F1 classic races - Korea

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.  As Korea only made its bow onto the world championship stage last season, here is a varied selection of events that are no longer on the current F1 calendar, plus last year’s inaugural event in Korea.  The races are between 1991 and 2010, so enjoy the archive!

1991 – Portugal

WINNER: Riccardo Patrese (Williams Renault), 2^nd: Ayrton Senna (McLaren Honda), 3^rd: Jean Alesi (Ferrari)

WILLIAMS may have won the 1991 Portuguese Grand Prix, but it was the wrong driver as far as the championship battle was concerned.  Despite starting fourth, Nigel Mansell took the lead early on and looked set for a crucial victory.  Disaster then struck at his first pitstop, when chief mechanic Peter Windsor didn’t tighten up his right rear wheel.  The wheel rolled off down the pitlane, leaving a frustrated Mansell, beating his hands on the steering wheel in sheer despair.  The team then worked on the car in an illegal area and Nigel was black-flagged in Estoril for the second time in three years, having charged back to fifth.  Riccardo Patrese drove well to win, but second place took Ayrton Senna a massive step forward towards a third world championship.

1998 – Argentina

CONTROVERSY: Coulthard was furious with this contact in 1998

WINNER: Michael Schumacher (Ferrari), 2^nd: Mika Hakkinen (McLaren Mercedes), 3^rd: Eddie Irvine (Ferrari)

MCLAREN had dominated the first two races of 1998, but Ferrari and Michael Schumacher responded in superb fashion on F1’s last visit to Buenos Aires.  A new, wider tyre from Goodyear helped them close the gap.  The talking point of the race came on lap six, when Schumacher collided with David Coulthard, spinning the McLaren around and out of the lead.  Schumacher survived and despite a late trip into the gravel during a rain shower, beat Mika Hakkinen by over 20 seconds.  Eddie Irvine won out in a fierce scrap with youngster Alexander Wurz to secure a double podium finish for Ferrari.  Further run-ins with Jacques Villeneuve and Giancarlo Fisichella left Coulthard’s car looking like a battering ram by the finish.  However, he still earnt a point for his troubles.

1999 – France

WINNER: Heinz-Harald Frentzen (Jordan Mugen Honda), 2^nd: Mika Hakkinen (McLaren Mercedes), 3^rd: Rubens Barrichello (Stewart Ford)

THIS was a great Grand Prix, which Stewart, McLaren and Ferrari took turns in taking command, yet Jordan won the race.  An inspired decision on the pitwall saw the Irish team fuel Heinz-Harald Frentzen’s car to the brim during a heavy downpour on lap 22.  Frentzen didn’t have to pit again and claimed the lead when both Mika Hakkinen and Rubens Barrichello had to call in late on for a splash and dash.  Jordan’s second Grand Prix victory was memorable, but Damon Hill’s future in the sport came into serious question.  In a wet qualifying, he failed to make the 107% cut-off.  Given special dispensation to start, he tangled with Pedro de la Rosa and collected a puncture, before giving up at half-distance.  Afterwards, he cast doubts over whether he would get back into an F1 cockpit.  David Coulthard’s rotten season continued, when an alternator problem forced him out of a commanding lead on the ninth lap, whilst Michael Schumacher was restricted to fifth by gear selection issues.  Jean Alesi was on for a great result, but spun off in the downpour, as did Jacques Villeneuve and Alexander Wurz.  It was a crazy event, full of overtaking, but a magnificent day for Jordan’s new star in Magny-Cours.

2003 – Austria

WINNER: Michael Schumacher (Ferrari), 2^nd: Kimi Raikkonen (McLaren Mercedes), 3^rd: Rubens Barrichello (Ferrari)

AUSTRIA 2003 was one of Michael Schumacher’s greatest victories.  He had a big advantage infront, when he pitted for a routine pitstop on lap 20.  Seconds later, droplets of fuel from a faulty refuelling rig made contact with the engine cover and his Ferrari was on fire.  The mechanics quickly put out the barbeque, whilst Schumacher sat there, looking as cool as a cucumber.  Nine laps later, he hunted down Kimi Raikkonen’s ailing McLaren successfully and seconds later, was back infront when a water leak terminated Juan Pablo Montoya’s chance of victory for BMW Williams.  Raikkonen showed his championship might by protecting a sick engine and resolutely holding off Rubens Barrichello to prevent a Ferrari 1-2.  Jenson Button did well to finish fourth, his best result of the season whilst an engine failure ended a great comeback drive from Fernando Alonso, having risen from 19^th on the grid to fifth.  However, this was the day when great escapes really do come true and a stunning way for Austria to end its Formula One relationship.

