)
20. Jimmy Vasser (Fittipaldi Renault)
21. David Brabham (Brabham Ford)
22. Nick Heidfeld (Ligierprost Peugeot)
23. Jarno Trulli (Sauber Ferrari)
24. Esteban Tuero (Pacific-Simtek Cosworth)
25. Shinji Nakano (Pacific-Simtek Cosworth)
26. Mika Salo (Sauber Ferrari)
27. Toranosuke Takagi (Minardi Fondmetal)
28. Gaston Mazzacane (Minardi Fondmetal)

Report: A week ago in Argentina qualifying was chaotic due to the weather. At Interlagos, it was chaotic again, but this time because of advertising hoardings that fell off during the session, and qualifying was duly stopped 3 times as a result. But, through all of this, David Coulthard put in a fabulous lap with seconds of the session remaining to take pole from his team mate. Coulthard, by his own admittance not the greatest qualifier, was clearly ecstatic after the session.

The Ferrari’s were close to the Mclarens, but not close enough in 3rd and 4th. The Saubers both struggled through the session with handling issues, and it was later found they have problems with their rear wings. De Ferran, who has impressed so far in his short F1 career, got much praise for being second-best of the rest behind the top four, narrowly beaten by Eddie Irvine. Starting in front of the Benetton’s, Williams, Jordans and Tyrrell-Reynard’s, all of which are so far fighting to be the third fastest team.

Race:
1. Mika Hakkinen (Mclaren Mercedes) 71 Laps
2. David Coulthard (Mclaren Mercedes) +4.302
3. Eddie Irvine (Jaguar Ford) +12.487
4. Alexander Wurz (Benetton Renault) +21.896
5. Jacques Villeneuve (Tyrrell-Reynard Honda) +28.978
6. Jos Verstappen (Arrows Cosworth) +33.211
7. Norberto Fontana (Williams BMW) +34.057
8. Jenson Button (Williams BMW) +35.766
9. Heinz-Harald Frentzen (Jordan Honda) +42.268
10. Ralf Schumacher (Brabham Ford) +67.528
11. Pedro De La Rosa (Arrows Cosworth) +1 Lap
12. David Brabham (Brabham Ford) +1 Lap
13. Giancarlo Fisichella (Benetton Renault) +1 Lap
14. Ricardo Zonta (Tyrrell-Reynard Honda) +2 Laps
15. Jean Alesi (Ligierprost Peugeot) +2 Laps
16. Rubens Barrichello (Scuderia Ferrari) +4 Laps
17. Toranosuke Takagi (Minardi Fondmetal) +5 Laps
18. Esteban Tuero (Pacific-Simtek Cosworth) +5 Laps
DNF Jimmy Vasser (Fittipaldi Renault) (Transmission) (65 Laps)
DNF Gaston Mazzacane (Minardi Fondmetal) (Spun Off) (51 Laps)
DNF Michael Schumacher (Scuderia Ferrari) (Engine) (45 Laps)
DNF Gil De Ferran (Fittipaldi Renault) (Engine) (30 Laps)
DNF Adrian Fernandez (Jordan Honda) (Electrical) (21 Laps)
DNF Johnny Herbert (Jaguar Ford) (Gearbox) (12 Laps)
DNF Nick Heidfeld (Ligierprost Peugeot) (Engine) (9 Laps)
DNF Shinji Nakano (Pacific-Simtek Cosworth) (Gearbox) (0 Laps)
DNF Mika Salo (Sauber Ferrari) (Withdrew)
DNF Jarno Trulli (Sauber Ferrari) (Withdrew)

Report: The big news before the race was that Sauber had withdrawn from the race with safety concerns after major wing problems on Saturday, with the team doing no running in the morning warm-up. The race got underway with a clean start, With Coulthard just managing to fend off his team mate.

Pretty quickly, it was clear that the Ferrari’s had the pace and were on a two-stop strategy at least. Schumacher challenged Hakkinen, as the two went wheel to wheel on the main straight at the start of lap 4. Hakkinen defended and got his place back, but the German was past at turn four just seconds later. Within a lap, Barrichello was past at the same point as the Ferrari’s went after leader Coulthard.

