Summary

David Coulthard won today's Italian Grand Prix at Monza due to very good driving and a superb pitstop. He took the lead during this pitstop and never let go. Jean Alesi came in second with Heinz-Harald Frentzen third.

Michael Schumacher couldn't compete at the front of the field but did manage to score one point for sixth. His rival Jacques Villeneuve only managed to score two points for fifth. The gap between them is now 10 points.

Notes

• Villeneuve and Coulthard have received a one race suspended ban because of ignoring a yellow flag situation during the warm-up.
• Diniz retires with a broken rear suspension on lap 4.
• Katayama is out of the race with a broken left front suspension. (lap 8)
• Verstappen has another gearbox problem on lap 12.
• Magnussen retires with a clutch problem.
• Herbert gets sent into the gravel trap at almost 300 km/h by R. Schumacher. (lap 38) Schumacher also retires because of this on lap 39.
• Salo retires on lap 33.
• Hill blows up the Yamaha engine on lap 46.
  • Weather during race: Sunny, dry (27 °C)

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14.   15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22.

Coulthard (McLaren-Mercedes) G Alesi (Benetton-Renault) G Frentzen (Williams-Renault) G Fisichella (Jordan-Peugeot) G Villeneuve (Williams-Renault) G M. Schumacher (Ferrari) G Berger (Benetton-Renault) G Irvine (Ferrari) G Hakkinen (McLaren-Mercedes) G Trulli (Prost-Mugen) B Nakano (Prost-Mugen) B Morbidelli (Sauber-Petronas) G Barrichello (Stewart-Ford) B Marques (Minardi-Hart) B Not Classified Hill (Arrows-Yamaha) B R. Schumacher (Jordan-Peugeot) G Herbert (Sauber-Petronas) G Salo (Tyrrell-Ford) G Magnussen (Stewart-Ford) B Verstappen (Tyrrell-Ford) G Katayama (Minardi-Hart) B Diniz (Arrows-Yamaha) B B: Bridgestone G: Goodyear

1h 17m 4.609s + 1.937s + 4.343s + 5.871s + 6.416s + 11.481s + 12.471s + 17.639s + 49.373 + 1m 2.706s + 1m 3.327s 1 lap 1 lap 3 laps   7 laps: engine 14 laps: accident 15 laps: accident 20 laps: engine 22 laps: clutch 41 laps: gearbox 45 laps: suspension 49 laps: suspension

      Fastest lap: Mika Hakkinen 1m 24.808s

The Quotes

• Coulthard: "I am dedicating it to her (Princess Diana) memory. I was very aware of the mood of the country back home. I had the pleasure of meeting her at Silverstone in 1995 when I finished second in the British Grand Prix and I still have a picture of her and the princes up at home. For me, it was a very emotional moment today when the anthem was playing and the crowd was there on the track below me, the flag was being raised behind me... it all made me feel very emotional. I felt very awkward about the idea of spraying the victor's champagne on the podium and talked to the team about it during the final laps before the finish. In the end, we decided we should as it was the thing to do, but it was not easy."

• M. Schumacher:"Considering everything that happened this weekend, we can be really satisfied with this result. I have only lost one point in the Championship and it could have been a lot worse. The next two races are on tracks which require much more aerodynamic downforce than here in Monza and so I am sure we will once again be competitive."

• Hill: "Mika Hakkinen was right behind me and I think I buried him in oil. It was hard work because I was battling with the Prosts but all that hard work was nothing in the end."

• Verstappen: "I managed to stay out of trouble at the first corner, basically because I went straight on! I could have made up some places but I decided to play safe because there is no point risking it at the start. After a couple of laps I out-braked Diniz going into the first chicane, but then the air pressure dropped and I couldn't shift from fifth gear."

• Herbert: "I was running quite well and was able to hold off Ralf Schumacher initially, until my brakes overheated a little during my first pit stop. He overtook me going past the pits at the end of lap 38, but I stayed close to him into the braking area going down to the first chicane. I just had time to brake a little when he pulled to the right, into my path, and left me nowhere to go. What he doesn't seem to understand is that in very high-speed places like that you need to give the other guy racing room, and he didn't do that. I don't mind a battle or a bit of racing, that's always good. But what he did is not the way to do it. It was unnecessary and unacceptable, and the sign of an inexperienced driver who still has a lot to learn about the art of racing closely at high speeds."

• Salo: "I found a hole going down to the first chicane and managed to get past a lot of people, but I locked up and flat-spotted my tyres in the process. I was running comfortably with the Stewart and the Prost until my tyres blistered and then the engine blew when I was on the furthest point of the circuit. It took me over an hour to get back to the paddock -- I think the team thought I had been abducted by aliens!"

• Alesi: "I am disappointed, after starting from pole position, that I could not win the race, but I am still very happy to be on the podium. I was hoping to win and my car was very fast today, but David Coulthard was able to get ahead of me at the pit stop and I could not pass him. This is a very difficult circuit for overtaking because of the high speeds, but I was pushing all the way. It is always good to be on the podium at Monza for me because it is such a very special place. The first part of the race was very good for me and I did not blame anyone for the pitstop. I think the boys did a very good job. In racing, it is just one of those things."

• Irvine: "I knew it would be difficult to do much unless the cars in front of me ran into problems. I was quite happy with my lap times. However, here at Monza, contrary to what people think, the high speeds make it difficult to overtake. At the end we were all doing the same times, but given my grid position, I could do no more. Neither was it possible to come out with any special strategy to get past the others. I did not have any particular problems during the race, except just before my pit stop. I was pushing hard to close on Berger and blistered a front tyre."

• Berger: "It was a difficult race. I pushed from the first lap to the last lap. I was behind Michael's Ferrari, going at the same speed if not on-tenth quicker, but still this was not enough to overtake him. I was waiting for a mistake of his part to try to pass him. He made one, but then closed the door quickly and I did not want to run the risk of ending up on the grass. I had a second chance when we came into the pits, but my stop was not as good as Michael's and so I lost that opportunity as well. With so many cars running at very similar speeds on the circuit, there was very little to do."

The Standings

Drivers Championship table

M. Schumacher (Ferrari)	67
Villeneuve (Williams)	57
Alesi (Benetton)	28
Frentzen(Williams)	27
Coulthard (McLaren)	24
Berger (Benetton)	21
Irvine (Ferrari)	18
Fisichella (Jordan)	17
Hakkinen (McLaren)	14
Panis (Prost)	15
Herbert (Sauber)	14
R. Schumacher (Jordan)	11
Hill (Arrows)	7
Barrichello (Stewart)	6
Wurz (Benetton)	4
Trulli (Prost)	3
Salo (Tyrrell)	2
Nakano (Prost)	2
Larini (Sauber)	1

Constructors Championship table

Ferrari G	85
Williams-Renault G	84
Benetton-Renault G	53
McLaren-Mercedes G	38
Jordan-Peugeot G	28
Prost-Mugen B	20
Sauber-Petronas G	15
Arrows-Yamaha B	7
Stewart-Ford B	6
Tyrrell-Ford G	2
B: Bridgestone G: Goodyear