IN A new series, I will be looking back at six classic races every weekend from the country about to stage an event in the 2011 FIA Formula One World Championship. This is my selection, of races from the classic Spa-Francorchamps circuit between 1991 and 2010. Enjoy the archive!
1992
WINNER: Michael Schumacher (Benetton Ford), 2nd: Nigel Mansell (Williams Renault), 3rd: Riccardo Patrese (Williams Renault)
22-YEAR old Michael Schumacher achieved the first of his 91 career victories, just one year after he made his incredible Grand Prix debut at the same track. The young German achieved the feat with a brilliant piece of thinking after an off-track excursion. Schumacher slipped behind Martin Brundle when he took a trip across the grass and had a look at his team-mate’s degrading rear tyres. He decided to pit earlier than his rivals and on a drying track, his gamble paid off. Ayrton Senna’s did not. Having taken a surprising lead, Senna elected to stay on his worn wet tyres, but it backfired and left him finishing down in fifth place. Nigel Mansell and Riccardo Patrese finished second and third, with these results good enough to seal the constructor’s championship for the utterly dominant Williams FW14B.
1995
WINNER: Michael Schumacher (Benetton Renault), 2nd: Damon Hill (Williams Renault), 3rd: Martin Brundle (Ligier Mugen Honda)
A SENSATIONAL drive from 16th on the grid after a problematical qualifying session saw Michael Schumacher triumph in the 1995 Belgian Grand Prix. He had an epic scrap with arch rival, Damon Hill, which included a spot of controversial wheel-banging at Les Combes on lap 22. Schumacher, on slicks claimed he legitimately defended his line, whilst Hill, on wet tyres on a wet track thought he had been deliberately pushed off the racing line. In the end, a stop-go penalty for speeding in the pitlane wrecked Hill’s hopes and he needed to pass Martin Brundle on the final lap to secure second spot. Pole sitter Gerhard Berger retired with an electrical problem, with his team-mate Jean Alesi also out of luck, courtesy of suspension failure. There was a nasty moment, when Eddie Irvine’s Jordan caught fire after a refuelling pitstop. Luckily, with quick pit work from Jordan and Ligier fire mechanics, no-one was injured.
1998
WINNER: Damon Hill (Jordan Mugen Honda), 2nd: Ralf Schumacher (Jordan Mugen Honda), 3rd: Jean Alesi (Sauber Petronas)
ONE of the most dramatic races ever seen in Formula One produced almost everything in absolutely horrific driving conditions. First, David Coulthard crashed his McLaren exiting La Source and started a chain reaction of cars crashing into one another. The end result of the carnage saw 13 cars terminally damaged, with four failing to restart and an hour’s start delay. Amazingly, no-one was hurt. At the second start, Damon Hill stormed into the lead, squeezing Mika Hakkinen into La Source. Under pressure from title rival Michael Schumacher, Hakkinen lost control of his car and spun infront of the pack; to be collected by the luckless Johnny Herbert. Schumacher produced a textbook overtaking manoeuvre to pass Hill on lap nine and was coasting to a dominant victory, when he came across a struggling Coulthard to lap him. DC lifted off, Schumacher couldn’t see in the appalling visibility and careered into the back of the McLaren. Both cars were out and what followed, was an angry exchange in the pits between the two drivers afterwards. Later, Giancarlo Fisichella and Shinji Nakano were involved in a similar, scary incident, which left the Benetton of Fisichella looking like a torpedo. After the Safety Car made an appearance, Ralf Schumacher was told not to overtake Hill, so Jordan could secure a 1-2 finish for the first time. Ralf’s body language on the podium spoke volumes afterwards. So, the way was clear for Hill to claim a fantastic victory for the Irish team, with Jean Alesi getting a well-deserved podium for Sauber.
2000
WINNER: Mika Hakkinen (McLaren Mercedes), 2nd: Michael Schumacher (Ferrari), 3rd: Ralf Schumacher (Williams BMW)
HAVING dominated qualifying, everyone expected Mika Hakkinen to run into the distance and hide in 2000. However, on a wet track early on, it was Michael Schumacher who made the early running. Schumacher’s cause was helped by Jenson Button’s ambitious move on Jarno Trulli into La Source on lap four, which took the Jordan out and hindered Button’s progress. Seven laps later, Hakkinen had a half-spin at Stavelot, gifting Schumacher the lead. However, on a drying track, the Ferrari was much slower than the McLaren, especially in a straight line. With four laps remaining, Hakkinen got into the slipstream out of Eau Rouge and used Ricardo Zonta’s backmarker BAR to dummy Schumacher and pass him on the inside, with the German stuck on the outside and Zonta probably not knowing what he had just witnessed. It was a masterful move from Hakkinen, undoubtedly his greatest ever Grand Prix victory.
2004
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| UNTOUCHABLE: Raikkonen was in a class of one in 2004 |
WINNER: Kimi Raikkonen (McLaren Mercedes), 2nd: Michael Schumacher (Ferrari), 3rd: Rubens Barrichello (Ferrari)
MICHAEL Schumacher made history in 2004, when he finished second to become a seven-time world Formula One champion. However, he was beaten fair and square on the day by Kimi Raikkonen, who drove brilliantly to record McLaren’s first victory of a difficult and trying season. The race started with chaos at La Source, with numbers of cars getting damaged. Mark Webber and Takuma Sato tangled at Eau Rouge, whilst Raikkonen’s diffuser was broken in contact with Felipe Massa. Having been hit by Webber at the first corner, Rubens Barrichello needed a new rear wing, but didn’t lose a lap in the pits, thanks to a Safety Car period. The Renault’s led the early stages, but Jarno Trulli fell away dramatically with a mysterious lack of pace and Fernando Alonso was left beached in the gravel with an oil leak. Michelin received heavy criticism, after witnessing three tyre blow-outs, which ruined David Coulthard’s race and caused the DNF’s of Jenson Button and Juan Pablo Montoya. Button’s came after a 200mph blow-out sent him careering into the side of the helpless Minardi of Zsvolt Baumgartner. Through all of the chaos around him, Raikkonen drove meticulously from tenth on the grid to record a magnificent victory. However, he would have to share the limelight with Schumacher on this historic day.
2009
WINNER: Kimi Raikkonen (Ferrari), 2nd: Giancarlo Fisichella (Force India Mercedes), 3rd: Sebastian Vettel (Red Bull Racing Renault)
IF HE hadn’t been passed on the KERS by Kimi Raikkonen after a Safety Car restart, Giancarlo Fisichella and Force India will have probably won. A shock pole and a wonderful second spot was the dream ticket for the team and for the ageing Italian, who moved to Ferrari as stand-in for the injured Felipe Massa on the back of this amazing result. It was a bad day for championship leader, Jenson Button, as he was taken out on the first lap by Romain Grosjean’s Renault. However, with his main championship rivals, Rubens Barrichello in 7th and Mark Webber out of the points in 9th, little damage had been done to Button’s lead. Third place kept Sebastian Vettel just about in touch with the leader.
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