The Scot couldn’t defend from the sheer pace of the Ferrari’s, and by lap 8 both had passed him at turn one. Schumacher then led as the Ferrari’s stormed away from the Mclarens at a second a lap. Nakano had seen his gearbox fail at the start, and the second retirement came on lap nine as Heidfeld’s Peugeot engine let go. Alexander Wurz, who was up to 6th from 12th on the grid, was the first to pit on lap 11.

Michael Schumacher and then Barrichello followed soon after, their blistering pace at the start having given them a 15 second lead. After their first pit stops, the Ferrari’s were ten seconds behind the leading Mclarens who were yet to pit, in 5th and 6th positions behind Irvine and De Ferran. Schumacher then reeled in De Ferran and quickly passed him. The McLaren’s pitted on lap 30 and 31, the same time that saw De Ferran sadly exit the race in front of his home fans due to engine failure.

Schumacher was then left with a 19 second lead. By lap 42, Schumacher’s lead was 26 seconds as the German made his second and last stop. He came out just in front of Hakkinen, and a terrific fight ensued between the two as Schumacher’s tyres got up to temperature. After fending off Hakkinen and getting a second gap, disaster struck the German as his car slowed, bellowing smoke from the back.

As if to add insult to injury for Ferrari, Barrichello’s race was soon turned upside down as well. Leading with a 22 second gap, His car lost four gears and he found himself trundling back to the pits, his lead diminished. After a minute long pit stop he was released into 15th position, and would be 3 seconds a lap off the pace pretty quickly. And so this left Hakkinen leading from Coulthard, with Irvine and Villeneuve further back, about to come under the pressure from Wurz. Gaston Mazzacane spun himself out of the race at turn one on lap 51, albeit himself being 3 laps down.

Rubens Barrichello then pitted again, this time spending 3 minutes and losing 2 more laps in the process as the team attempted to fix some issues. It was decided he should continue to be classified in the results for whatever reason, but he was well and truly on his way to third last in front of the desperately slow Minardi of Takagi and the Pacific-Simtek of Tuero, who had suffered mechanical issues all day and had made 5 stops.

Alex Wurz was the star of the last few laps of the race as he took 4th from Jacques Villeneuve, his 3 stop strategy giving him a lot of pace throughout the race, whilst Verstappen brilliantly held off the Williamses for 6th position at the end.

A race in which a wonderful battle for the lead was robbed from us on lap 45 finished with a Mclaren one-two, and after two disastrous races for the British squad this was the perfect tonic. As the championship heads to Kyalami, Hakkinen will count himself very much back in the battle.

Championship Standings after Round 3:

Drivers
1. Michael Schumacher 20 points
2. Mika Hakkinen 10 points
3. Norberto Fontana 8 points
4. Gil De Ferran 6 points
5. David Coulthard 6 points
6. Jacques Villeneuve 5 points
7. Adrian Fernandez 4 points
8. Heinz-Harald Frentzen 4 points
9. Eddie Irvine 4 points
10. Jenson Button 3 points
11. Alexander Wurz 3 points
12. Giancarlo Fisichella 2 points
13. Ricardo Zonta 1 point
14. Rubens Barrichello 1 point
15. Jos Verstappen 1 point

Constructors
1. Scuderia Ferrari 21 points
2. Mclaren Mercedes 16 points
3. Williams BMW 11 points
4. Jordan Honda 8 points
5. Fittipaldi Renault 6 points
6. Tyrrell-Reynard Honda 6 points
7. Benetton Renault 5 points
8. Jaguar Ford 4 points
9. Arrows Cosworth 1 point

[MansellsEyebrows]

