03.08.2000
F1:- French driver Jean Alesi, who was involved in a high-speed collision in Germany last weekend, could miss next week's Hungarian Grand Prix. Alesi was unhurt in the incident but was sick and later complained of feeling unwell, saying it was one of the worst accidents of his F1 career. "Jean is suffering a bit. It seems to be repercussions from the accident," a Prost team spokesman said. "He needs time to rest and we will wait for his decision."
Finnish driver Mika Salo is deciding whether to stay with Sauber next
season or to join newcomers Toyota as a test driver ahead of their F1 debut
in 2002. "At the moment it's 50-50 but every morning it makes more sense
to go to Toyota," he told Autosport magazine. "I have a contract here for
next year but everyone knows in F1, contracts are nothing more than pieces
of paper. I'm not a young boy any more and the Toyota offer goes well beyond
my racing career," he added.
MINTEX RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP:- The championship competitors travel to Wales
for the sixth round of the seven round series, the Harry Flatters Rally.
Yorkshireman Steve Petch currently leads the series in his Escort WRC,
but on this, the first tarmac round of the series, he will face tough opposition.
Local tarmac specialists Melvyn Evans and John Morgan will be among those
out to test Petch. All the action takes place on the Epynt military ranges
above Sennybridge, starting at 8.30am on Sunday.
04.08.2000
F1: TESTING (Valencia):-
Friday testing times (day 2 of 3):
mins secs
1 D Coulthard GB McLaren 1:16.11
2 M Hakkinen Fin McLaren 1:16.29
3 P de la Rosa Sp Arrows 1:16.71
4 P Diniz Brz Sauber
1:17.09
5 A Wurz Aut Benetton
1:17.16
6 G Fisichella It Benetton 1:17.26
7 L Burti Brz Jaguar
1:17.35
8 J Button GB Williams 1:18.22
9 R Schumacher Ger Williams 1:19.35
RALLYING:- Colin McRae has signed a new two-year deal with the Ford
team. McRae is currently third in the World Championship, while Ford lie
second in the manufacturers' standings "Now I have signed a contract with
Ford for two more years the whole team can be settled in the knowledge
that we will be focused no winning," he said. "We have already achieved
a huge amount together with the new Focus and I am absolutely convinced
that there is much more to come."
F.RENAULT (Snetterton):- Series leader Kimi Raikkonen topped the times in testing, despite crashing at 120mph when rain suddenly fell on to the Norfolk circuit. Mark McLoughlin and the impressive American Jeff Jones were second and third quickest.
Testing times:
mins secs
1 K Raikkonen Fin Manor 1:07.118
2 M McLoughlin GB Motaworld 1:07.253
3 J Jones US Manor
1:07.298
4 C Breeze GB Aztec
1:07.371
5 D Watts GB Manor
1:07.424
6 C Hall GB Aztek
1:07.536
05.08.2000
F1: TESTING (Valencia):-
Saturday testing times (day 3 of 3):
mins secs
1 G Fisichella It Benetton 1:15.78
2 A Wurz Aut Benetton
1:15.97
3 J Verstappen Ned Arrows 1.16.16
4 D Coulthard GB McLaren 1:16.59
5 L Burti Brz Jaguar
1:16.91
6 E Bernoldi Brz Sauber 1.17.31
7 R Schumacher Ger Williams 1:17.44
TYRESAFE SCOTTISH CHAMPIONSHIP (Colin McRae Forest Stages):- Brian Lyall roared home by more than a minute to win the Colin McRae Forest Stages Rally - his fourth straight victory in a row. Reigning Scottish champion Jon Burn snatched second place in the final stage from Phil Walker who tied for third with former champion Andrew Wood. In fifth place was Northern Ireland champion Dennis Biggerstaff. In a crowd-pleasing move, Colin McRae drove the course car ahead of the field, navigated by his wife Alison.
Final result after 6 stages: mins secs
1 Lyall/Bennie Subaru Imp
58:42
2 Burn/Quirk MG Metro
59:56
3 Walker/Martin Mazda 323
60:09
4 Wood/Parker Audi Quattro
60:09
5 Big'staff/C'le MG Metro 6R4 60:19
6 Dickson/Bisset Ford Escort 60:54
7 Adam/Adam Mitsubishi L
61:09
8 G'water/Wylie Mitsubishi L 61:19
9 Cavenagh/Ewing Mitsubishi L 61:18
10 Hogg/Hanna Mitsubishi L
61:19
ALMS (Toronto):- Scotland's Allan McNish has qualified in provisional
second place for the sixth round of the American Le Mans series at Toronto's
Mosport Park. The 30-year-old Scot, winner of the previous race at Sears
Point in California, came in second to his Audi team-mate Frank Biela of
Germany. Biela broke the 15-year-old track record as he posted a time 0.148
seconds quicker than the Scot. The German driver averaged almost 129mph
in his practice session.
07.08.2000
F1:- French driver Jean Alesi will race in the Hungarian Grand Prix
in Budapest on Sunday ` his Prost team have confirmed. Alesi has been suffering
from stomach and abdominal problems after crashing out on the 30th lap
of the German Grand Prix at Hockenheim last month. But reserve driver Stephane
Sarrazin will be on standby for the race in case Alesi has a relapse. "Jean
is feeling better and wants to race. There shouldn't be a problem but you
never know," said a Prost spokesman.
2001 CART SCHEDULE:-
Feb 11 Rio 200
Rio de Janeiro
Mar 11 Monterrey GP Monterrey
Apr 8 GP of Long Beach California
Apr 29 Texas 600 Fort
Worth
May 6 Spark Plug GP Nazareth
May 19 Firestone F'hawk Motegi, Japan
Jun 3 Miller Lite 225 Wisconsin
Jun 17 GP of Detroit Michigan
Jun 24 GI Joe's 200 Portland
Jul 1 GP of Cleveland Ohio
Jul 15 Molson Indy Toronto
Jul 22 Michigan 500 Brooklyn
Jul 29 Target GP Illinois
Aug 12 Miller Lite 200 Lexington
Aug 19 Motorola 220 Wisconsin
Sep 2 Molson Indy Vancouver
Sep 15 German 500 Lausitz,
Germany
Sep 22 Rockingham 500 Corby, England
Oct 7 GP of Houston Texas
Oct 14 GP of Monterey California
Oct 28 Honda Indy 300 Queensland, Aus
Nov 4 Marlboro 500 California
MINTEX RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP:- Melvyn Evans has become the fourth different
championship leader in five rounds after taking maximum points in the Harry
Flatters Rally. It was the Escort driver's second successive win in the
event which takes place on the Epynt Military Training area in Mid Wales.
Championship leader Steve Petch took second place ahead of rival Anthony
Eaton to consolidate his overall lead. Phil Morgan won the Group N race,
and Andy Gwynne the Formula Two litre event.
BTTC:- Gareth Howell is poised to make his British Touring Car Championship
debut at Oulton Park next month after impressing in Ford Fiesta Zetec races.
The 19-year-old from Bromley in Kent will drive a Ford Focus in the Class
B race on September 10.
08.08.2000 - EUROPEAN F.PALMER AUDI
Derek Hayes was the fastest driver in testing before this weekend's round of races at Snetterton. Hayes, the winner of the last round in Germany, was just ahead of championship leader Damien Faulkner.
Testing times (Tue):
mins secs
1 D Hayes
1:05.126
2 D Faulkner
@ 0.054
3 R Kerr
@ 0.110
4 R Lyons
@ 0.239
5 J Van Der Ende
@ 0.270
6 M Cioci
@ 0.293
09.08.2000 - F1: THE HUNGARIAN GP
Minardi have announced a "friendly parting" with director Cesare Fiorio. Minardi officials said the decision was taken as a result of differing views about the team strategies. Fiorio, a former manager of team Ferrari, joined Minardi in January 1999.
With just six round to go, the world championship moves to Hungary with the race for the title far more exciting than anybody could have imagined. Michael Schumacher seemed to have the title sown up after three wins at the start of the sea on. However, while controversy has raged over his tactics, results have seen the McLaren pair of Mika Hakkinen and David Coulthard close in on him. Rubens Barrichello can also not be ruled out of the final shake-up.
Championship leader Michael Schumacher has said he will be happy just to pick up some points on Saturday. The German has seen his 22-point lead reduced to just two after failing to finish in four of the last five races. "My number one priority will be to get through the first lap without a problem ` and finish the race in the points," Schumacher said. "I am confident that we will have a competitive car in Hungary, I just need some better luck to go with it."
World champion Mika Hakkinen has moved to joint second in the standings, two points adrift of Michael Schumacher, and is targeting victory on Sunday. He led the McLarens to a one-two at the Hungaroring last year, and will be keen for a similar result. "It's probably the closest I get to a home race because there are always a vast number of Finnish fans with flags and banners," he told McLaren's website "I returned from my holiday last week and I feel prepared for this weekend."
David Coulthard believes that he can still win the championship as the season moves towards its finale. "With six races to go there are still a lot of points to go for," he told McLaren's website. "I have never been closer to Schumacher than I am now. This track is very technical and there are not a lot of opportunities for overtaking," he added "The best, and some will say the only, is at the end of the straight, so it's important to qualify well.
Jaguar's Eddie Irvine was plagued by bad luck at the last race in Germany, so he is trying to put it behind him as he prepares to drive in Hungary. "It's one of my favourite tracks as it reminds me of barrelling round a kart track," he said. "Overtaking isn't exactly easy, so you have to keep your concentration. Last year I missed out on pole by a whisker. I'd like to think I can get somewhere near the front this time around," he added.
Jaguar driver Johnny Herbert has fond memories of the Hungaroring. He confirmed: "I have good memories of Hungary, the best being from 1997 when I finished third ahead of the Ferraris of Michael Schumacher and Eddie Irvine. It is a challenging track and is one of those that is very dirty when we start running on Friday but improves as you creep towards qualifying. It is normally very hot there and you have to work hard to get through all the corners."
Jenson Button has been practising hard to build on his fourth place in the German Grand Prix. "Given the tight and twisty nature of the Hungaroring, I tested for two days last week at Valencia, a circuit similar in characteristics," he said. "Unlike the previous race, we must now move towards a high downforce set-up and we worked hard on this last week. I am obviously delighted at fourth place in Hockenheim and I hope to apply this momentum in Budapest."
Williams driver Ralf Schumacher is looking for an improvement after finishing just outside the points in his home race in Germany. "The Hungaroring is a very slow and narrow race track," he said. "Qualifying is very important. Our experience from last year shows we can sometimes encounter problems with low-speed circuits. The team has put a lot of effort into the preparation for this race. I hope we can improve on my last outing."
Jordan's Heinz-Harald Frentzen is looking forward to racing in Hungary at what he sees as an exciting circuit. "I find the last corner the most exciting and enjoyable one of the circuit," he said. "It has a 180 degrees radius and is very bumpy on the entry, which makes the car nervous. But there is a lot of grip on the apex and you can carry more load than the car is usually able to manage, which makes the lap exciting."
