Overview[]
The 1998 Austrian Grand Prix was the fifth race of the 1998 FF1M Season.
Report[]
While the camera caught Jean Alesi’s shocking getaway from 14th, Juan Pablo Montoya converted Mason's first pole position into the lead as J Racing’s Alexander Wurz outbraked Michael Schumacher for 2nd into the first corner. Damon Hill had a rotten start and dropped from 3rd to 9th having received a tap from Ralf Schumacher.
Montoya rocketed away from Wurz, pulling away by more than a second per lap, while Rubens Barrichello overtook Michael for 3rd place on lap 3. It was obvious that Montoya was on a lighter fuel load and had to pull away from the entire field to build a gap before his first stop.
Hill was desperate to make amends for his wretched start and overtook Mika Hakkinen for 8th place. Hakkinen’s compromised exit meant that Ralf followed Hill’s lead and took 9th place. Meanwhile, Olivier Panis retired with a water leak.
Jos Verstappen had a lightning start from 10th on the grid to be 6th by the end of the first lap, and then he breezed past Mika Salo for 5th on lap 5. On the next lap, Ralf continued to make progress, neatly slotting in between Hill and Johnny Herbert on the run up to Remus.
Verstappen was at it again, this time slipstreaming past Michael for 4th place on lap 9. He then caught up to the battling Wurz and Barrichello. The J Racing driver was defending well against the Pedersen driver, but if Barrichello was having it tricky, then that was nothing compared to his teammate, who suffered an engine failure.
Barrichello’s struggle to get past Wurz resulted in him losing 3rd place to Verstappen in a tricky outbraking manoeuvre on lap 17. A lap later, the Dutchman took 2nd place off of Wurz, who shortly lost 3rd place when Barrichello finally overtook him two laps later.
Ralf's race came to a premature end whilst running 8th with his rear wing engulfed in flames from a cooked Ford engine. Wurz’s exit was less spectacular, but perhaps more painful as he retired from 4th.
Verstappen and Montoya made their first stops within two laps of each other. Verstappen dropped down to 12th, but Montoya had built up such a huge lead during his first stint, he managed to stay there. Barrichello was up to 2nd and with a much lighter car, he eased past the Mason driver on lap 30.
Gui Racing’s difficult weekend got worse as Jean Alesi’s engine suffered the same fate as his teammate’s and retired from 7th place. Team boss Gui Cramer was very sad about his double retirement. Meanwhile, Montoya and Verstappen made their second stops with the former maintaining the lead and the latter rejoining 7th.
Both Dark Wolf drivers went into combat on lap 46, with Mark Blundell taking 14th from his teammate. More importantly, Hakkinen squeezed past Barrichello nine laps later with a difficult outbraking move on the Brazilian. Hakkinen was the last of the one-stoppers and after making his pitstop, he began chasing his teammate for 2nd.
Verstappen on his fresher tyres began clawing his way back up the order, passing Salo for 6th place. This became 5th when heartbreakingly, Montoya’s splendid drive came to an end ten laps from the finish in a cloud of smoke from his Mercedes engine. Two laps later, Verstappen gained another place when 4th-placed Herbert’s transmission broke. Giancarlo Fisichella became the final retiree with electrical problems which handed 8th place to Bruno Junqueira, who gave Maestro Motorsport their first points of the season.
Dodgem took the chequered flag with Michael ahead of Hakkinen, who set the fastest lap on the final tour. Barrichello took 3rd, not far ahead of Verstappen. Salo took his first points of the season ahead of Allan McNish and Eddie Irvine. Both Maestro and Dark Wolf drivers rounded out the finishers.