Round 4-Kyalami, South Africa

Qualifying:
1. Michael Schumacher (Scuderia Ferrari)
2. Mika Hakkinen (Mclaren Mercedes)
3. Rubens Barrichello (Scuderia Ferrari)
4. David Coulthard (Mclaren Mercedes)
5. Norberto Fontana (Williams BMW)
6. Jacques Villeneuve (Tyrrell-Reynard Honda)
7. Jenson Button (Williams BMW)
8. Adrian Fernandez (Jordan Honda)
9. Ricardo Zonta (Tyrrell-Reynard Honda)
10. Ralf Schumacher (Brabham Ford)
11. Heinz-Harald Frentzen (Jordan Honda)
12. Gil De Ferran (Fittipaldi Renault)
13. Pedro De La Rosa (Arrows Cosworth)
14. Jarno Trulli (Sauber Ferrari)
15. Giancarlo Fisichella (Benetton Renault)
16. Jimmy Vasser (Fittipaldi Renault)
17. Alexander Wurz (Benetton Renault)
18. Jos Verstappen (Arrows Cosworth)
19. David Brabham (Brabham Ford)
20. Nick Heidfeld (Ligierprost Peugeot)
21. Esteban Tuero (Pacific-Simtek Cosworth)
22. Jean Alesi (Ligierprost Peugeot)
23. Shinji Nakano (Pacific-Simtek Cosworth)
24. Mika Salo (Sauber Ferrari)
25. Eddie Irvine (Jaguar Ford)
26. Johnny Herbert (Jaguar Ford)
27. Toranosuke Takagi (Minardi Fondmetal)
28. Gaston Mazzacane (Minardi Fondmetal)

Report: Compared to the previous madness seen in qualifying sessions, Kyalami proved to be almost tame. If 28 screaming V10 800+ horsepower engines in the back of 28 super sleek hyper cars can ever be considered tame. For the first time in the season, a Ferrari was on pole as Michael Schumacher put in a barn storming lap to beat the McLaren of reigning champion Mika Hakkinen by half a second. Barrichello beat Coulthard to third, with the Williams duo close behind but split by Jacques Villeneuve, who seems very happy in a solid car this year. Further back, Fernandez beat his vastly experienced team mate Frentzen, and the Jaguars struggled massively with new updates on the R1, with the team reverting back to their original package for the race. Mazzacane failed to set a time after electrical troubles, but will be allowed to start tomorrow as he has set ample laps in Friday practice within the 107% rule.

Race:
1. Mika Hakkinen (Mclaren Mercedes) 72 Laps
2. Rubens Barrichello (Scuderia Ferrari) +8.237
3. Norberto Fontana (Williams BMW) +14.001
4. Gil De Ferran (Fittipaldi Renault) +22.974
5. Jenson Button (Williams BMW) +24.102
6. David Coulthard (Mclaren Mercedes) +30.021
7. Johnny Herbert (Jaguar Ford) +31.183
8. Adrian Fernandez (Jordan Honda) +34.566
9. Michael Schumacher (Scuderia Ferrari) +40.120
10. Heinz-Harald Frentzen (Jordan Honda) +54.345
11. Jimmy Vasser (Fittipaldi Renault) +1 Lap
12. Ralf Schumacher (Brabham Ford) +1 Lap
13. Jacques Villeneuve (Tyrrell-Reynard Honda) + 1 Lap
14. David Brabham (Brabham Ford) + 1 Lap
15. Mika Salo (Sauber Ferrari) + 1 Lap
16. Pedro De La Rosa (Arrows Cosworth) + 1 Lap
DNF Jos Verstappen (Arrows Cosworth) (Transmission) (62 Laps)
DNF Esteban Tuero (Pacific-Simtek Cosworth) (Hydraulics) (59 Laps)
DNF Ricardo Zonta (Tyrrell-Reynard Honda) (Gearbox) (50 Laps)
DNF Nick Heidfeld (Ligierprost Peugeot) (Engine) (42 Laps)
DNF Jarno Trulli (Sauber Ferrari) (Collision) (31 Laps)
DNF Alexander Wurz (Benetton Renault) (Collision) (31 Laps)
DNF Jean Alesi (Ligierprost Peugeot) (Engine) (20 Laps)
DNF Eddie Irvine (Jaguar Ford) (Spun Off) (14 Laps)
DNF Shinji Nakano (Pacific-Simtek Cosworth) (Transmission) (9 Laps)
DNF Giancarlo Fisichella (Benetton Renault) (Engine) (5 Laps)
DNF Toranosuke Takagi (Minardi Fondmetal) (Electrical) (2 Laps)
DNF Gaston Mazzacane (Minardi Fondmetal) (Clutch) (0 Laps)