Jacques Villeneuve believes that he may be set for a good finish in the BAR in Sunday's race. "As far as the team is concerned, if the weekend goes well, we might have a small shot at the podium," he said. "The layout is interesting as there is quite a bit of elevation change and the corners are built around the contours of the area. It is a very physical race and a place where it is difficult to get a good, clean lap."
Sunday's race is scheduled to last for 77 laps or 190.195 miles. Briton
Nigel Mansell holds the lap record at the Hungaroring with a time of one
minute, 18.308 seconds while driving for Williams in 1992. The Hungaroring
is built into the hillside in Budapest and overtaking opportunities are
rare. The only real chance is underbraking into the first corner so a good
qualifying position is vital, as is a good pit-stop strategy.
11.08.2000
F1: THE HUNGARIAN GP
David Coulthard clocked the fastest time in the second practice session
for Sunday's race. He was 0.151 seconds ahead of Mika Hakkinen and championship
leader Michael Schumacher was third quickest. Jenson Button was eighth
in his Williams, Eddie Irvine was 10th and Johnny Herbert 20th. Schumacher
had led the way in the opening session, while Coulthard and Hakkinen preserved
their tyre allocation in the garage.
Benetton have announced that they have taken up the option to keep Giancarlo Fisichella for the 2001 campaign. It will be the Italian's fourth straight season for the team and he said: "I am delighted to be staying with Benetton next season. I have always had a good feeling and understanding with the team and it has been my goal to continue here." Managing director Flavio Briatore added: "Giancarlo has worked hard this season and produced some good results."
Friday practice times: mins
secs
1 D Coulthard GB McLaren 1:18.792
2 M Hakkinen Fin McLaren 1:18.943
3 M Schumacher Ger Ferrari 1:19.138
4 R Barrichello Brz Ferrari 1:19.896
5 J Trulli It Jordan
1:20.104
6 G Fisichella It Benetton 1:20.304
7 R Schumacher Ger Williams 1:20.307
8 J Button GB Williams
1:20.343
9 H H Frentzen Ger Jordan 1:20.443
10 E Irvine GB Jaguar
1:20.713
11 N Heidfeld Ger Prost 1:20.803
12 M Salo Fin Sauber
1:20.872
13 J Alesi Fr Prost
1:20.878
14 J Villeneuve Can BAR 1:21.243
15 P Diniz Brz Sauber
1:21.323
16 A Wurz Aut Benetton
1:21.381
17 P de la Rosa Sp Arrows 1:21.400
18 J Verstappen Ned Arrows 1:21.803
19 M Gene Sp Minardi
1:21.972
20 J Herbert GB Jaguar
1:22.015
21 R Zonta Brz BAR
1:22.169
22 G Mazzacane Arg Minardi 1:24.529
TYNESIDE STAGES RALLY:- John Price will continue his bid to clinch the
title by going all out for his fourth win of the season on Sunday. His
nearest rival Melvyn Evans will come to the event fresh from a win in the
Harry Flatters Rally. Evans will start at number two ahead of another pair
of Metros driven by John Brodie and Jon Mercer. Iain Henderson, Nicky Moore
and Giles Brooksbank are going for honours in the Group N category and
Guy Woodcock and Dave Cooling face a Formula Two fight.
CART:- Michael Andretti will be looking to extend his lead in the standings
in Sunday's Miller Lite 200 and is looking for a third win at the Mid-Ohio
track. Andretti has stretched his points advantage to 120-98 over Robert
Moreno, whose highest placing at the circuit was 10th in 1986. Moreno admitted:
"Mid-Ohio is a circuit where I have not finished well. At this point in
the championship it is important to do well at Mid-Ohio if we are going
to contend for the title."
12.08.2000
F1: THE HUNGARIAN GP
Michael Schumacher boosted his hopes of bouncing back to form with
a win on Sunday by surging to pole position. The series leader has not
scored points in four of his last five races but after dominating the second
practice session followed suit in qualifying. Schumacher's title rivals
David Coulthard and Mika Hakkinen were second and third fastest. Jenson
Button was eighth quickest, Eddie Irvine was 10th but Johnny Herbert finished
down in 17th place.
Ferrari driver Michael Schumacher was understandably delighted after aking his fifth pole position of the season. "It gives us a good basis for the race," said the German. "What is important is the race. I really have got to finish it. "If I can then I will have a good opportunity to win it." Schumacher wants to avoid a hat-trick of first-corner collisions and added: "There is always a bit of luck involved in the starts."
Saturday qualifying times: mins secs
1 M Schumacher Ger Ferrari 1:17.514
2 D Coulthard GB McLaren 1:17.886
3 M Hakkinen GB McLaren 1:17.922
4 R Schumacher Ger Williams 1:18.321
5 R Barrichello Brz Ferrari 1:18.330
6 H-H Frentzen Ger Jordan 1:18.523
7 G Fisichella It Benetton 1:18.607
8 J Button GB Williams
1:18.699
9 M Salo Fin Sauber
1:18.748
10 E Irvine GB Jaguar
1:19.008
11 A Wurz Aut Benetton
1:19.259
12 J Trulli It Jordan
1:19.266
13 P Diniz Brz Sauber
1:19.451
14 J Alesi Fr Prost
1:19.626
15 P de la Rosa Sp Arrows 1:19.897
16 J Villeneuve Can BAR 1:19.937
17 J Herbert GB Jaguar
1:19.956
18 R Zonta Brz BAR
1:20.272
19 N Heidfeld Ger Prost 1:20.481
20 J Verstappen Ned Arrows 1:20.609
21 M Gene Sp Minardi
1:20.654
22 G Mazzacane Arg Minardi 1:20.905
CART (Mid Ohio):- Brazil's Gil de Ferran took provisional pole position for Sunday's race, with compatriot and team-mate Helio Castroneves second. Scottish driver Dario Franchitti recorded the third fastest time. The next two places were taken by Brazilian Christian Fittipaldi and Kenny Brack of Sweden. The final positions for the race will be decided after final qualifying on Saturday. De Ferran is currently third in the CART standings.
Friday's qualifying times: min secs
1 G de Ferran Brz Honda 1:05.347
2 H Castro-N Brz Honda 1:05.362
3 D Franchitti GB Honda 1:05.971
4 C Fittipaldi Brz Ford 1:06.131
5 K Brack Swe Ford
1:06.317
6 A Fernandez Mex Ford 1:06.472
7 J Montoya Col Toyota 1:06.534
8 C Da Matta Brz Toyota 1:06.549
9 M Andretti US Ford
1:06.627
10 M Gugelmin Brz Mercedes 1:06.919
18 M Blundell GB Mercedes 1:07.877
F3000 (Hungaroring):-
Saturday Round 9 result Hrs min sec
1 B Junquiera Brz Petrobas 1:21:30.052
2 F Alonso Sp Astromega 1:21:30.647
3 R Mauricio Brz Red Bull 1:21:38.865
4 N Minissian Fr Playlife 1:21:41.193
5 J Wilson GB Nordic
1:21:42.687
Next round Spa-Francorchamps, August 26
F.PALMER AUDI (Snetterton):- Team Brask driver Jesper Carlsen became the eighth man to take pole position in the series this season. He was fractionally ahead of Justin Keen, with Christian Hohenadel third.
Leading qualifying times (Sat):
min secs
1 J Carlsen
1:04.513
2 J Keen
@ 0.002
3 C Hohenadel
@ 0.037
4 T Mullen
@ 0.125
5 D Faulkner
@ 0.177
6 J Van Der Ende @ 0.200
Former French F3 driver Bruno Besson claimed pole position for Sunday's second race. Christian Hohenadel was second with Jesper Carlsen taking third spot.
Leading qualifying times (Sat):
min secs
1 B Besson
1:04.266
2 C Hohenadel
@ 0.011
3 J Carlsen
@ 0.031
4 D Faulkner
@ 0.075
5 J Keen
@ 0.089
6 D Hayes
@ 0.211
NEWS:- German driver Carola Biehler, 35, has been killed in a crash
during the sixth round of the German endurance racing cup at the Nurburgring.
RALLYSPRINT:- Roger Duckworth took victory in a close finish to the
National Rallysprint Championship at Silverstone. The Subaru driver faced
the Escort of Chris Mellors in the best of three legs final which went
to the wire. The pair won a race each before Duckworth set a new course
record to ensure his triumph in the decider.
13.08.2000
F1: THE HUNGARIAN GP
Mika Hakkinen has taken over from Michael Schumacher at the top of
the driver standings after surging to victory in Budapest. The reigning
world champion moved from third to first at the start of the race and never
looked back. Schumacher was unable to keep pace with the Finn and finished
second, while David Coulthard was third. Eddie Irvine was eighth, Jenson
Button was ninth but Johnny Herbert failed to finish the race.
McLaren star Mika Hakkinen has revealed that he was surprised that he was able to make a superb start for the second race in a row. "I said in Hockenheim that you make a start like I did then once a year but it is not true ` I did it twice," commented Hakkinen. "All the way through the season people talk about who is going to win, who is not, who loses motivation. I have just been keeping my own head and working."
Michael Schumacher and David Coulthard had poor starts, with the first two on the grid being passed by world champion Mika Hakkinen. The Finn had a lead of 1.2 seconds over Schumacher by the fourth lap. Eddie Irvine gained a place by taking ninth spot and then moved up two places on the eighth lap by overtaking Jenson Button and Giancarlo Fisichella. Ralph Schumacher held fourth position and was closely followed by Rubens Barrichello and Heinz-Harald Frentzen.
McLaren chief Ron Dennis was delighted after Mika Hakkinen's victory gave the team the lead in both the drivers' and constructors' championship standings. "An almost perfect race. A tremendous start and drive from Mika with David maintaining the pressure on Michael to claim third place," said Dennis. "We're pleased to leave Hungary leading both championships." Mercedes boss Norbert Haug added: "The team worked perfectly and the race strategy was excellent."
Michael Schumacher believes that his poor start did not cost him the race. He has lost the championship lead to Mika Hakkinen after finishing runner-up to the Finn in Hungary. And he admitted: "The start does not matter because I think Mika would have overtaken me through pit stops anyway. His was the fastest car on the circuit. I also had a tight battle with David Coulthard for second place but thankfully we planned our pit stops at the right moment."
David Coulthard felt that third place was all he deserved after he suffered a poor start and traffic problems. "I was not quick enough in my first stint," said the Scot. "I was just falling away at a rate of knots but after that I was quite competitive. Michael Schumacher caught the traffic well but I was always losing a second at the stops. I was third after the start and finished third and that is all I deserved really."
Ralf Schumacher was happy after finishing in fifth place in the Hungarian Grand Prix. He stated: "I am pleased, even if I lost one position to Rubens Barrichello because I was delayed in my first pit stop because of a problem wheel. Anyway I am not sure I could have kept him behind but I must say that our car was very good on this track. That helped me throughout all of this demanding race, mostly because of the extremely high temperature."
Eddie Irvine was frustrated that one of his best drives was not rewarded with a points finish. After his eighth-place finish he said: "It is probably one of the best races I have ever driven without reward. I had a lot of fun out there. It was very entertaining. A good work-out. We lost time for various reasons throughout the race. If we package up a good qualifying session, good start and good race we can challenge for points."