Qualifying[]
Conditions: Dry
| Pos. | No. | Driver | Team | Tyre | Time | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 21 |  Juan Pablo Montoya
|
 Mason-Mercedes
|
|
1:12.292 | |
| 2 | 16 |  Michael Schumacher
|
Dodgem-Ferrari (W)
|
|
1:12.315 | +0.023 |
| 3 | 1 | Damon Hill
|
Willow Images-Ferrari
|
|
1:12.406 | +0.114 |
| 4 | 18 |  Alexander Wurz
|
J Racing-Ford
|
|
1:12.485 | +0.193 |
| 5 | 12 |  Mika Salo
|
 AquinoPlus-Peugeot (W)
|
|
1:12.549 | +0.257 |
| 6 | 15 | Rubens Barrichello
|
 Pedersen-Mercedes (W)
|
|
1:12.599 | +0.307 |
| 7 | 17 | Mika Hakkinen
|
Dodgem-Ferrari (W)
|
|
1:12.620 | +0.328 |
| 8 | 3 | Ralf Schumacher
|
Gui Racing-Ford (W)
|
|
1:12.713 | +0.421 |
| 9 | 11 |  Giancarlo Fisichella
|
AquinoPlus-Peugeot (W)
|
|
1:12.822 | +0.530 |
| 10 | 5 |  Jos Verstappen
|
FJR-Mecachrome
|
|
1:12.839 | +0.547 |
| 11 | 14 |  Jacques Villeneuve
|
Pedersen-Mercedes (W)
|
|
1:12.842 | +0.550 |
| 12 | 8 | Johnny Herbert
|
VTR-Mecachrome
|
|
1:12.889 | +0.597 |
| 13 | 7 | Eddie Irvine
|
VTR-Mecachrome
|
|
1:12.915 | +0.623 |
| 14 | 4 |  Jean Alesi
|
Gui Racing-Ford (W)
|
|
1:12.961 | +0.669 |
| 15 | 6 | Allan McNish
|
FJR-Mecachrome
|
|
1:13.212 | +0.920 |
| 16 | 23 | Mark Blundell
|
Dark Wolf-Mugen Honda
|
|
1:13.225 | +0.933 |
| 17 | 19 | Olivier Panis
|
J Racing-Ford
|
|
1:13.333 | +1.041 |
| 18 | 9 | Bruno Junqueira
|
Maestro-Peugeot
|
|
1:13.335 | +1.043 |
| 19 | 20 | David Coulthard
|
Mason-Mercedes
|
|
1:13.366 | +1.074 |
| 20 | 2 |  Kenny Brack
|
Willow Images-Ferrari
|
|
1:13.434 | +1.142 |
| 21 | 10 |  Marc Gene
|
Maestro-Peugeot
|
|
1:13.800 | +1.508 |
| 22 | 22 | Jan Magnussen
|
Dark Wolf-Mugen Honda
|
|
1:14.087 | +1.795 |
Race[]
Conditions: Dry
| Pos. | No. | Driver | Team | Tyre | Time/Retired | Grid | Pts. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 16 | Michael Schumacher
|
Dodgem-Ferrari (W)
|
|
+1:28:54.575 | 2 | 12 |
| 2 | 17 | Mika Hakkinen
|
Dodgem-Ferrari (W)
|
|
+11.295 | 7 | 8 |
| 3 | 15 | Rubens Barrichello
|
Pedersen-Mercedes (W)
|
|
+18.943 | 6 | 6 |
| 4 | 5 | Jos Verstappen
|
FJR-Mecachrome
|
|
+22.352 | 10 | 5 |
| 5 | 12 | Mika Salo
|
AquinoPlus-Peugeot (W)
|
|
+31.034 | 5 | 4 |
| 6 | 6 | Allan McNish
|
FJR-Mecachrome
|
|
+33.703 | 15 | 3 |
| 7 | 7 | Eddie Irvine
|
VTR-Mecachrome
|
|
+36.238 | 13 | 2 |
| 8 | 9 | Bruno Junqueira
|
Maestro-Peugeot
|
|
+1:02.404 | 18 | 1 |
| 9 | 10 | Marc Gene
|
Maestro-Peugeot
|
|
+1 Lap | 21 | |
| 10 | 22 | Jan Magnussen
|
Dark Wolf-Mugen Honda
|
|
+1 Lap | 22 | |
| 11 | 23 | Mark Blundell
|
Dark Wolf-Mugen Honda
|
|
+1 Lap | 16 | |
| 12 | 11 | Giancarlo Fisichella
|
AquinoPlus-Peugeot (W)
|
|
+5 Laps/Electrical | 9 | |
| 13 | 8 | Johnny Herbert
|
VTR-Mecachrome
|
|
+8 Laps/Transmission | 12 | |
| Ret | 2 | Kenny Brack
|
Willow Images-Ferrari
|
|
Engine | 20 | |
| Ret | 21 | Juan Pablo Montoya
|
Mason-Mercedes
|
|
Engine | 1 | |
| Ret | 4 | Jean Alesi
|
Gui Racing-Ford (W)
|
|
Engine | 14 | |