Report: Michael Schumacher may have been on pole, but it was Hakkinen who would lead out of turn 2, getting the jump on Schumacher off the line and sticking his car down the inside through the first kink and completing the move at the second corner. It was the move that would shape the race. This wasn’t the only action on lap one, as Tuero spun at turn 3 causing several drivers to take avoiding action whilst Coulthard had got past Barrichello already. More was to come, as at the hairpin Coulthard dived up the inside of Schumacher, but the German gave the Scot no room, slamming the door before Coulthard could get out of the move. The result was contact and both cars spinning round.

This put Barrichello and Fontana in 2nd and 3rd respectively, but Jacques Villeneuve who was just behind would have no such luck as he tried to avoid the Mclaren and Ferrari, having to take to the gravel to do so, unable to go through on the inside where Button was.Coulthard and Schumacher would rejoin the race in 26th and 27th, Mazzacane having had a clutch failure off the line. Soon both Minardis would be out as Takagi suffered an electrical failure. Johnny Herbert was the main mover on lap 1, going from 26th to 19th. A battle would then develop between Fernandez and Zonta for 5th position, the two relatively inexperienced drivers touching wheels twice in the process. Meanwhile the retirement list stacked up with Fisichella, having a poor weekend, suffering an engine failure and Nakano seeing his Transmission give up.

Both Coulthard and Schumacher had pitted at the end of lap one, Coulthard for a new front wing, as both changed to a two-stop strategy with extra fuel going in both cars. Both drivers were going well, but then Eddie Irvine, who had found some pace thanks to reverting back to the old package, went wide at turn two whilst following Heidfeld and half spun into a situation where he was beached. The safety car duly came out; cutting Hakkinen’s 5 second lead. Naturally, everyone took this opportunity to pit. Everyone except Gil De Ferran that is, as luck would have it he had made his first stop 2 laps earlier. The result was he would lead the race from Hakkinen, Barrichello and Fontana.

At the restart the Brazilian rookie would defend well from the faster Hakkinen, delaying the Finn. The Fittipaldi car didn’t have the pace of the following Mclaren and Ferrari, but De Ferran put his car in the right places to keep the Finn behind. Barrichello meanwhile had benefitted as he was now right on Hakkinen’s tail, but as he attempted an overtake Hakkinen closed the door, Rubens had to back out and Fontana was alongside immediately, the Argentine getting past at the 6-7 series of bends. This top four had broken away from Fernandez who had jumped Button in the stops, despite being held up by the Fittipaldi. Clearly, the Brazilian car had every bit of pace in De Ferran’s hands that the Jordans had. Jean Alesi would then have his Peugeot engine go, whilst Herbert passed Verstappen and Vasser in quick succession. He was clearly feeling racey.

On lap 25 Hakkinen finally got past De Ferran with a brilliant on-the-outside move at the hairpin, Barrichello would follow him through quickly. Jenson Button then found himself back past Fernandez, before Wurz would not find himself past Trulli. Instead, the Austrian had locked up whilst following the Sauber into turn 13, and being unable to avoid the Italian mounted the back of Trulli’s car, sending them both into the gravel and out of the race. Barrichello would then fall under pressure from Fontana (who had got past De Ferran) as Hakkinen extended his lead, but the Williams was unable to find a way past. Heidfeld then had an engine failure like his team mate, and Ralf Schumacher duly spun on the oil.