Britain's Jenson Button was disappointed that he could not make a push for points because of a throttle problem on his car. The Williams driver was just out of the points in seventh place when he was forced to slow down. He confirmed: "I am a bit disappointed because on the 30th lap I had a problem with the throttle. I slowed down in the last half of the race and that is why Eddie Irvine and Jarno Trulli were able to get past."
Jaguar driver Johnny Herbert was once again hit by a non-finish. He revealed: "Yet again I had gearshift problems which developed around lap eight and continued until the end. The spins I had with Jacques Villeneuve and Jos Verstappen happened because when I went for the downshift it would snap the rear end round. It was very difficult to drive at a consistent pace when you are having shifting problems. Unfortunately it is another non-finish."
Jacques Villeneuve finished 12th but admitted that he had not had high hopes for this race. The ex-world champion confirmed: "We knew when we arrived at the beginning of the weekend that we were probably not going to be competitive here. For once, I had a pretty bad start in the race with too much wheelspin. I was on the outside of Pedro de la Rosa at the chicane and he braked very late. I did as well but hit the back of his car and needed a new nose cone."
Arrows had a tough race but Jos Verstappen believes that the fact that he and Pedro de la Rosa finished is a positive sign. Verstappen was 13th and Pedro de la Rosa 16th and the Dutchman said: "I think it is good for the team that we made it home with two cars. It was a very hard race for us because our car is not the best one for this circuit but we always knew that. I am happy that I finished and am looking forward to the next race."
Result after 77 laps:
hr min sec
1 M Hakkinen Fin McLaren 1:45.33.6
2 M Schumacher Ger Ferrari 1:45.33.8
3 D Coulthard GB McLaren 1:45.42.7
4 R Barrichello Brz Ferrari 1:46.18.0
5 R Schumacher Ger Williams 1:46.24.0
6 H-H Frentzen Ger Jordan 1:46.41.9
7 J Trulli It Jordan
one lap
8 E Irvine GB Jaguar
one lap
9 J Button GB Williams
one lap
10 M Salo Fin Sauber
one lap
11 A Wurz Aut Benetton
one lap
12 J Villeneuve Can BAR
two laps
13 J Verstappen Ned Arrows two laps
14 R Zonta Brz BAR
two laps
15 M Gene Sp Minardi
three laps
16 P de la Rosa Sp Arrows four laps
DID NOT FINISH (not classified) Laps completed
17 G Mazzacane Arg Minardi
68
18 J Herbert GB Jaguar
67
19 P Diniz Brz Sauber
62
20 G Fisichella It Benetton 31
21 N Heidfeld Ger Prost
22
22 J Alesi Fr Prost
11
Fastest Lap: M Hakkinen 1:20.028
DRIVER STANDINGS
1 M Hakkinen Fin McLaren
64 pts
2 M Schumacher Ger Ferrari 62
3 D Coulthard GB McLaren
58
4 R Barrichello Brz Ferrari 49
5 G Fisichella It Benetton 18
6 R Schumacher Ger Williams 16
7 J Villeneuve Can BAR
11
8 J Button GB Williams
8
9 M Salo Fin
Sauber 6
= J Trulli It Jordan
6
= H-H Frentzen Ger Jordan
6
12 E Irvine GB Jaguar
3
13 J Verstappen Hol Arrows
2
= P de la Rosa Sp Arrows
2
15 R Zonta Brz BAR
1
CONSTRUCTORS' CHAMPIONSHIP
1 McLaren 112 pts
2 Ferrari 111
3 Williams 24
4 Benetton 18
5 BAR
12
= Jordan 12
7 Sauber 6
8 Arrows 4
9 Jaguar 3
TYNESIDE STAGES RALLY:- John Price clinched the Safety Devices National Rally Championship for the ninth time after triumphing on the Otterburn Ranges in his MG Metro 6R4. Price finished nearly a minute in front of second-placed Jon Mercer, while third place went to Dave Turnbull. Iain Henderson edged out Giles Brooksbank in the Group N category. Dave Bateson won the VW Polo Challenge, of which the Tyneside event was a qualifying round, but Neil Buckley claimed the title by finishing second.
Result after 10 stages: hr min sec
1 J Price MG Metro 6R4
1:14.16
2 J Mercer MG Metro 6R4
1:15.10
3 D Turnbull Escort Cosworth 1:17.35
4 L Barton MG Metro 6R4
1:19.06
5 D Hall Escort RS
1:19.32
6 J Indri MG Metro 6R4
1:20.07
7 G Grieve Escort Cosworth 1:20.07
8 C Moore Vauxhall Nova
1:22.26
9 B Cowe Ford Escort
1:23.02
10 J Cope Escort Cosworth 1:23.23
CART (Mid Ohio):- Helio Castroneves led car owner Roger Penske to his first one-two since 1994 by winning the 83-lap Miller 200 ahead of team-mate Gil de Ferran. Brazilian Christian Fittipaldi was third, followed by Italian Max Papis and Kenny Brack of Sweden. Reigning CART champion Juan Montoya finished 24th and Scotland's Dario Franchitti was hindered by a number of incidents and was 22nd. Michael Andretti kept his lead in the championship after taking eighth place.
Saturday's qualifying times: min secs
1 G de Ferran Brz Honda 1:05.347
2 H Castro-N Brz Honda 1:05.362
3 D Franchitti GB Honda 1:05.665
4 K Brack Swe Ford
1:05.806
5 C Fittipaldi Brz Ford 1:05.962
6 M Papis It Ford
1:06.047
7 C Da Matta Brz Toyota 1:06.251
8 M Andretti US Ford
1:06.338
9 P Carpentier Can Ford 1:06.391
10 J Montoya Col Toyota 1:06.406
18 M Blundell GB Mercedes 1:07.069
F.PALMER AUDI (Snetterton):- Justin Keen got the perfect start to move ahead of Jesper Carlsen and take his second win of the season. Keen's championship rival Damien Faulkner finished third, keeping him in touch in the battle for the title.
Round 13 result (Sun): min secs
1 J Keen
21:44.653
2 J Carlsen
@ 0.470
3 D Faulkner
@ 0.954
4 C Hohenadel
@ 9.640
5 J Van Der Ende @ 9.920
6 R Kerr
@16.516
Damien Faulkner won the third race of the season to retake the championship lead he lost in the morning race. Bruno Beeson notched his first podium finish of the season as he took second place ahead of Justin Keen.
Round 14 result (Sun) min secs
1 D Faulkner
24:49.818
2 B Besson
@ 0.636
3 J Keen
@ 2.633
4 B Jouanny
@ 4.148
5 R Tarling
@ 5.607
6 J van der Ende @ 6.117
KARTS:- Yorkshire's James Bean won round four of the National Super
One Kart Championship in Larkhall ahead of Cumbria's Oliver Turvey.
14.08.2000
F1:- David Coulthard is convinced he can still be crowned world champion
as the title race enters its final stages. Coulthard's third place in Hungary
leaves him six points behind with five races left as team-mate Mika Hakkinen
took the lead in the drivers standings. "It is disappointing to fall further
behind the leader of the championship, but I know that I can still win
it," said Coulthard. "There are still 50 points to play for so anything
can happen."
CART (Mid Ohio):-
Sunday's Miller Lite 200 result:
Laps
1 H Castro-N Brz Honda
83
2 G de Ferran Brz Honda
83
3 C Fittipaldi Brz Ford
83
4 M Papis It Ford
83
5 K Brack Swe Ford
83
6 A Fernandez Mex Ford
83
7 P Carpentier Can Ford
83
8 M Andretti US Ford
83
9 A Tagliani Can Ford
83
10 O Servia Sp Toyota
82
14 M Blundell GB Mercedes 82
22 D Franchitti GB Honda
52
Michael Andretti and Jimmy Vasser have announced they are not returning
to their current CART teams next season. The pair are the only American
racers with full-time CART rides this year and with Juan Montoya likely
to join Formula One, the event could suffer. The trio's departure could
leave CART without any American racer or any driver who has ever won the
title. CART has a record 22-race sched le next year including its English
debut at Rockingham in Corby in September.
16.08.2000
F1:- Williams will announce a two-year contract release for Jenson Button on Thursday, according to team sources. The move paves the way for Button to move to a rival outfit next season, though Williams will retain the right to recall him in 2003. The 20-year-old has been linked with a switch to Benetton. No announcement on Williams' new driver will be made until next month's US Grand Prix, with reports suggesting a drive for Colombian Juan Pablo Montoya.
Asia Motor Technologies have announced Arrows will test their new engine for the 2001 campaign at Barcelona on October 10-12. Although the new A21-AMT engine will have trial runs before the end of 2000 it will not make its debut until 2001. AMT's entry into the sport follows the decision by Peugeot-Sport that they are to sell their Formula One division at the end of the year. Peugeot currently supply the engines for the Prost team.
Wednesday's testing times: (Silverstone)
1 O Panis Fr McLaren
1:24.329
2 M Hakkinen Fin McLaren 1:24.560
3 J Button GB Williams 1:26.090
4 J Trulli It Jordan
1:26.403
5 J Verstappen Ned Arrows 1:26.502
6 H-H Frentzen Ger Jordan 1:26.598
7 E Irvine GB Jaguar
1:27.863
8 J Herbert GB Jaguar
1:28.461
RALLY FINLAND:- Round nine of the World Championship runs from Friday to Sunday and this year's Rally Finland has the most compact route in its 50-year history. The stages to the east of Jyvaskyla have been scrapped and three new tests have been added to the opening day. The opening two legs end with a spectator-orientated stage around an oval trotting track. Drivers will compete in 23 stages overall and cover 410.18km in a total route of 1680.14.
Championship leader Richard Burns will be hoping for a return of his early-season form when the rally begins. The Subaru driver failed to finish the last two events in New Zealand and Greece and has seen his lead at the top cut to four points. However, he was second in Finland last year and will be confident of a good result this time round. Team-mate Juha Kankkunen held off Burns' challenge last year and can be expected to do well this year.
Finnish drivers have won the event every year since 1993, and Marcus Gronholm will be eager to record another home success. Gronholm is second to Richard Burns in the overall standings and finished fourth in Finland last year. The Peugeot driver has momentum after victory in New Zealand last month. Tomi Makinen won in Finland for five years in a row before last year and needs a win if he is to have any chance of retaining his world crown.
Colin McRae has admitted that he does not have high hopes of victory in the Finnish event. The Ford driver has taken part in the event five times but has been hit by four retirements. "Among the top drivers, I think it is fair to say that for me and most other non-Finns it is the hardest rally of all," stated the Scot. "Many things combine to make it so ` the speed, the jumps and blind apexes on the bends."
Carlos Sainz is one of two non-Nordic drivers to have won Rally Finland. The 38-year-old Spaniard triumphed in 1990 and said: "Finland is always special. It is a pure drivers' rally and one of my favourites. The roads are so wide and fast that car position is crucial. There is little chance of beating the Finns. If you enter a bend a few centimetres off line at 200kph it can make a huge difference to your position for the next bend."
