Overview[]
The S5 - Japanese Grand Prix was the fifteenth race of Masters Season 5.
Report[]
Even though the constructors championship had already been decided, the drivers championship was far from decided. Lewis Hamilton held a very slim upper hand over his teammate, and it perhaps because of this knowledge that gave Hamilton the edge in qualifying, with his fifth pole position of the season.
The two were set for their customary inter-team squabble in what was a crucial race. However, the pendulum swung dramatically in Fernando Alonso's favour when Hamilton suffered a retirement, and the Spaniard took full advantage of this by winning and moving ten points clear in the championship. Finishing 2nd and moving up to 3rd in the championship was Damon Hill, while Ayrton Senna finished 3rd, and moved to equal 4th with Mika Hakkinen. Only seven drivers finished, although Jarno Trulli was still classified 8th.
Qualifying[]
| Pos. | No. | Driver | Team | Tyre |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 |  Lewis Hamilton
|
Maestro-Honda (W)
|
|
| 2 | 3 |  Fernando Alonso
|
Maestro-Honda (W)
|
|
| 3 | 9 |  Jean Alesi
|
FJR-Ilmor (W)
|
|
| 4 | 16 |  Ayrton Senna
|
Gui Racing-Ferrari (W)
|
|
| 5 | 14 |  Michael Schumacher
|
 Pedersen-Ferrari
|
|
| 6 | 10 | Felipe Massa
|
FJR-Ilmor (W)
|
|
| 7 | 8 |  Gerhard Berger
|
Exolite-Ilmor
|
|
| 8 | 7 | Nigel Mansell
|
Exolite-Ilmor
|
|
| 9 | 15 |  Kimi Raikkonen
|
Pedersen-Ferrari
|
|
| 10 | 1 | Alain Prost
|
Dodgem-Honda
|
|
| 11 | 12 | Damon Hill
|
 M-Sport-Renault (W)
|
|
| 12 | 23 | David Coulthard
|
Super Alex-Honda
|
|
| 13 | 18 |  Jarno Trulli
|
Willow Images-Ferrari
|
|
| 14 | 11 | Mika Hakkinen
|
M-Sport-Renault (W)
|
|
| 15 | 2 | Riccardo Patrese
|
Dodgem-Honda
|
|
| 16 | 22 |  Takuma Sato
|
Super Alex-Honda
|
|
| 17 | 19 | Heikki Kovalainen
|
Willow Images-Ferrari
|
|
| 18 | 17 | Luca Filippi
|
Gui Racing-Ferrari (W)
|
|
| 19 | 20 | Rubens Barrichello
|
Ajay Motorsports-Hart (W)
|
|
| 20 | 5 |  Jacques Villeneuve
|
AquinoPlus-Renault
|
|
| 21 | 21 | Martin Brundle
|
Ajay Motorsports-Hart (W)
|
|
| 22 | 6 | Giancarlo Fisichella
|
AquinoPlus-Renault
|
|
Race[]
| Pos. | No. | Driver | Team | Tyre | Grid | Pts. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | Fernando Alonso
|
Maestro-Honda (W)
|
|
2 | 12 |
| 2 | 12 | Damon Hill
|
M-Sport-Renault (W)
|
|
11 | 8 |
| 3 | 16 | Ayrton Senna
|
Gui Racing-Ferrari (W)
|
|
4 | 6 |
| 4 | 14 | Michael Schumacher
|
Pedersen-Ferrari
|
|
5 | 5 |
| 5 | 15 | Kimi Raikkonen
|
Pedersen-Ferrari
|
|
9 | 4 |
| 6 | 19 | Heikki Kovalainen
|
Willow Images-Ferrari
|
|
17 | 3 |
| 7 | 21 | Martin Brundle
|
Ajay Motorsports-Hart (W)
|
|
21 | 2 |
| 8 | 18 | Jarno Trulli
|
Willow Images-Ferrari
|
|
13 | 1 |
| Retirements | ||||||
| Ret | 4 | Lewis Hamilton
|
Maestro-Honda (W)
|
|
1 | |
| Ret | 11 | Mika Hakkinen
|
M-Sport-Renault (W)
|
|
14 | |
| Ret | 1 | Alain Prost
|
Dodgem-Honda
|
|
10 | |
| Ret | 9 | Jean Alesi
|
FJR-Ilmor (W)
|
|
3 | |
| Ret | 10 | Felipe Massa
|
FJR-Ilmor (W)
|
|
6 | |
| Ret | 7 | Nigel Mansell
|
Exolite-Ilmor
|
|
8 | |
| Ret | 5 | Jacques Villeneuve
|
AquinoPlus-Renault
|
|
20 | |
| Ret | 6 | Giancarlo Fisichella
|
AquinoPlus-Renault
|
|
22 | |
| Ret | 23 | David Coulthard
|
Super Alex-Honda
|
|
12 | |
| Ret | 22 | Takuma Sato
|
Super Alex-Honda
|
|
16 | |
| Ret | 8 | Gerhard Berger
|
Exolite-Ilmor
|
|
7 | |
| Ret | 20 | Rubens Barrichello
|
Ajay Motorsports-Hart (W)
|
|
19 | |
| Ret | 17 | Luca Filippi
|
Gui Racing-Ferrari (W)
|
|
18 | |
| Ret | 2 | Riccardo Patrese
|
Dodgem-Honda
|
|
15 | |
Championship Standings[]
| Drivers Championship | Teams Championship | Engine Trophy | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pos. | Driver | Pts. | Wins | -/+ | Pos. | Team | Pts. | Wins | -/+ | Pos. | Engine | Pts. | Wins | -/+ |
| 1 | Fernando Alonso
|
99 | 7 |  1
|
1 | Maestro-Honda (W)
|
188 | 11 | = | 1 | Honda
|
219 | 11 | = |
| 2 | Lewis Hamilton
|
89 | 4 |  1
|
2 | M-Sport-Renault (W)
|
126 | 2 | = | 2 | Renault
|
144 | 2 | = |
| 3 | Damon Hill
|
65 | 1 | 1
|
3 | FJR-Ilmor (W)
|
81 | 1 | = | 3 | Ilmor
|
98 | 1 | = |
| 4 | Mika Hakkinen
|
61 | 1 | 1
|
4 | Dodgem-Honda
|
62 | = | 4 | Ferrari
|
89 | 1 | = | |
| 5 | Ayrton Senna
|
61 | 1 | = | 5 | Gui Racing-Ferrari (W)
|
61 | 1 | = | 5 | Hart
|
2 | = | |
| 6 | Jean Alesi
|
51 | 1 | = | 6 | Pedersen-Ferrari
|
32 | 1
|
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