The safety car had benefitted Schumacher and Coulthard, but the former would have his fight through the field affected when he was given a drive through for the first lap collision. Coulthard then slipped past Frentzen to put himself in 8th, and this would soon become 7th as Zonta’s gearbox failed. Herbert was now on Frentzen’s tail, and on lap 52 they both came into the pits at the same time. The Jaguar team did a sterling job and Herbert was out first. Most drivers then followed and made their last stops, With De Ferran, who had kept up with Fontana, pitting at the same time as the latter. The two exited the pits nose to tail as De Ferran immediately applied the pressure. At the final corner of their out lap, De Ferran went for the inside, Fontana blocked him and so the Brazilian switched to the outside, and duly got alongside through the corner. He had the better exit and was past. Tuero and Verstappen would have car failures before Fontana started to fight back with De Ferran. Meanwhile Vasser passed Ralf Schumacher for 11th just before the pair were lapped.

Hakkinen now had a seven second lead and was easing home, but his team mate was still fighting to grab a point, as he was now on Fernandez’s tail. However, the Mexican turned out to be extremely hard to pass, and Coulthard found himself being held up. This let the charging Herbert catch the pair, and when Coulthard made a mistake trying to pass at turn 11, Herbert was through. But this would turn out to be beneficial for Coulthard, as Herbert was pressurising Fernandez and got the better of him at the first two turns to dive up the inside at turn 3. He forced Fernandez a little wide, and Coulthard got a run on him out of the corner, and by the time they were at turn 5 he was past as well.

The fight between Fontana and De Ferran would then affectively come to an end, as Fontana pressurized De Ferran went wide at turn 2 into the gravel. He was able to rejoin but the Williams was past, with a comfortable gap. De Ferran then lost some more time in the closing laps with slight damage to the under body, and had to be careful not to lose out to Button. Schumacher, who had also got past Frentzen who had been penalised for speeding in the pit lane was now going well, but Fernandez was way out of range before the end of the race.

With 3 laps to go, Coulthard finally got in the top six as he cleverly out braked Herbert at the hairpin. Mika Hakkinen duly won the race with ease from Barrichello, Fontana, De Ferran, Button and Coulthard. Herbert was unlucky to not get points after a great drive from 26th on the grid whilst Fernandez left disappointed with 8th. Schumacher came home ninth after the collision with Coulthard and the resulting penalty. Another disappointed driver was Jacques Villeneuve, as damage he received on lap one as he avoided the incident resulting in no competitive pace in the race. But for Mika Hakkinen there was glory, as after two scoreless races he had come back with two wins, whilst Schumacher had done completely the opposite, meaning the two were tied on 20 points each as the Formula One circus headed to Europe. Another exciting race, and for Mclaren once again, another good race after the disasters at Australia and Argentina.

Championship Standings after Round 4:

Drivers
1. Michael Schumacher 20 points
2. Mika Hakkinen 20 points
3. Norberto Fontana 12 points
4. Gil De Ferran 9 points
5. David Coulthard 7 points
6. Rubens Barrichello 7 points
7. Jacques Villeneuve 5 points
8. Jenson Button 5 points
9. Adrian Fernandez 4 points
10. Heinz-Harald Frentzen 4 points
11. Eddie Irvine 4 points
12. Alexander Wurz 3 points
13. Giancarlo Fisichella 2 points
14. Ricardo Zonta 1 point
15. Jos Verstappen 1 point

Constructors
1. Scuderia Ferrari 27 points
2. Mclaren Mercedes 27 points
3. Williams BMW 17 points
4. Fittipaldi Renault 9 points
5. Jordan Honda 8 points
6. Tyrrell-Reynard Honda 6 points
7. Benetton Renault 5 points
8. Jaguar Ford 4 points
9. Arrows Cosworth 1 point

[MansellsEyebrows]