SEAT and Rally Finland are celebrating their 50th anniversaries this year so it is apt that the latest evolution of the Cordoba WRC E3 will make its debut. The E3 looks almost identical to the E2 but has a new front bumper, more efficient air ducts and also a redesigned dashboard. Didier Auriol won the event in 1992 but revealed: "It is one of the more difficult rallies for me. But every year I go to Finland expecting to finish in the points."
The Hyundai Castrol team enjoyed a good rally in New Zealand and will
hope to build on their success. Alistair McRae secured a stage win before
retiring, while Kenneth Eriksson finished in fifth place overall. "In New
Zealand, the car was the most competitive it's ever been," McRae said.
"I'm optimistic for Finland, particulalry if we get a clean run. Another
stage win will be difficult since the top runners will all be trying very
hard."
F.RENAULT 2000 (Brands Hatch):- Championship leader Kimi Raikkonen produced the fastest time in testing after a string of fast laps. Mark McLoughlin recovered from a morning crash to be second quickest, followed by American Vincent Apple.
Testing times (Wed):
secs
1 K Raikkonen
44.971
2 M McLoughlin
44.237
3 V Apple
44.273
4 D Watts
45.295
5 C Breeze
45.354
6 R Dalziel
45.360
RENAULT CLIO CUP:- Newcomer Richard Dean, driving for Team Firstair, headed testing at Brands Hatch on Wednesday. He was ahead of Henry Taylor and Daniel Buxton, while series leader Jim Edwards jnr was only fifth quickest.
Testing times (Wed):
secs
1 R Dean
52.971
2 H Taylor
53.093
3 D Buxton
53.138
4 P Sowerby
53.218
5 J Edwards jnr
53.236
6 D Gibson
53.339
17.08.2000
F1:- Williams have confirmed that driver Jenson Button will be loaned out to Benetton for two years. It means that Williams will retain the right to recall him in 2003. Colombian CART star Juan Pablo Montoya is expected to be named as the team's new driver for 2001-2002 at next month's US Grand Prix. Twenty-year-old Button joined Ralf Schumacher at Williams at the start of this season and currently has eight points in the championship.
Jenson Button has insisted that he will continue to give his all for Williams, despite the announcement that he will be loaned to Benetton for two years. In a statement, he said: "I will always be eternally grateful to Frank Williams and Patrick Head at Williams for giving me my great opportunity in Formula One. I have some unfinished business at Williams and I am looking forward to the remaining races this season. I feel on a constant learning curve. This year has been really exciting."
Britain's Jenson Button is expected to earn ś3m over two years when he joins Benetton next year. Team boss Flavio Briatore has snapped up Button to replace Alexander Wurz but Italian Giancarlo Fisichella is staying with Benetton. Button revealed: "Both Renault and Flavio have shown that they know how to win and I am expecting their package to be excellent. Giancarlo is rated as a great driver. All in all my future looks bright."
Benetton boss Flavio Briatore says he expects the deal that has brought Jenson Button to his team to benefit both parties. "Jenson has done an incredible job for his first year in Formula One. I think his partnership with Benetton and Renault will be very beneficial to both sides." Technical director Pat Symonds added: "I am very excited at the news. Jenson is the ideal driver to partner Giancarlo Fisichella."
British American Racing have confirmed that Olivier Panis will partner
Jacques Villeneuve next season. BAR managing director Craig Pollock said:
Olivier Panis is an experienced Grand Prix driver, a highly rated test
driver and a proven race winner. "We believe his knowledge and ability
will assist the team greatly." Panis will replace Ricardo Zonta, of whom
Pollock added: "He is undoubtedly a talented young man and will always
have a special place within the team."
TESTING TIMES (Silverstone)
Wednesday's testing times:
1 O Panis Fr McLaren
1:24.329
2 M Hakkinen Fin McLaren 1:24.560
3 J Button GB Williams 1:26.090
4 J Trulli It Jordan
1:26.403
5 J Verstappen Ned Arrows 1:26.502
6 H-H Frentzen Ger Jordan 1:26.598
7 E Irvine GB Jaguar
1:27.863
8 J Herbert GB Jaguar
1:28.461
BRITISH GT'S (Silverstone):- Defending champion David Warnock will be
aiming to extend his lead in the series by securing a win this weekend.
However, Calum Lockie, in the Marcos LM600 Mantara, is only nine points
behind Warnock. Tim Harvey and Neil Cunningham have swapped places, with
Harvey moving to a Chrysler Viper and Cunningham going the other way to
a Porsche. In the GTO category, Mark Sumpter and Mike Jordan could secure
the title in their Porsche this weekend.
F3 (Silverstone):- Antonio Pizzonia will be bidding to get his title
bid back on track this weekend after a disastrous race last time out. Pizzonia
is still 30 points clear of Tomas Scheckter. Japanese driver Takuma Sato
won the previous race at Silverstone and otherrace winners this season
include Nicolas Kiesa and Ben Collins.In the scholarship class for year-old
cars, Gary Paffett has taken the title and is chasing an 11th straight
win.
BTCC PROVISIONAL 2001 CALENDAR
DATE ROUNDS
VENUE
Apr 15-16 1/2
Brands Hatch
May 6-7 3/4
Thruxton
May 19-20 5/6
Oulton Park
Jun 2-3 7/8
Donington Park
Jun 16-17 9/10
Knockhill
Jun 30-Jul 1 11/12 Silverstone
Jul 14-15 13/14 Mondello
Park *
Jul 28-29 15/16 Croft
Aug 11 17/18
Snetterton
Aug 26-27 19/20 Oulton
Park
Sep 8-9 21/22
Silverstone
Sep 15-16 23/24 Donington
Park
Oct 6-7 25/26
Brands Hatch
* subject to satisfactory completion of Track/Paddock facilities.
A new format has been announced for the 2001 Touring Car series. Next
year's cars will be two-litre-powered saloons pushing out about 270bhp
with manufacturers able to use four, five or six-cylinder powerplants.
In addition, cars will have less grip than currently and will need longer
braking distances, while more evenly-matched family saloons will be allowed.
The changes have been brought in after consultation with experts to increase
the entertainment of the series.
18.08.2000
RALLY FINLAND:- Title rivals Richard Burns and Marcus Gronholm were locked in a thrilling battle for the lead on the first day. Gronholm was quickest on each of the first five stages before Championship leader Burns claimed four himself but the Finn ended the day in the lead. Another home favourite Harri Rovanpera was third while Colin McRae stayed in touch in fourth place. Carlos Sainz suffered engine trouble which cost him over five minutes while Petter Solberg is out after a crash.
Richard Burns was confident he could become only the third non-Nordic winner in the event's 50-year history after ending the first day in second place. "It wasn't too bad running first on the road and apart from a little trip into a ditch there has been no problem. I'm putting a lot of trust in my pace notes and have more speed available and day two should be interesting," he said Fourth-placed Colin McRae said: "We lost time on every stage and need to be faster to compete with the leaders."
Positions after 10 stages:
(at end of day one)
hr:mn:sec
1 M Gronholm Fin Peugeot 1:03:22.4
2 R Burns GB Subaru
1:03:27.3
3 H Rovanpera Fin Toyota 1:03:47.9
4 C McRae GB Ford
1:03:55.7
5 J Kankkunen Fin Subaru 1:04:05.2
6 T Makinen Fin Mitsubishi 1:04:07.6
7 S Lindholm Fin Peugeot 1:04:09.7
8 F Delecour Fr Peugeot 1:04:16.3
9 M Martin Est Toyota
1:04:22.4
10 T Gard'ster Fin SEAT 1:04:37.4
NATIONAL SALOONS (Silverstone):- Championship rivals Toni Ruokonen and Matt Kelly set the pace in Friday's testing before round nine this weekend. Roger Moen headed the first session in steady rain but Ruokonen and Kelly took charge in the afternoon.
Friday's leading testing times:
mins:secs
1 T Ruokonen Peugeot
1:44.377
2 M Kelly Nissan
1:44.653
3 D Eaves Peugeot
1:44.746
4 T Masini Honda
1:44.839
5 S Harrison Ford
1:44.921
6 T Ferrier Alfa Romeo 1:45.484
19.08.2000
CART:- Gil de Ferran pipped Michael Andretti to provisional pole for Sunday's Motorola 220 race. De Ferran can cut Andretti's lead in the championship to 18 points if he hangs on to the single point for winning pole position. Scotland's Dario Franchitti, who has qualified in the top five in seven of his last nine starts, was third. Defending champion Juan Montoya was 10th after being one of several drivers to encounter problems on the circuit.
Friday's qualifying times: secs
1 G de Ferran Brz Honda 100.392
2 M Andretti US Ford
100.401
3 D Franchitti GB Honda 100.477
4 A Tagliani Can Ford
100.482
5 A Fernandez Mex Ford 100.581
6 C Fittipaldi Brz Ford 101.016
7 M Gugelmin Brz Mercedes 101.044
8 H Cast'neves Brz Honda 101.072
9 K Brack Swe Ford
101.358
10 J Montoya Col Toyota 101.431
20 M Blundell GB Mercedes 102.657
RALLY FINLAND:- Marcus Gronholm looks set to win his home Rally on Sunday and take over from Richard Burns on top of the standings after a dramatic second day. Burns crashed out of the event just after the day's first stage, the third time this year he has failed to finish. Burns was taken to hospital for a precautionary scan and was given the all-clear by doctors. Gronholm finished the day 56.2 seconds ahead of Finnish compatriot Harri Rovanpera with Colin McRae in third.
Richard Burns was philosophical after crashing out of the Rally after the second day's opening stage. "As far as the championship is concerned, this was a bad time to have an incident like this, but there's never really a good time," he said. "The worst thing that could happen now is that Marcus Gronholm wins and I end up six points behind him." Gronholm said: "I'm sorry Richard is no longer there because we would have had a great battle."
Positions after 18 stages:
(end of day two)
hr:mn:sec
1 M Gronholm Fin Peugeot 2:24:33.0
2 H Rovanpera Fin Toyota 2:25:29.2
3 C McRae GB Ford
2:25:46.1
4 T Makinen Fin Mitsubishi 2:25:58.8
5 S Lindholm Fin Peugeot 2:26:09.3
6 F Delecour Fr Peugeot 2:27:22.3
7 D Auriol Fr SEAT
2:28:19.8
8 P Hagstrom Fin Toyota 2:28:34.3
9 A McRae GB Hyundai
2:29:12.1
10 J Kankkunen Fin Subaru 2:30:15.0
F3:- Japanese driver Takuma Sato heads the field as he took pole for Sunday's battle at Silverstone. Sato is at the top of a tight field, with the top 14 drivers separated by less than a second. Championship contenders Antonio Pizzonia and Tomas Schekter were second and sixth respectively.