2004 – USA

WINNER: Michael Schumacher (Ferrari), 2^nd: Rubens Barrichello (Ferrari), 3^rd: Takuma Sato (BAR Honda)

MICHAEL Schumacher had to deal with mixed emotions at Indianapolis in 2004.  He managed to beat his team-mate Rubens Barrichello to record his eighth win from nine attempts in a runaway Ferrari season.  However, he had to drive past the scene of a nasty accident for his brother, Ralf.  11 laps into the event and a puncture on his Williams sent Schumacher Jnr careering backwards into the turn 13 concrete wall.  He suffered a cracked vertebra and would miss the majority of the season.  He wasn’t the only Michelin driver to collect a puncture, as debris on the track from a startline crash ended Fernando Alonso’s challenge two laps earlier.  Juan Pablo Montoya was black-flagged, after his engine died on the dummy grid.  He failed to switch to the spare car 15 seconds before the start of the formation lap, sealing his fate.  The biggest cheers in the paddock were for Takuma Sato, who recorded his one and only podium finish in F1 for BAR and for Zsvolt Baumgartner, who survived the mayhem to be the eighth and final finisher, hence scoring Minardi’s first championship point in over two years.

2010 – Korea

BLOW: Vettel extinguishes the charred remains of his engine in 2010

WINNER: Fernando Alonso (Ferrari), 2^nd: Lewis Hamilton (McLaren Mercedes), 3^rd: Felipe Massa (Ferrari)

F1’s maiden visit to Korea began with an 80-minute delay, due to heavy rain.  Four laps behind the Safety Car was criticised by the drivers, so the event was temporarily suspended.  Once they got going, Red Bull imploded.  Two laps after the Safety Car pitted, championship leader Mark Webber got onto the Astroturf and spun into the wall.  His car came back across the track, taking out the unfortunate Nico Rosberg in the process.  Having been the fastest driver all weekend, Sebastian Vettel looked set to win and take the championship lead.  However, he suffered a cruel engine failure with just ten laps to go, handing Fernando Alonso the victory and the drivers lead in the process.  Second place for Lewis Hamilton kept him in the championship challenge, but team-mate Jenson Button had a nightmare afternoon.  He struggled with grip all day, was one of the slowest cars on the track and finished a distant 12^th; all but ending his hopes of retaining the world championship he had won in 2009.  Fourth place for Michael Schumacher equalled his best result of a tricky first season back in the sport after a three year lay-off.

F1 classic races - Belgium

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), 2^nd: Nigel Mansell (Williams Renault), 3^rd: 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), 2^nd: Damon Hill (Williams Renault), 3^rd: Martin Brundle (Ligier Mugen Honda)

A SENSATIONAL drive from 16^th 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), 2^nd: Ralf Schumacher (Jordan Mugen Honda), 3^rd: 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.

F1 1998 - GP Belgique_G.FISICHELLA(Benetton... by parisiano60

2000

WINNER: Mika Hakkinen (McLaren Mercedes), 2^nd: Michael Schumacher (Ferrari), 3^rd: 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

UNTOUCHABLE: Raikkonen was in a class of one in 2004

WINNER: Kimi Raikkonen (McLaren Mercedes), 2^nd: Michael Schumacher (Ferrari), 3^rd: 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), 2^nd: Giancarlo Fisichella (Force India Mercedes), 3^rd: 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 7^th and Mark Webber out of the points in 9^th, little damage had been done to Button’s lead.  Third place kept Sebastian Vettel just about in touch with the leader. 

Imola 1994 - The Darkest Weekend In Formula 1 History

This weekend marks the 16^th anniversary of that shocking April/May weekend at Imola in 1994.  The San Marino Grand Prix will be remembered for one of the most hideous times in Grand Prix history, with a catalogue of spectacular and deadly crashes, which may have helped the safety of today’s modern-day cars, but caused its destruction in the process, taking away the life of the greatest Grand Prix driver of his generation, Ayrton Senna.