Round 5-Imola, Italy, Mediterranea

Qualifying:
1. Mika Hakkinen (Mclaren Mercedes)
2. Michael Schumacher (Scuderia Ferrari)
3. David Coulthard (Mclaren Mercedes)
4. Rubens Barrichello (Scuderia Ferrari)
5. Heinz-Harald Frentzen (Jordan Honda)
6. Jenson Button (Williams BMW)
7. Ralf Schumacher (Brabham Ford)
8. Norberto Fontana (Williams BMW)
9. Jarno Trulli (Sauber Ferrari)
10. Adrian Fernandez (Jordan Honda)
11. Jacques Villeneuve (Tyrrell-Reynard Honda)
12. Mika Salo (Sauber Ferrari)
13. Eddie Irvine (Jaguar Ford)
14. Pedro De La Rosa (Arrows Cosworth)
15. David Brabham (Brabham Ford)
16. Gil De Ferran (Fittipaldi Renault)
17. Alexander Wurz (Benetton Renault)
18. Ricardo Zonta (Tyrrell-Reynard Honda)
19. Jean Alesi (Ligierprost Peugeot)
20. Shinji Nakano (Pacific-Simtek Cosworth)
21. Giancarlo Fisichella (Benetton Renault)
22. Jimmy Vasser (Fittipaldi Renault)
23. Jos Verstappen (Arrows Cosworth)
24. Johnny Herbert (Jaguar Ford)
25. Nick Heidfeld (Ligierprost Peugeot)
26. Esteban Tuero (Pacific-Simtek Cosworth)
27. Gaston Mazzacane (Minardi Fondmetal)
28. Toranosuke Takagi (Minardi Fondmetal)

Report: It was once again a duel between Mika Hakkinen and Michael Schumacher for pole at Imola, but unlike three weeks ago it was the defending world champion who claimed the first starting position, by 0.091 seconds. Coulthard grabbed third from Barrichello while Frentzen was best of the rest. After disappointment so far this year, Brabham had reason to smile as Ralf Schumacher put his car in seventh on the grid behind Button. Sauber also had a good qualifying with 9th and 12th places for Trulli and Salo respectively, whilst Irvine and De Ferran both left disappointed. Fisichella struggled severely whilst for the first time Mazzacane qualified in a position above last, beating his team mate into 27th.

Race:
1. Michael Schumacher (Scuderia Ferrari) 62 Laps
2. Mika Hakkinen (Mclaren Mercedes) +0.234
3. Jacques Villeneuve (Tyrrell-Reynard Honda) +22.154
4. Mika Salo (Sauber Ferrari) +27.633
5. David Coulthard (Mclaren Mercedes) +41.008
6. Heinz-Harald Frentzen (Jordan Honda) +47.210
7. Eddie Irvine (Jaguar Ford) + 50.921
8. Ralf Schumacher (Brabham Ford) + 56.628
9. Gil De Ferran (Fittipaldi Renault) + 1 Lap
10. Norberto Fontana (Williams BMW) + 1 Lap
11. Alexander Wurz (Benetton Renault) + 1 Lap
12. Giancarlo Fisichella (Benetton Renault) + 1 Lap
13. Nick Heidfeld (Ligierprost Peugeot) + 1 Lap
14. Pedro De La Rosa (Arrows Cosworth) + 1 Lap
15. Jimmy Vasser (Fittipaldi Renault) + 1 Lap
16. David Brabham (Brabham Ford) + 1 Lap
17. Ricardo Zonta (Tyrrell-Reynard Honda) + 1 Lap
18. Esteban Tuero (Pacific-Simtek Cosworth) +2 Laps
19. Toranosuke Takagi (Minardi Fondmetal) + 3 Laps
DNF Shinji Nakano (Pacific-Simtek Cosworth) (Collision) (43 Laps)
DNF Gaston Mazzacane (Minardi Fondmetal) (Collision) (43 Laps)
DNF Jean Alesi (Ligierprost Peugeot) (Hydraulics) (32 Laps)
DNF Jos Verstappen (Arrows Cosworth) (Engine) (18 Laps)
DNF Johnny Herbert (Jaguar Ford) (Spun Off) (10 Laps)
DNF Adrian Fernandez (Jordan Honda) (Collision) (0 Laps)
DNF Jarno Trulli (Sauber Ferrari) (Collision) (0 Laps)
DNF Jenson Button (Williams BMW) (Collision) (0 Laps)
DNF Rubens Barrichello (Scuderia Ferrari) (Gearbox) (0 Laps)

Report: The Mediterranean Grand Prix at Imola saw mayhem immediately. Barrichello’s gearbox failed as he got off the line, his car losing all drive and rolling slowly. Button attempted to avoid him, but he found himself with nowhere to go as Ralf Schumacher unwittingly was in the way, himself alongside Frentzen. The result was Button hitting the Ferrari, his own front end briefly vaulting into the air as Barrichello’s car was spun round right into the path of Trulli who smashed into the hapless Ferrari. Meanwhile Fontana narrowly avoided his team mate, but Fernandez wasn’t so lucky, launching himself over the Williams.