Qualifying times (Sat): mins secs
1 T Sato Jpn Dallara
1:15.827
2 A Pizzonia It Dallara 1:16.023
3 N Karth'n Ind Dallara 1:16.043
4 G Bruni It Dallara
1:16.049
5 N Kiesa Ger Dallara
1:16.102
6 T Sch'ter Ger Dallara 1:16.200
MGF CUP (Silverstone):-
Round 9 qualifying times (Sat):
mins secs
1 J Hunter
1:35.424
2 A Lyall
1:36.022
3 V Martin
1:36.235
4 S Warburton
1:36.346
5 B Benham
1:36.348
6 M Ticehurst
1:36.352
BRITISH GT'S (Silverstone):- The Lister Storm of Jamie Campbell- Walter and David arnock set the pace in the first round of qualifying. Leading the chase was the Marcos LM600 Mantara of Cor Euser/Calum Lockie and Ian Astley/Chris Ellis' Lotus Esprit.
Saturday's leading GT qualifying times:
1 C-Water/Warnock Lister 1:19.486
2 Euser/Lockie Marcos
1:20.826
3 Ellis/Astley Lotus
1:20.910
GTO:
1 Rymer/Lister Porsche 1:24.367
2 Short/Barff TVR
1:24.524
3 Hayles/Konig Chrysler 1:25.194
NATIONAL SALOONS (Silverstone):- The Peugeots dominated qualifying, with Dan Eaves and then Toni Ruokonen heading the field in their 306GTi6s. Leading the chase is championship leader Matt Kelly. Roger Moen's car was the third Peugeot in the top four.
Saturday's leading qualifying times:
mins:secs
1 D Eaves Peugeot
1:32.557
2 T Ruokonen Peugeot
1:33.175
3 M Kelly Nissan
1:33.677
4 R Moen Peugeot
1:33.895
5 S Harrison Ford
1:33.898
6 T Masini Honda
1:34.268
20.08.2000
CART (Wisconsin):- Dario Franchitti set a track record to claim his first pole of the season for Sunday's race. The Scot, winner on this circuit in 1998, completed the four-mile road course in 99.866 seconds at 145.924mph. His speed beat Michael Andretti's 1998 record lap of 145.745mph and Gil de Ferran's 145.504mph lap on Saturday. De Ferran was second, ahead of rookie Alexandre Tagliani with championship leader Michael Andretti, a three-times winner here, back in sixth.
Saturday's qualifying times:mins:secs
1 D Franchitti GB Honda 1:39.866
2 G de Ferran Brz Honda 1:40.154
3 A Tagliani Can Ford
1:40.260
4 M Andretti US Ford
1:40.401
5 A Fernandez Mex Ford 1:40.581
6 H Cast'neves Brz Honda 1:40.610
7 P Tracy Can Honda
1:40.682
8 C Fittipaldi Brz Ford 1:40.902
9 K Brack Swe Ford
1:40.977
10 M Gugelmin Brz Mercedes 1:41.044
20 M Blundell GB Mercedes 1:42.336
RALLY FINLAND:- Finland's Marcus Gronholm went to the top of the world standings after claiming victory in his home rally. The Peugeot driver finished one minute 6.2 seconds ahead of British driver Colin McRae to leapfrog Richard Burns at the head of the standings. McRae was finally able to move ahead of Harri Rovanpera into second place after the Finn incurred a 10-second penalty for a time-card infringement. Gronholm's victory kept up the run of wins by Finnish drivers.
Finland's Marcus Gronholm was delighted to go to the top of the standings
after victory in his home race. "It feels wonderful," he said. "I'm satisfied
that I could drive fast enough without any pressure." Colin McRae was pleased
with his second place, achieved despite losing power steering towards the
end. "I'm pleased to get to the finish," he said. "After we lost the power
steering,I wasn't so sure it would last, but it did, and I'm very happy."
Final positions after 23 stages:
hr:mn:sec
1 M Gronholm Fin Peugeot 3:22:37.1
2 C McRae GB Ford
3:23:43.3
3 H Rovanpera Fin Toyota 3:23:46.7
4 T Makinen Fin Mitsubishi 3:24:15.8
5 S Lindholm Fin Peugeot 3:24:43.1
6 F Delecour Fr Peugeot 3:27:42.1
7 P Hagstrom Fin Toyota 3:27:53.6
8 J Kankkunen Fin Subaru 3:28:30.0
9 A McRae GB Hyundai
3:28:46.2
10 M Martin Est Toyota
3:29:27.7
DRIVER STANDINGS
1 M Gronholm Fin Peugeot
44 pts
2 R Burns GB Subaru
38
3 C McRae GB Ford
36
4 C Sainz Sp Ford
27
5 T Makinen Fin Mitsubishi 26
6 J Kankkunen Fin Subaru
18
MANUFACTURER STANDINGS
1 Ford
63 pts
2 Subaru 60
3 Peugeot 54
4 Mitsubishi 33
5 Skoda
8
6 SEAT
7
F3 (Silverstone):- Takuma Sato turned on the style to beat Green Flag Championship leader Antonio Pizzonia in a frantic 11th round race. Sato led from start to finish around the Northamptonshire track's 2.249-mile international circuit. Pizzonia pushed hard to catch Sato but could not stop the Japanese racer claiming victory by 1.654 seconds. Pizzonia's runner-up spot gave him 15 championship points, extending his lead over Tomas Scheckter to 35 points with only three races left.
Result (Sun):
mins secs
1 T Sato Jpn Dallara
30:59.030
2 A Pizzonia It Dallara 31:00.684
3 G Bruni It Dallara
31:14.070
4 T Sch'ter Ger Dallara 31:14.755
5 N Karth'n Ind Dallara 31:21.165
6 B Collins Dallara
31:22.137
BRITISH GT'S (Silverstone):- David Warnock moved closer to the title after sharing victory with Jamie Campbell-Walter in round nine. Their Lister Storm romped to victory with the Lotus Espirit of Chris Ellis and Ian Astley taking second spot.
Sunday's GT result:
mins secs
1 Warnock/C'bell-W Lister 60:37.479
2 Ellis/Astley Lotus
61:26.771
3 Clark/Wilds Chrysler 61:39.936
Sunday's GTO result:
1 Lister/Rymer Porsche 42 laps
2 Jordan/Sumpter Porsche 41 laps
3 Watson/Simmoms Porsche 41 laps
NATIONAL SALOONS (Silverstone):- Toni Ruokonen took advantage as his Peugeot team-mate Dane Eaves slowed in sigh of the flag to sweep past and claim victory. Matt Kelly took third place ahead of Roger Moen in another Peugeot.
Sunday's result:
mins:secs
1 T Ruokonen Peugeot 30:07.559
2 D Eaves Peugeot
30:08.417
3 M Kelly Nissan
30:15.124
4 R Moen Peugeot
30:21.752
5 S Harrison Ford
30:21.812
6 T Masini Honda
30:37.334
F.FORD (Silverstone):- Ryan Sharp converted pole position into his first race victory as second place was enough to give Matthew Gilmore the inaugural Junior Championship crown. Lee Piercey took third place with Gordon Coleman finishing fourth.
Sunday's result: mins:secs
1 R Sharp
20:32.645
2 M Gilmore 20:33.056
3 L Piercey 20:35.698
4 G Coleman 20:39.808
5 A Thompson 20:43.472
6 S Kane
20:44.259
Caterham Superlight Challenge:
Round 11 result mins secs
1 R Jenkinson 31:11.681
2 M Bettley
@ 0.753
3 G Taylor
@ 0.948
4 P Stevens
@ 1.285
5 B Hayden
@ 2.341
6 R Durant
@ 5.353
Caterham Roadsport Challenge:
Round 10 result
1 J Gladman
31:00.728
2 P Haynes
@ 0.043
3 C Richards
@ 0.705
4 S Pullan
@ 3.719
5 J Sutherland
@ 7.066
6 N Jacobs
@ 7.346
21.08.2000
CART (Wisconsin):- Paul Tracy recovered from dropping from seventh to 23rd on the first lap to hit back and win the Motorola 220. Tracy moved steadily through the field, taking the lead for the first time on the 26th lap. Robert Moreno took over top spot when Tracy made his final fuel stop but when Moreno had to stop, Tracy went back in front and won by 7.450 seconds. Adrian Fernandez was second and Kenny Brack third in a race where only 11 of the 25 entrants finished.
Sunday's result:
mins:secs
1 P Tracy Can Honda
1:37.53
2 A Fernandez Mex Ford
@.07
3 K Brack Swe Ford
same lap
4 R Moreno Brz Ford
same lap
5 J Vasser US Toyota
same lap
6 M Gidley US Toyota
same lap
7 M Papis It Ford
same lap
8 T Kanaan Brz Mercedes 1 lap down
9 H Cast'neves Brz Honda same lap
10 O Servia Sp Toyota
same lap
11 M Blundell GB Mercedes 7 laps
12 D Franchitti GB Honda 12 laps
TOYOTA ATLANTIC (Wisconsin):- Britain's Dan Wheldon hept up his title
challenge with a second place finish in the ninth round of the championship
at Elkart Lake. Having started the 17-lap race in fifth place, the 22-year-old
moved up to take the lead by the tenth lap. But Buddy Rice slipped past
him on lap 15, just seconds before the yellow flags came out which stayed
in use until the end of the race. Wheldon is 22 points behind Rice in the
standings with three races remaining.
RALLY FINLAND:- Marcus Gronholm was still wary of his world championship title chances after moving to the top of the standings after victory in the Rally of Finland. The Finn believes a lack of experience on asphalt could prove his downfall in the final rounds of the championship. "It is much too early to start talking about the championship as there are still five rallies to go," he said. "The next rally in Cyprus is new for all of us but I have never been to Corsica either."
Scotland's Colin McRae is confident he can still win the world championship.
The Ford driver is lying third behind Richard Burns in second and points
leader Marcus Gronholm but is ready to make his experience on asphalt count.
"Marcus has little experience on the next three rallies so I have set my
sights on moving to the top of the championship," said McRae. "Finland
was my hardest rally and I came second so now I have a lot of confidence
for the rest of the season."
22.08.2000
F1:- The format for the Green Flag British Formula Three Championship
will be changed from next year. Instead of one 30-minute race at each meeting,
drivers will compete in two 20-minute races. "The teams have been asking
for more track time and we have responded to that with our new proposals,"
said PowerTour Series Director Roger Etcell. "The increased track time
will help to teach the young drivers and help equip them for F1."
BRITISH RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP:- Vauxhall have won the British Rally Championship
manufacturers' title after Hyundai pulled out of the final round. Hyundai,
who are Vauxhall's closest challengers, declined to enter the Manx Rally
after the controversy over their appearance at the MSA Rally in July. A
fine was imposed on Hyundai after their Rallycorp team did not hold a valid
entrant's licence. With 12 points on offer in the Isle of Man, Proton,
in third place 13 points behind Vauxhall, cannot close the gap.
23.08.2000
F1: THE BELGIAN GP
Finnish driver Mika Salo will leave the Sauber team at the end of the
current season to join the new Toyota F1 team, the Swiss team have confirmed.
The 33-year-old finished fifth in both Germany and Monaco this season.
