If the last couple of races lacked on-track action, the Canadian Grand Prix , round 6 of the 1999 FIA Formula One World Championship, was an action packed thriller that provided the best race of the season and in particular for the reigning World Champion, Mika Hakkinen.
The Finn, who brought his McLaren-Mercedes home ahead of the Benetton of Giancarlo Fisichella and the Marlboro-Ferrari of Eddie Irvine, moves into the overall lead of the drivers' points standings after Michael Schumacher crashed out of the 69 laps race on lap 30 having led convincingly all the way from the start.
It was a rare mistake from Schumacher that could cost him dearly in his eventual bid for the title. "I lost control of the car at the last chicane because I went off the racing line and got on the dirt and ended up in the wall," explained Michael, who had just lapped Olivier Panis' Prost at the time and was eager to keep his slim advantage over Hakkinen before the scheduled half distance pit-stops.
"It was clearly my mistake. It's a shame, because the car was working perfectly. I usually make one mistake a year. I hope this incident was the last for the season," added Schumacher, who had started from pole position and had looked set to win the race.
Behind Hakkinen, there was a similar battle raging between Eddie Irvine and David Coulthard for third place in the opening laps. It became a battle for second spot after Schumacher's mistake, but disaster struck this duelling duo just after their pit stops, which were made under the safety car following a carbon copy of Schumacher's crash by local hero Jacques Villeneuve when he crashed his BAR.
"I got on the dirt and had to back off a bit which allowed Coulthard to get a run at me going into the first corner," said Irvine. " We were side by side , but he went a bit wide and I had the lead into the second part of the corner but he nudged my back wheel and we both spun off," explained Eddie.
"Then the fun started," he said with a smile. From eighth place at the end of lap 41, he was the star of the race as he fought his way past Zanardi, Diniz, Herbert and Ralf Schumacher to take an eventual third place at the end of the race which ended under the third pace car of the event.
Coulthard had also managed to get going again after the incident with Irvine, but he headed for the pits to check the steering of his car and that cost him another 10 second pit- stop penalty when he drove out again under a red light. It put him almost a lap down on the leader and spoiled any chance of a finish in the points.
As Irvine fought his way back into the race for points, there was now a fresh battle for second place between Giancarlo Fisichella and Heinz Harald Frentzen , the German out-foxing Fisichella for the place as they came up to lap slower cars. He held off a hard chasing Fisichella for the next dozen laps or more only to crash out of the race himself when a front right brake disc exploded four laps from the finish.
Frentzen's car snapped sideways going into the first chicane and slammed into the tyre barriers on the outside. The pace car came out while doctors helped the groggy Frentzen from the cockpit. He was lucky not to have suffered anything worse than a mild concussion , a bruised knee and shoulder following a check up in the local hospital.
A delighted Fisichella scored his third podium finish in the three years at this track while Irvine followed him over the line for third, the first time that an F1 race has finished under a yellow flag.
Ralf Schumacher, Herbert and Diniz took the final points of the day, Coulthard finishing the race a disappointed seventh .
Only 10 cars were running at the flag, Marc Gene a lap down in eighth place for Minardi just ahead of the Prost of Olivier Panis who was another lap clear of the second Minardi of Luca Badoer.
Panis' team mate Jarno Trulli was responsible for yet another first corner incident at this track which eliminated himself and two other cars from the race.
"I had to brake hard when Frentzen lifted off in front of me and I spun," said Trulli, who slid across the grass into the first corner and rammed Rubens Barrichello's Stewart into the Sauber-Petronas of Jean Alesi. Trulli and Alesi were out on the spot, while Barrichello tried to continue but finally had to retire his badly battered Stewart after 14 laps.
The second Benetton of Alexander Wurz was another first lap casualty when he limped back to the pits with a broken drive shaft.
As the pace car pulled in at the end of the second lap following the first corner pile-up , Ricardo Zonta's return to the driving seat for the BAR team ended abruptly when he was the first to hit the wall out of the last corner as he accelerated for the re-start. On lap 14 Damon Hill was the second to hit the same wall, which also claimed Schumacher and Zonta adding fuel to the driver's complaints on Friday about replacing the hurriedly laid turf over part of the chicanes with the previous year's all gravel run-off area. It was the fine dirt spread on the track by errant cars that had caused all the problems.
Schumacher's accident, similar to that which had put Hakkinen out of the race in Imola while trying to increase his race lead, now puts the two rivals even on mistakes this year and a lot more even in the points as Hakkinen heads the title chase for the first time with just 4 points advantage over Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro's Schumacher. The team continues to head the constructors' Championship points however with a nine point lead over McLaren-Mercedes.
Race Results:
Canadian Grand Prix
World Championship of Drivers, round 6;
Circuit Gilles Villeneuve, June 13th, 1999;
69 laps, 305.049 kms.
CLASSIFIED
Pos Driver Team Time
1. Hakkinen Mclaren Mercedes 1h41:35.727
2. Fisichella Benetton Playlife + 0:00.700
3. Irvine Ferrari + 0:01.700
4. R.Schum: Williams Supertec + 0:02.300
5. Herbert Stewart Ford + 0:02.800
6. Diniz Sauber Petronas + 0:03.700
7. Coulthard Mclaren Mercedes + 0:05.000
8. Gene Minardi Ford + 1 Lap
9. Panis Prost Peugeot + 1 Lap
10. Badoer Minardi Ford + 2 Laps
11. Frentzen Jordan Mugen-Honda + 4 Laps *
* Retired on lap 65 due to a brakes failure/crash
NOT CLASSIFIED / RETIREMENTS
Driver Team On Lap Reason
Zanardi Williams Supertec 50 brakes
Takagi Arrows TWR 41 gearbox
Villeneuve BAR Supertec 35 hit wall
M.Schumacher Ferrari 29 hit wall
De La Rosa Arrows TWR 22 gearbox
Hill Jordan Mugen-Honda 14 hit wall
Barrichello Stewart Ford 14 collision damage
Zonta BAR Supertec 3 hit wall
Wurz Benetton Playlife 0 transmission
Alesi Sauber Petronas 0 hit by Barrichello
Trulli Prost Peugeot 0 crashed into Barrichello
Fastest Lap: Eddie Irvine, 1:20.382 (197.999 kmph), lap 62
Race Leaders: Lap 1-29, M. Schumacher
Lap 30-69, Hakkinen
Drivers Points Standings after 6 rounds:
1. Hakkinen 34 2. M.Schumacher 30
3. Irvine 25 4. Frentzen 13
= Fisichella 13 6. Coulthard 12
= R.Schumacher 12 8. Barrichello 6
9. Hill 3 10. Herbert 2
11. de la Rose 1 = Alesi 1
= Panis 1 = Wurz 1
= Trulli 1 = Diniz 1
Constructors' Points Championship:
1. Scuderia Ferrari 55
2. McLaren-Mercedes 46
3. Jordan-Mugen Honda 16
4. Benetton-Playlife 14
5. Williams-Supertec 12
6. Stewart-Ford 8
7 Prost Peugeot 2
= Sauber-Petronas 2
9. Arrows TWR 1
All Timing Unofficial