There was chaos further back as others attempted to avoid the mayhem, and after a fair few trips across the grass for some drivers further incident was avoided. Barrichello, Button, Trulli and Fernandez were all out of the race as the safety car came out while the debris was cleaned up. Hakkinen had got the best start, as the order was Hakkinen, Michael Schumacher, Coulthard, Frentzen, Ralf Schumacher, Fontana, Villeneuve, Irvine, Salo and Brabham as the top ten when the safety car was released. Everyone apart from Salo, Herbert, Alesi, Nakano and Mazzacane pitted. All these exceptions were on one stoppers with everyone else now on a two or three stop strategy, and Salo found himself in the lead followed by the aforementioned. At the restart he created a good gap between himself and Herbert, who himself was under pressure from Alesi.

The two engaged in a fight, whilst further back Mazzacane was passed by Hakkinen, who in turn soon found his way past Nakano too. Meanwhile Alesi took second from Herbert round the outside at Tosa, As Michael Schumacher got past Mazzacane as well. Pretty soon Coulthard and Frentzen would follow him through. There was clearly plenty of action thanks to the circumstances, but as Hakkinen pressurized Herbert, the Brit took too much kerb at Variante Alte and subsequently spun off and into the wall at the exit of the chicane. This left Hakkinen in third from Shinji Nakano, Michael Schumacher, Coulthard, Frentzen and Ralf Schumacher who had also got past Mazzacane. Hakkinen caught Alesi by lap 13, but couldn’t find a way past.

Michael Schumacher then dived past Nakano for fourth. Further down the order De Ferran and Brabham were squabbling over 12th, with de Ferran’s team mate Jimmy Vasser having fought his way up to 14th. Fontana was stuck behind his countryman Mazzacane, and this was causing Villeneuve to pressurize the pair of them. When an attempted move didn’t pay off for Fontana, Villeneuve slipped past. Verstappen then suffered an Engine failure team mate De La Rosa was swamped by the two Benettons. Schumacher’s chasing down of Hakkinen, who was still bottled up behind Alesi, had begun. By the time he had caught the Finn, Coulthard and Frentzen had fought their way past Nakano. Hakkinen found himself in a situation where he could no longer attack Alesi as he defended from Schumacher. A magnificent fight broke out.

Schumacher ran round the outside through Tamburello, but Hakkinen got back in his slip stream and was back past at Tosa. Schumacher fought back down to Aqua Minerale, diving down the inside into the second part of the turn. However, he found himself wide meaning Hakkinen had a magnificent run on him up to Variante Alta. Schumacher being Schumacher though; No quarter was given as the two banged wheels as they went up the hill, before he gave no choice for Hakkinen except to back out as he squeezed him in the braking zone. Hakkinen would have a better run out of the chicane, but Schumacher defended at Rivazza and was past.

Still, the Finn would be right on the German’s tale as they attempted to pass Alesi. Coulthard and Frentzen then made their second and last stops, as Nakano and Mazzacane also made their only stops on lap 30. Schumacher was now pressurizing Alesi, and he forced the Frenchman into a mistake at Rivazza, which let both Schumacher and Hakkinen through. Sadly, soon afterwards Alesi would be out of the race with Hydraulic failure after a so far brilliant drive. Villeneuve was the next of the top cluster to pit, but pretty quickly he was followed by leader Salo, as well as both Schumacher brothers and Hakkinen.

The Ferrari team got their car out first, and the pair of them were now just 3 seconds behind the leading Sauber. Meanwhile Irvine was yet to stop for a second time and was fourth behind the leading trio with good pace. The hunting down of Salo didn’t last long for Schumacher, and on lap 38 he was past after taking Salo into the Tamburello. Schumacher would then romp away into an eight second lead by lap 47. By this time, It was Hakkinen in second, having taken his fellow Finn at the same point as Schumacher, and Mazzacane and Nakano had taken themselves out of the race as they collided with each other, Nakano locking his brakes as Mazzacane desperately defended, leading to the Pacific-Simtek to launch itself over the Minardi, both of them ending in the gravel.