He was sixth in San Marino and Austria and is ninth in the drivers' standings.
He was also sixth across the line in Australia but was later disqualified
for his car being 20mm too wide. Salo has also had spells with Lotus, Tyrrell,
Arrows, BAR and Ferrari.
With just five rounds of this year's championship to go, the race for the title could not be more exciting. World champion Mika Hakkinen has taken the lead from long-time leader Michael Schumacher and may now take his third title in a row. However, Schumacher is determined to give Ferrari the drivers' crown for which they have long been striving. Sunday's race in Belgium is sure to be crucial in deciding the destiny of this year's ultimate prize.
World champion Mika Hakkinen will not allow his lead in the world standings to put him off on Sunday. "It's nice to be leading the Championship but I'm focusing on this weekend's Grand Prix," he said. "I spent two days last week testing at Silverstone, where we had hoped it would rain, so we could get some wet weather running in before Spa. Unfortunately it stayed sunny! But we are in good shape and the Belgian Grand Prix always provides value for money."
Third-placed David Coulthard is still in the hunt for the world championship and is buoyed by his victory at Spa last year. "I'm feeling confident and after my victory in last year's race I'm aiming to make it two in a row," he said. "I like this track ` just like most other drivers. It's a challenge and you really have to work hard all the time. When you are comfortable with the car and manage to get a lap just right it's a fantastic feeling."
Michael Schumacher will be aiming to land his fifth Spa victory in nine starts on Sunday to reclaim the lead in the drivers' championship. The Ferrari star was overtaken in the standings by Mika Hakkinen after the last round in Hungary. "Spa is a challenging and satisfying circuit and demands a good job between the driver and engineer to get the car working well," conceded Schumacher. "It is also the closest track to where I grew up so it is almost a home race."
Michael Schumacher has insisted that he is relishing the chance to race at Spa ` come rain or shine. Rain is always a big possibility at the circuit and Schumacher said: "The frequent showers in the area always add another unknown factor to the race. Making the right decision at the right time can win or lose the race. I am looking forward to it.” In awful conditions in 1998, leader Schumacher collided with David Coulthard and retired from the race.
Ferrari have been trying out a new development engine and also doing some wet-weather testing ahead of round 11. The sessions have left Rubens Barrichello in confident mood and he said: "Like everybody I enjoy driving in Spa. It is the circuit where I scored my first pole position in 1994. It is a real racer's track, which can be fantastic if you have a good car and a nightmare if the car is not handling well. We should be very competitive."
Jordan are hoping to maintain their recent credible record in Belgium and move up the constructors' championship. Heinz-Harald Frentzen was third last year and Damon Hill sixth, and in 1998 Hill gave the team their first win there and Ralf Schumacher was second. Team boss Eddie Jordan said: "In 1991 we nearly won our first race with De Cesaris but a blown engine robbed us. However, we contributed significantly to F1 in that race by giving Michael Schumacher his debut."
Eddie Irvine has admitted that Spa is not one of his favourite circuits. He confirmed: "While I appreciate the great setting and its place in the history books, I am not a big fan. I do not see the thrill of driving fast round fast corners. You have enough downforce to keep your foot planted on the throttle and you do not get to play with the car very much. Having said that, we do all have a lot of respect for Eau Rouge."
Johnny Herbert was forced to retire on lap 27 of last year's race and the way this season has gone so far he will probably just be grateful for a finish. The Jaguar star's best display in Belgium was when he finished fourth in the 1997 campaign. "I always enjoy racing at Spa," he said. "It is the best and most demanding circuit on the calendar. Eau Rouge has to be the best corner in F1. It is a real test of a driver's expertise. I am hoping for some luck."
Jenson Button is looking forward to Sunday's race as he has experience of racing at Spa. "My last outing at Spa was in F3 last year and like all racing drivers, I have very fond memories of Eau Rouge," he said. "It's obviously going to be a different sensation in an F1 car, but it's an opportunity I am relishing. The team did a very good job in Budapest on set-up. I am hoping we can carry that momentum onto Spa."
Ralf Schumacher enjoyed a solid fifth place last time out in Hungary. "The FW22 was very competitive in the last race and I succeeded in remaining amongst the top six from the beginning," he said. "We still have a fair deal of work ahead of us," he added. "Spa is not an easy track. From Les Combes to Stavelot, most of the corners are mid-speed and it's in this section that I expect a good performance from the FW22.
Benetton technical director Pat Symonds said that the variety of the Spa circuit dictated preparation. "There is a wide variety of different types of corner, many of which present a unique challenge," he said. "It is therefore a cicruit where balance through a variety of cornering conditions is all important. The team is approaching this race with renewed determination to snatch back third place in the constructors' championship," he added.
Ricardo Zonta has insisted that he is looking forward to Sunday's race - despite his 1999 qualifying accident at the Belgian circuit. He and his British American Racing team-mate Jacques Villeneuve had accidents at Eau Rouge last year. Zonta admitted: "It is maybe not the thing you want to be remembered for. Since last year, however, there has been a big improvement in the car on fast tracks and fast corners. We also had a good test at Mugello."
Arrows driver Pedro de la Rosa believes that Spa could suit the A21.
The Spaniard stated: "Spa is a good circuit for us and I hope for a better
result than in Hungary. "The car has been running well and I think that
we have a very good chance." His team-mate Jos Verstappen added: "Things
look good for Spa. Also it is the closest race to Holland so there will
be a lot of Dutch fans there, which is nice."
BTCC (Brands Hatch):- Touring car action returns after a month's break with the race for the championship moving into its exciting final phase. Ford hold the lead in both the drivers' and manufacturers' championships but the chasing pack are determined to erode their advantage. Yvan Muller and Jason Plato are both close enough to be involved in the final shake-up. Rounds 19 and 20 take place on Bank Holiday Monday, August 28.
Anthony Reid moved to the head of the standings after his win at Donington Park and is not worried about carrying ballast this time as a result. "Of all the circuits to carry ballast the Brands Hatch Indy track is probably the best," he said. "The places where you must accelerate hard after tight corners, where the weight hurts you most, are downhill. But lap times are always very close on this circuit and anything that hinders your progress is not ideal."
Vauxhall drivers Yvan Muller and Jason Plato are still in touch with the leading Fords and believe they can still win the championship. "It is still possible to win the championship and I will be doing everything I possibly can to win it," Muller said. "It will be difficult, for sure, but we have to try to do our best and not make any mistakes." Plato will be confident after victory at Brands Hatch earlier in the season.
Honda's James Thompson is not in contention for the championship, but could still play a major role in deciding its outcome. "The Accord is running competitively and I want to try to get some good results for Honda," he said. "I'll be trying to win as many races as possible, whether that will have a big knock-on effect on the outcome of the championship I don't know." Injury in April ended Thompson's hopes of winning the title.
DRIVER STANDINGS
1 A Reid GB Ford
156 pts
2 A Menu Swi Ford
149
3 R Rydell Swe Ford
139
4 Y Muller Fr Vauxhall 131
5 J Plato GB Vauxhall
123
6 G T'quini It Honda
112
MICHELIN CUP FOR INDEPENDENTS
1 M Neal GB Nissan
267 pts
2 C Blair GB Nissan
132
MANUFACTURER STANDINGS
1 Ford
151 pts
2 Vauxhall
142
3 Honda
121
F.PALMER AUDI (Oulton Park):- Championship leader Damien Faulkner set himself up for the weekend races by posting the fastest time in testing. Championship rival Justin Keen could only post the ninth quickest time.
Leading test times (Wed):min secs
1 D Faulkner
1:33.348
2 A Simonsen
@ 0.188
3 C Hohenadel
@ 0.408
4 D Hayes
@ 0.437
5 P Edwards
@ 0.439
6 B Besson
@ 0.467
F3000: The Championship finishes at Spa this weekend, on the longest
track on the F3000 circuit. A good finish for the Nordic Racing duo of
Kevin McGarrity and Justin Wilson could see their team finish the season
in third place overall. "This is the last race of the year and we must
set our sights high," said team principal Derek Mower. "We need Kevin and
Justin to qualify as near the front as possible. We can finish third and
that's our aim."
24.08.2000
BTCC (Brands Hatch):- Touring car action returns after a month's break with the race for the championship moving into its exciting final phase. Ford hold the lead in both the drivers' and manufacturers' championships but the chasing pack are determined to erode their advantage. Yvan Muller and Jason Plato are both close enough to be involved in the final shake-up. Rounds 19 and 20 take place on Bank Holiday Monday, August 28.
Anthony Reid moved to the head of the standings after his win at Donington Park and is not worried about carrying ballast this time as a result. "Of all the circuits to carry ballast the Brands Hatch Indy track is probably the best," he said. "The places where you must accelerate hard after tight corners, where the weight hurts you most, are downhill. But lap times are always very close on this circuit and anything that hinders your progress is not ideal."
Vauxhall drivers Yvan Muller and Jason Plato are still in touch with the leading Fords and believe they can still win the championship. "It is still possible to win the championship and I will be doing everything I possibly can to win it," Muller said. "It will be difficult, for sure, but we have to try to do our best and not make any mistakes." Plato will be confident after victory at Brands Hatch earlier in the season.
Honda's James Thompson is not in contention for the championship, but
could still play a major role in deciding its outcome. "The Accord is running
competitively and I want to try to get some good results for Honda," he
said. "I'll be trying to win as many races as possible, whether that will
have a big knock-on effect on the outcome of the championship I don't know."
Injury in April ended Thompson's hopes of winning the title.
RALLYING:- 180 cars will start the Listers Subaru Woodpecker Rally on
September 2.
F.PALMER AUDI (Oulton Park):- Championship leader Damien Faulkner set himself up for the weekend races by posting the fastest time in testing. Championship rival Justin Keen could only post the ninth quickest time.
Leading test times (Wed):min secs
1 D Faulkner
1:33.348
2 A Simonsen
@ 0.188
3 C Hohenadel
@ 0.408
4 D Hayes
@ 0.437
5 P Edwards
@ 0.439
6 B Besson
@ 0.467
F3000:- The Championship finishes at Spa this weekend, on the longest
track on the F3000 circuit. A good finish for the Nordic Racing duo of
Kevin McGarrity and Justin Wilson could see their team finish the season
in third place overall. "This is the last race of the year and we must
set our sights high," said team principal Derek Mower. "We need Kevin and
Justin to qualify as near the front as possible. We can finish third and
that's our aim." Andreas Scheld has been ruled out of the F3000 race at
Spa this weekend as he recovers from a serious illness.
25.08.2000 - F1: THE BELGIAN GP
David Coulthard staked his title claim with a superb display in first practice as he finished the day 0.5 seconds up on Championship leader Mika Hakkinen. Coulthard's time was never beaten after he set his time near the end of the first session. Michael Schumacher dropped down to fifth after being overhauled by Johnny Herbert and Jacques Villeneuve. Alexander Wurz was sixth while Jenson Button was 13th in his debut on the track and Eddie Irvine 16th.