| Ret | 1 | Damon Hill
|
Willow Images-Ferrari
|
|
Water Leak | 3 | |
| Ret | 18 | Alexander Wurz
|
J Racing-Ford
|
|
Engine | 4 | |
| Ret | 20 | David Coulthard
|
Mason-Mercedes
|
|
Oil Leak | 19 | |
| Ret | 3 | Ralf Schumacher
|
Gui Racing-Ford (W)
|
|
Oil Leak | 8 | |
| Ret | 14 | Jacques Villeneuve
|
Pedersen-Mercedes (W)
|
|
Engine | 11 | |
| Ret | 19 | Olivier Panis
|
J Racing-Ford
|
|
Water Leak | 17 |
Driver of the Day: Juan Pablo Montoya
Fastest Laps[]
| Pos. | No. | Driver | Team | Tyre | Time | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 17 | Mika Hakkinen
|
Dodgem-Ferrari (W)
|
|
1:13.051 | |
| 2 | 16 | Michael Schumacher
|
Dodgem-Ferrari (W)
|
|
1:13.067 | +0.016 |
| 3 | 21 | Juan Pablo Montoya
|
Mason-Mercedes
|
|
1:13.229 | +0.178 |
| 4 | 5 | Jos Verstappen
|
FJR-Mecachrome
|
|
1:13.360 | +0.309 |
| 5 | 15 | Rubens Barrichello
|
Pedersen-Mercedes (W)
|
|
1:13.412 | +0.361 |
| 6 | 6 | Allan McNish
|
FJR-Mecachrome
|
|
1:13.468 | +0.417 |
| 7 | 7 | Eddie Irvine
|
VTR-Mecachrome
|
|
1:13.506 | +0.455 |
| 8 | 12 | Mika Salo
|
AquinoPlus-Peugeot (W)
|
|
1:13.569 | +0.518 |
| 9 | 4 | Jean Alesi
|
Gui Racing-Ford (W)
|
|
1:13.585 | +0.534 |
| 10 | 8 | Johnny Herbert
|
VTR-Mecachrome
|
|
1:13.628 | +0.577 |
| 11 | 10 | Marc Gene
|
Maestro-Peugeot
|
|
1:14.064 | +1.013 |
| 12 | 11 | Giancarlo Fisichella
|
AquinoPlus-Peugeot (W)
|
|
1:14.133 | +1.082 |
| 13 | 9 | Bruno Junqueira
|
Maestro-Peugeot
|
|
1:14.137 | +1.086 |
| 14 | 23 | Mark Blundell
|
Dark Wolf-Mugen Honda
|
|
1:14.197 | +1.146 |
| 15 | 1 | Damon Hill
|
Willow Images-Ferrari
|
|
1:14.432 | +1.381 |
| 16 | 3 | Ralf Schumacher
|
Gui Racing-Ford (W)
|
|
1:14.606 | +1.555 |
| 17 | 22 | Jan Magnussen
|
Dark Wolf-Mugen Honda
|
|
1:14.724 | +1.673 |
| 18 | 18 | Alexander Wurz
|
J Racing-Ford
|
|
1:14.879 | +1.828 |
| 19 | 2 | Kenny Brack
|
Willow Images-Ferrari
|
|
1:14.897 | +1.846 |
| 20 | 20 | David Coulthard
|
Mason-Mercedes
|
|
1:15.076 | +2.025 |
| 21 | 14 | Jacques Villeneuve
|
Pedersen-Mercedes (W)
|
|
1:15.278 | +2.227 |
| 22 | 19 | Olivier Panis
|
J Racing-Ford
|
|
1:18.333 | +5.282 |
Championship Standings[]
| Drivers Championship | Teams Championship | Engine Trophy | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pos. | Driver | Pts. | Wins | -/+ | Pos. | Team | Pts. | Wins | -/+ | Pos. | Engine | Pts. | Wins | -/+ |
| 1 | Ralf Schumacher
|
38 | 2 | = | 1 | Dodgem-Ferrari (W)
|
64 | 3 | = | 1 | Ferrari
|
74 | 3 | = |
| 2 | Michael Schumacher
|
38 | 2 | = | 2 | Gui Racing-Ford (W)
|
42 | 2 | = | 2 |  Ford
|
43 | 2 | = |
| 3 | Mika Hakkinen
|
26 | 1 | = | 3 | Pedersen-Mercedes (W)
|
26 | = | 3 | Mecachrome
|
36 | = | ||
| 4 | Allan McNish
|
14 |  1
|
4 | FJR-Mecachrome
|
25 | = | 4 | Mercedes
|
31 | = | |||
| 5 | Jacques Villeneuve
|
13 |  1
|
5 | VTR-Mecachrome
|
16 | = | 5 | Peugeot
|
13 | = | |||
| 6 | Rubens Barrichello
|
13 | 4
|
6 | AquinoPlus-Peugeot (W)
|
12 | 1
|
6 |  Mugen Honda
|
0 | = | |||