Coulthard and Frentzen then added to the carnage, as they came together whilst fighting for fourth, neither of them backing out into the Variante Alta, causing both to spin. They were able to continue, though Villeneuve was now in fourth. Irvine then took Ralf Schumacher, as Villeneuve started to catch Salo. Michael Schumacher then began to lose time, and by lap 56 the gap was just four seconds.

Meanwhile Villeneuve was catching Salo at a second a lap, and by lap 58 he was on Salo’s rear wing. Taking an opportunistic dive down the inside at Tamburello, He banged wheels with the Sauber but was through. De Ferran had made it up to tenth behind Fontana who was suffering from tyre wear, and the Brazilian quickly passed the Argentine. Hakkinen continued to slim Schumacher’s lead, and on the last lap the gap was two tenths of a second.

A thrilling end to a great race saw Hakkinen get the run on Schumacher out from Variante Alta, but Schumacher defended the inside. Hakkinen thus tried to get round the outside, but realised it wasn’t going to work so he instead got the undercut on the Ferrari through Rivazza. But despite being all over Schumacher at the final chicane, he couldn’t get by and Michael took his third win of the year after some fabulous battles, ironically caused by his team mate’s early demise.

The Italian crowd went wild with delight, as after five rounds of the 2000 Formula One World Championship, it was advantage Schumacher. Just.

Championship Standings after Round 5:

Drivers
1. Michael Schumacher 30 points
2. Mika Hakkinen 26 points
3. Norberto Fontana 12 points
4. Gil De Ferran 9 points
5. David Coulthard 9 points
6. Jacques Villeneuve 9 points
7. Rubens Barrichello 7 points
8. Jenson Button 5 points
9. Heinz-Harald Frentzen 5 points
10. Adrian Fernandez 4 points
11. Eddie Irvine 4 points
12. Alexander Wurz 3 points
13. Mika Salo 3 points
14. Giancarlo Fisichella 2 points
15. Ricardo Zonta 1 point
16. Jos Verstappen 1 point

Constructors
1. Scuderia Ferrari 37 points
2. Mclaren Mercedes 35 points
3. Williams BMW 17 points
4. Tyrrell-Reynard Honda 10 points
5. Fittipaldi Renault 9 points
6. Jordan Honda 9 points
7. Benetton Renault 5 points
8. Jaguar Ford 4 points
9. Sauber Ferrari 3 points
10. Arrows Cosworth 1 point

[MansellsEyebrows]

April 17th, 2000
Allan McNish has been named Toyota’s Formula One testing and development driver through 2001, as well as running test on certain parts of their 2002 Car that will be fitted to the Toyota GT-One sports car throughout this year. This has led to rumours that he may well be a Toyota racing driver in 2002, with the Japanese manufacturer also assessing options including Japanese drivers as well as experienced drivers like Jean Alesi, Mika Salo and even Heinz-Harald Frentzen. Whether any of these would leave their current teams to join an all new Toyota team in 2002 is yet to be seen however, especially Frentzen who Eddie Jordan has said he wants to hold on to for at least another two years If he performs like he did in 1999.

April 24th, 2000
The shakeups under Flavio Briatore’s returnee leadership continue at Benetton, whilst negotiations regarding the sale of the Minardi F1 team continue with the Italian team said to be sold in a matter of weeks. Meanwhile, rumours that Honda is aiming to buy the Tyrrell-Reynard outfit have turned out to be true with negotiations going on. However, David Richards and his Prodrive outfit are also looking into becoming partners of the team, meaning it could turn into a competition between the two parties, or even a partnership. If a deal comes off, it is likely the Reynard name will be dropped from the Team’s name, but with the Tyrrell name legally obliged to be part of the title, It is quite unpredictable as to what the new name will be, if any of this goes through successfully.