Friday practice times:
1 D Coulthard GB McLaren 1:53.398
2 M Hakkinen Fin McLaren 1:53.919
3 J Herbert GB Jaguar
1:53.945
4 J Villeneuve Can BAR
1:54.136
5 M Schumacher Ger Ferrari 1:54.226
6 A Wurz Ger Benetton
1:54.266
7 J Verstappen Ned Arrows 1:54.338
8 G Fisichella It Benetton 1:54.350
9 R Barrichello Brz Ferrari 1:54.502
10 J Trulli It Jordan
1:54.666
11 M Gene Sp Minardi
1:54.832
12 R Schumacher Ger Williams 1:55.209
13 J Button GB Williams 1:55.270
14 P Diniz Brz Sauber
1:55.312
15 R Zonta Brz BAR
1:55.546
16 E Irvine GB Jaguar
1:55.645
17 H-H Frentzen Ger Jordan 1:55.750
18 M Salo Fin Sauber
1:55.847
19 G Mazzacane Arg Minardi 1:56.122
20 P de la Rosa Sp Arrows 1:56.252
21 J Alesi Fr Prost
1:56.508
22 N Heidfeld Ger Prost 1:56.857
Allan McNish is hoping to follow former World Champion Damon Hill by
breaking into Formula One in his 30s. The Scot will be given a belated
opportunity to reach motor sport's big-time when he tests for Toyota next
year. McNish said: "I have spoken to Damon about this and he said coming
into Formula One at such an age made him better equipped to cope with it.
This is the best opportunity I have ever had. I just needed that little
extra nudge to get into Formula One."
26.08.2000
F1: THE BELGIAN GP
Mika Hakkinen snatched pole position for Sunday's race ahead of Jarno
Trulli with Britain's Jenson Button third. Hakkinen's hopes of a championship
hat- trick were given a boost as rivals Michael Schumacher and David Coulthard
finished fourth and fifth respectively. Button almost grabbed a place on
the front row of the grid as he missed out by just 0.02 of a second behind
Trulli. Trulli might have claimed his first career pole, but was forced
to slow as Jean Alesi spun to a stop on the track.
Saturday's qualifying times:
1 M Hakkinen Fin McLaren 1:50.646
2 J Trulli It Jordan
1:51.419
3 J Button GB Williams
1:51.444
4 M Schumacher Ger Ferrari 1:51.552
5 D Coulthard GB McLaren 1:51.587
6 R Schumacher Ger Williams 1:51.743
7 J Villeneuve Can BAR
1:51.799
8 H-H Frentzen Ger Jordan 1:51.926
9 J Herbert GB Jaguar
1:52.242
10 R Barrichello Brz Ferrari 1:52.444
11 G Fisichella It Benetton 1:52.756
ELF CLIO CUP (Brands Hatch):- The top three drivers fighting fo the title headed final testing for Monday's crucial 10th round. Points leader Jim Edwards jnr was fastest - withe the top 17 all withing a second of his time.
Testing times: secs
1 J Edwards 53.101
2 H Taylor 53.161
3 D Buxton 53.168
4 R Pearson 53.252
5 J Templeman 53.271
F.RENAULT (Brands Hatch):- Kimi Raikkonene topped testing for Monday's 10th round in which a top six finish will guarantee him the title. His closest challenger Ryan Dalziel was second quickest while the top 17 were covered by under a second.
Testing times:
secs
1 K Raikkonen Fin
44.786
2 R Dalziel GB
44.920
3 J Jones USA
45.135
4 T Sisley GB
45.211
5 C Hall GB
45.227
6 L Walker GB
45.287
MEWLA RALLY
Top 10 after 6 stages:
(end of day one)
mins:secs
1 J Mercer MG Metro
18:37
2 J Price MG Metro
18:42
3 P Lloyd MG Metro
18:57
4 S Hendy Escort
Cos 19:02
5 J Morgan Escort Cos
19:11
6 E Pritchard Subaru Imp
19:15
7 M Worley Escort Cos
19:17
8 G Smith Escort
WRC 19:17
9 D Turnbull Escort Cos
19:21
10 M Welch Escort Cos
19:34
BTCC (Brands Hatch):- Italian ace Gabriele Tarquini was quickest in testing ahead of Monday's rounds 19 and 20 on the championship. The Honda driver just pipped Vauxhall's Jason Plato to the top time by 13 hundredths of second. Championship leader Anthony Reid could only manage sixth fastest, but was ahead of his two Ford team-mates Alain Menu and Rickard Rydell. Matt Neal was the quickest independent runner in fourth place in his Team Dynamics Nissan Primera.
Saturday testing times:
sec
1 G Tarquini It Honda
46.724
2 J Plato GB Vauxhall
46.737
3 T Kristensen Den Honda 46.748
4 M Neal GB
Nissan 46.777
5 Y Muller Fr Vauxhall
46.900
6 A Reid GB
Ford 46.926
7 R Rydell Swe Ford
46.984
8 A Menu Swi Ford
47.146
9 V Radermecker Bel Vauxhall 47.242
10 J Thompson GB Honda
47.376
27.08.2000
F1: THE BELGIAN GP
Mika Hakkinen overtook Michael Schumacher with less than four laps
left to win the race and increase his advantage in the drivers' championship.
Pole-sitter Hakkinen had lost the lead to the German after a half spin
on the 13th lap but found a way past the German on lap 41. Ralf Schumacher
finished in third place and David Coulthard was fourth. Jenson Button was
fifth, Johnny Herbert was eighth and his Jaguar team-mate Eddie Irvine
was 10th.
Mika Hakkinen boosted his hopes of securing a third successive world title by picking up his third victory in four grands prix. The Finn exclaimed: "It was an incredible race. It was very difficult and my spin was not planned. I was lucky to stay on the track." He also relished his overtaking manoeuvre on Michael Schumacher. "It was a great manoeuvre," added Hakkinen. "I loved it, although I am sure that Michael did not."
Michael Schumacher was realistic after seeing victory snatched from his grasp by Mika Hakkinen late on in the race. "Mika was flying. He was so much faster that there was nothing I could do," said Schumacher. "Being in the slipstream of the backmarker I thought he would not be able to catch me. But Mika did a really outstanding manoeuvre because I did not expect it. I kept my championship hopes alive. It has got harder but I will keep going."
The renowned wet weather at Spa ensured that the race started behind the safety car and Mika Hakkinen had established a 2.1-second lead after three laps. Michael Schumacher moved into second place on the fifth lap after Jenson Button touched Jarno Trulli's Jordan. Trulli spun out of the race and then Hakkinen went into a half spin at Stavelot on lap 13 and it allowed Schumacher to take the lead. It came after the German had had five successive fastest laps.
David Coulthard has insisted that he has not given up on the title, despite losing ground to Mika Hakkinen and Michael Schumacher by finishing fourth. The Scot confirmed: "I will not give up on my title dream until the points do not add up. I had made it difficult for myself with a poor qualifying session." Coulthard also said that he does not think McLaren boss Ron Dennis will enforce team orders for the rest of the season to help Hakkinen's title bid.
Ralf Schumacher consolidated Williams' third place in the constructor standings by claim ng four points. After finishing behind Mika Hakkinen and brother Michael Schumacher, the German stated: "We are definitely very much the third team now. Realistically the only way we could have got a victory here would have been if it had been a wet race and obviously that did not happen. Mika was just so much quicker compared to anyone else."
Britain's Jenson Button was was disappointed not to finish higher than fifth after he had qualified for the race in third place. The Williams driver claimed: "I could have achieved more. Of course I am disappointed. Anyway it is good to have scored some more points. At the beginning it took me too much time time to overtake Jarno Trulli. After the contact with Trulli's Jordan the steering wheel was quite heavy and the car was not as good in the dry."
Johnny Herbert will go to the next race in Monza in better heart after finishing in eighth place at Spa. "It was an enjoyable race but unfortunately I was on my own most of the time so was not actually racing with anybody," said the Briton. "The only disappointment was qualifying outside the top six. As things turned out I could have been challenging for points. I still want to bring points to the team before the year is out."
Eddie Irvine feels that his Jaguar team are at last beginning to make inroads into the question of reliability. After finishing 10th he admitted: "The balance of the car was good in the warm-up and I felt that if it stayed wet were were in good shape. However, once the track began to dry after the start and we changed from wet to grooved tyres some of that balance went away. I felt be gelled better as a team this weekend than we have all year."
The Belgian round of the season will be one that Giancarlo Fisichella will want to put down to experience. The Benetton driver was lucky to escape unhurt from a crash in the warm-up session and had to race in the T-car. He lasted for only eight laps and said: "I got some sort of electrical problem and lost power in the Bus Stop chicane. After qualifying in one run on Saturday and my big crash in warm-up this really has been a disastrous weekend for me."
Jacques Villeneuve was disappointed after he finished just outside the points in seventh place. "It was a very boring race from my perspective," admitted the Canadian. "The car had terrible understeer and I do not know why. We had oversteer all weekend, mostly on old tyres, and yet in the race the car was only good after 25 laps. I am disappointed because it was a wasted day. We raced hard the whole time but were just out of the points."
Arrows team principal Tom Walkinshaw was philosophical after seeing Jos Verstappen and Pedro de la Rosa finish 15th and 16th. Walkinshaw said: "The most you can say about the weekend is that it was character building. I have never seen a race where so many things went on as far as the team were concerned - accidents, punctures, stop-go penalties. The only thing we did not do with the cars at pit stops was wash them."
Result after 44 laps:
hr min sec
1 M Hakkinen Fin McLaren 1:28.14.4
2 M Schumacher Ger Ferrari 1:28.15.5
3 R Schumacher Ger Williams 1:28.25.5
4 D Coulthard GB McLaren 1:28.57.7
5 J Button GB Williams
1:29.04.4
6 H-H Frentzen Ger Jordan 1:29.10.4
7 J Villeneuve Can BAR
1:29.26.8
8 J Herbert GB Jaguar
1:29.42.3
9 M Salo Fin Sauber
1:29.43.1
10 E Irvine GB Jaguar
1:29.46.8
11 P Diniz Brz Sauber
1:29.48.6
12 R Zonta Brz BAR
one lap
13 A Wurz Aut Benetton
one lap
14 M Gene Sp Minardi
one lap
15 J Verstappen Ned Arrows one lap
16 P de la Rosa Sp Arrows two laps
17 G Mazzacane Arg Minardi two laps
NOT CLASSIFIED
laps completed
R Barrichello Brz Ferrari
32
J Alesi Fr
Prost 32
N Heidfeld Ger Prost
12
G Fisichella It Benetton
8
J Trulli It Jordan
4
Fastest lap: R Barrichello 1:53.803
DRIVER STANDINGS
1 M Hakkinen Fin McLaren
74 pts
2 M Schumacher Ger Ferrari 68
3 D Coulthard GB McLaren
61
4 R Barrichello Brz Ferrari 49
5 R Schumacher Ger Williams 20
6 G Fisichella It Benetton 18
7 J Villeneuve Can BAR
11
8 J Button GB Williams
10
9 H-H Frentzen Ger Jordan
7
10 M Salo Fin Sauber
6
= J Trulli It Jordan
6
12 E Irvine GB Jaguar
3
13 J Verstappen Hol Arrows
2
= P de la Rosa Sp Arrows
2
15 R Zonta Brz BAR
1
CONSTRUCTORS' CHAMPIONSHIP
1 McLaren 125 pts
2 Ferrari 117
3 Williams 30
4 Benetton 18
5 Jordan 13
6 BAR
12
7 Sauber 6
8 Arrows 4
9 Jaguar 3
BTCC (Brands Hatch):- Rickard Rydell blamed Gabriele Tarquini for costing him the chance of two pole positions in Monday's races. Rydell is on pole for the sprint race after a time of 46.723 seconds but will be third in the feature race behind Tom Kristensen and James Thompson. Rydell accused Tarquini of blocking him on more than one lap. "Gabriele got in my way twice, in the same place both times," he said. "I should have been on pole twice. The car was good and I didn't have the luck."