The horror of the weekend began on Friday 29^th April 1994, when in the first official qualifying session, the young Brazilian Rubens Barrichello lost control of his Jordan Hart car approaching the quick Variante Bassa chicane.  His car launched off a kerb and smashed into the tyre wall at colossal speed, narrowly avoiding going over some catch fencing, which separated the track from local spectators.  Only the quick reactions of Professor Sid Watkins prevented the talented Barrichello from swallowing his tongue.  Remarkably, he walked away with just a cut lip, minor bruising and a broken nose.  His weekend was over, but his life had remained intact.  It reminded Grand Prix fans and drivers of the real dangers that the sport possesses.  Just 24 hours later, the luck ran out.

31-year old Austrian Roland Ratzenberger was qualifying for only his second Grand Prix, having finished his first race in Aida, Japan just a fortnight earlier.  Eighteen minutes into Saturday’s second qualifying session, Ratzenberger’s front wing broke off exiting the flat-out Tamburello bend.  It is thought that the wing may have been weakened by an earlier off-track excursion.  With no steering capability, the Simtek Ford car ploughed straight into the concrete wall at Villeneuve, on the approach to the Tosa hairpin.  The impact was thought to be close to 200mph, Roland powerless to control any impact with this crash.  With his car smashed to pieces, it came clear from a very early evident stage that Roland wasn’t going to be as lucky as Barrichello was.  Once again, the session was stopped and the medics did what they could to save the rookie’s life.  However, it was a battle in vain, with Ratzenberger being pronounced dead on arrival at Bologna Maggiore Hospital.  He became the first driver to be killed at a race meeting for twelve years, since Ricardo Paletti’s demise at the 1982 Canadian Grand Prix.  The last driver to suffer a fatal crash in an F1 car was the Italian Elio de Angelis at the wheel of a Brabham, during a test session at Paul Ricard, France in 1986.  The next tragedy to hit the sport was less than 24 hours away.

Having taken his 65^th pole position, the Williams FW16 of Brazilian, Ayrton Senna raced into an instant lead, from German wunderkind Michael Schumacher (winner of the first two races) and Gerhard Berger’s Ferrari.  However, the race was put under caution, when JJ Lehto’s Benetton stalled on row three of the grid, and was collected immediately by the unsighted Pedro Lamy in the Lotus.  Lamy escaped unhurt and Lehto suffered a light arm injury, but it was spectators hurt; eight of them hit by flying debris from the crumbled Lotus Mugen Honda.  After five laps under Safety Car, Senna charged away, needing the points badly to keep up with Schumacher at the top of the drivers’ standings.  On lap seven, Senna’s car refused to turn into the flat-out Tamburello corner, pitching straight-on into a concrete wall at some 140mph, possibly even greater speed.  The destroyed Williams returned to the edge of the circuit, throwing debris in all directions.  The race was red-flagged.

Once again, it was clear that Senna was in a grave condition from the outset, with very little sign of movement from the cockpit of his car.  As Watkins and the marshals got to work again, the severity of the crash, especially from the pictures being beamed around the world on Eurosport made the scene even worse.  Senna was airlifted to hospital from the track, and very quickly, medical bulletins filtered through that any hope of a recovery was being realistically lost.  The race continued, with Schumacher claiming another win under a deep black cloud.  After the race, Senna was announced as clinically brain dead and his life machine was switched off.  Brazil went into a state of national mourning, the world of sport stunned into silence.  Where would Formula 1 go now, after the loss of its most influential and iconic figure?  Another crash involving Michele Alboreto’s Minardi in the pit lane in the restarted race, which injured mechanics from Lotus and Ferrari just added to the doom and gloom around the Autodromo Enzo E Dino Ferrari.

Fortunately, the steps taken to improve safety in Formula One have been of massive leaps and boundaries.  Many drivers since then, including Robert Kubica, Heikki Kovalainen, Takuma Sato and more recently in Hungary last year, Felipe Massa have had serious, shocking accidents, but have been able to live the tail and go racing again.  The 1994 San Marino Grand Prix will go down as the darkest weekend in motorsport history and sixteen years on, its legacy will remain, but its pain will never heal.

   

R.I.P Roland Ratzenberger & Ayrton Senna: Gone, but never forgotten!