Sunday qualifying times (Round 19):
secs
1 R Rydell Swe Ford
46.723
2 A Reid GB
Ford 46.959
3 M Neal GB
Nissan 46.986
4 T Kristensen Den Honda 47.039
5 Y Muller Fr Vauxhall
47.098
6 J Plato GB Vauxhall
47.137
7 A Menu Swi Ford
47.143
8 J Thompson GB Honda
47.171
9 G Tarquini It Honda
47.211
10 V Radermecker Bel Vauxhall 47.439
Sunday qualifying times (Round 20):
secs
1 T Kristensen Den Honda 46.781
2 J Thompson GB Honda
46.812
3 R Rydell Swe Ford
46.833
4 Y Muller Fr Vauxhall
46.913
5 J Plato GB Vauxhall
46.916
6 A Menu Swi Ford
46.932
7 A Reid GB
Ford 46.995
8 M Neal GB
Nissan 47.008
9 V Radermecker Bel Vauxhall 47.068
10 G Tarquini It Honda
47.098
F3000 (Spa-Francorchamps):-
Race result (Sat):
1 F Alonso Sp Astromega
2:07.184
2 M Goosens Bel Astromega 2:07.271
3 B Junqueira Brz Petrobas 2:07.310
4 R Mauricio Brz Red Bull 2:07.391
5 D Saelens Bel Playlife 2:07.401
6 J Wilson GB Nordic
2:07.789
7 M Webber Aus Arrows
2:07.885
8 N Minassian Fr Playlife 2:07.949
9 F Montagny Fr Dams
2:08.023
10 E Bernoldi Brz Red Bull 2:08.031
MEWLA RALLY:- John Price and his wife and co-driver Caroline have a perfect score in the Safety Devices National Championship after winning the Mewla Rally. Price had already won the title before this event but he now has five maximums to his credit - and a driver's five best scores go towards their total. Fellow Metro 6R4 driver Peter Lloyd was second and John Morgan was third. Overnight leader Jon Mercer retired on the second stage of the final day and Bob Fowden also failed to finish.
Result after 21 stages: hr min sec
1 J Price MG Metro
1:41.04
2 P Lloyd MG Metro
1:42.51
3 J Morgan Escort Cos
1:43.12
4 S Hendy Escort
Cos 1:44.35
5 S Fleck Subaru
Imp 1:44.41
6 M Worley Escort Cos
1:46.22
7 G Griffiths Escort Cos 1:47.45
8 D Kynaston Audi A3
1:48.13
9 D Cole
Darrian T90 1:48.55
10 T Davies Mitsubishi
1:49.23
ELF CLIO CUP (Brand's Hatch):- Points leader Jim Edwards jr was pipped for pole position by Rick Pearson ahead of the Bank Holiday showdown. Title challengers Henry Taylor and Daniel Buxton were fifth and ninth, with the top 18 separated by a second.
Qualifying times: secs
1 R Pearson 52.857
2 J Edwards jr 52.949
3 M Jackson 53.013
4 J Templeman 53.028
5 H Taylor 53.064
6 P Sowerby 53.156
FORD FIESTA’S (Brands Hatch):- Eighteen-year-old independent driver Matt Pinny claimed his second-ever win in the competition. The teenager qualified on pole and held off fierce challenges in the 25-lap race from Gordon Shedden, Colin Turkington and Nick Padmore.
Round 11 result (Sun): mins:secs
1 M Pinny Eng
24:44.417
2 G Shedden Sco
24:44.561
3 C Turkington NI 24:46.973
4 N Padmore Eng
24:47.166
5 C Stancombe Eng 24:53.315
6 N Beaumont Eng
24:53.556
F.FORD (Brands Hatch):- 20-year-old Robert Dahlgren will be looking for his second win of the season on Monday after clinching pole position in practice on Sunday. The van Diemen driver said he was confident of a win after beating rivals James Courtney and Anthony Davidson.
Round 12 qualification (Sun)
1 R Dahlgren Swe
47.537 secs
2 J Courtney Aus
47.557 secs
3 A Davidson Eng
47.655 secs
4 P Gray Sco
47.688 secs
5 A van der Merwe SA
47.763 secs
6 M Taylor Eng
47.788 secs
EUROPEAN F.PALMER AUDI:- Championship leader Damien Faulkner took his fifth pole position of the year in qualifying for round 16. Jesper Carlsen narrowly missed doing the double to start alongside the Irishman for the rolling start.
Saturday qualifying times: Times
1 D Faulkner www.f1gp
1:33.175
2 J Carlsen Team Brask
+ 0.055
3 C Hohenadel IAXIS
+ 0.189
4 R Kerr TS Blinds
+ 0.271
5 B Besson BBC Europe
+ 0.282
6 A Simonsen Team Brask
+ 0.430
28.08.2000
F1:- Nick Heidfeld has signed a three-year deal to join Sauber from next season. The 23-year-old German, who is currently with Prost, said: "I am happy with the signing and to be able to drive for this team. "I reckon that they have the potential to progress and I will do my best to contribute to that." Team boss Peter Sauber added: "Now we have got the chance to build for the long term with a young pilot. We were already keen to sign him up last year."
The Prost F1 team is expected to be relaunched this week following an encouraging display at Spa on Sunday. Following the defection of Nick Heidfeld to Sauber from 2001, Pedro Diniz is expected to drive with veteran Frenchman Jean Alesi next year. Prost may sell a large stake in the team with Diniz's father a likely buyer as he is one of Brazil's richest men. The deal with engine suppliers Peugeot expires at the end of the current season with no obvious replacement.
McLaren boss Ron Dennis has warned Mika Hakkinen not to write off team-mate
David Coulthard as the Finn bids for his third straight world crown. The
Scot is 13 points behind Hakkinen in the drivers' championship after only
finishing fourth in the Belgian Grand Prix, won by the Finn. "It would
be ridiculous for anybody to presume or suggest it was over for David,"
said Dennis. "There are still four races left so anything can still happen."
BTCC (Brands Hatch):-Matt Neal, driving an independently entered Nissan, gained a dramatic and highly popular victory in the sprint. The 33-year-old, hailed as the people's champion, took victory in the series for only the second time. Neal, whose previous victory at Donington last year earned him a £250,000 bonus, held off Honda's Tom Kristensen and Ford's Rickard Rydell. Alain Menu triumphed in the second race after finishing comfortably ahead of Rickard Rydell.
Monday's round 19 result: mins secs
1 M Neal GB
Nissan 20:13.853
2 T Kristensen Den Honda 20:14.448
3 R Rydell Swe Ford
20:14.870
4 A Menu Swi Ford
20:17.442
5 Y Muller Fr Vauxhall
20:18.231
6 J Thompson GB Honda
20:18.496
7 J Plato GB Vauxhall
20:19.445
8 A Reid GB
Ford 20:20.610
9 G Tarquini It Honda
20:21.212
10 V Radermecker Bel Vauxhall 20:39.288
Monday's round 20 result: time
1 A Menu Swi Ford
44:13.353
2 R Rydell Swe Ford
44:16.721
3 J Plato GB Vaux'll
44:16.819
4 A Reid GB
Ford 44:30.394
5 J Thompson GB Honda
44:31.466
6 Y Muller Fr Vaux'll
44:31.826
7 V Radermecker Bel Vaux'll 44:35.305
8 T Kristensen Den Honda 44:40.872
9 M Neal GB
Nissan 44:42.640
10 G Tarquini It Honda 44:44.643
DRIVER STANDINGS
1 A Menu Swi Ford
173 pts
2 A Reid GB Ford
167
3 R Rydell Swe Ford
162
4 Y Muller Fr Vauxhall 142
5 J Plato GB Vauxhall
138
6 G Tarquini It Honda
115
MANUFACTURER STANDINGS
1 Ford
496 pts
2 Vauxhall
358
3 Honda
347
F.RENAULT:- Kimi Raikkonen took victory and the title in a rain-curtailed race at Brand's Hatch. Leighton Walker was lucky to escape after a 140mph crash that forced the safety car onto the track.
Result:
mins secs
1 K Raikkonen Fin
25:00.451
2 D Watts GB
25:01.587
3 M McLoughlin GB
25:02.997
4 R Dalziel GB
25:04.270
5 J Jones US
25:05.305
6 T Sisley GB
25:07.105
ELF CLIO CUP (Brands Hatch):- Rick Pearson hung on to beat Henry Taylor in what was arguably the best race of the campaign. Series leader Jim Edwards Jnr finished fourth, which means 10th place in the next round will make him the champion.
Monday's round 10 result:
mins secs
1 R Pearson 21:50.915
2 H Taylor 21:51.081
3 D Gibson 21:56.823
4 J Edwards Jnr 21:56.974
5 M Jackson 21:58.520
6 D Davies 21:59.872
F.FORD:- Australian James Courtney clinched the championship after finishing third in round 12 at Brands Hatch. But it was Swedish ace Robert Dahlgren who took the win, his second this year, leading from start to finish.
Round 12 results (Mon): mins secs
1 R Dahlgren Swe
24:11.409
2 A Davidson Eng
24:12.007
3 J Courtney Aus
24:12.791
4 P Gray Sco
24:19.549
5 A Carroll NI
24:21.346
6 J Fourie SA
24:33.438
FORD FIESTA'S:- Gordon Shedden notched up anotehr win in Round 12 of the Ford Credit Fiesta Championship at Brands Hatch. Gareth Howell was leading going into the final lap but Shedden timed it right to beat the local driver.
Round 12 results (Mon): mins secs
1 G Shedden Sco
30:29.040
2 G Howell Eng
30:29.346
3 N Padley Eng
30:29.392
4 N Padmore Eng
30:30.173
5 T Clark Eng
30:31.034
6 M Pinny Eng
30:36.452
F.PALMER AUDI (Oulton Park):- Championship leader Damien Faulkner took another victory in the wet conditions after starting in fifth. Reigning champion Richard Tarling drove from seventh to finish second, with Bruno Besson just behind in 13th.
Monday's round 15 result: mins secs
1 D Faulkner www.f1gp
31:24.726
2 R Tarling JSP
@1.406
3 B Besson BBC Europe
@2.507
4 M Cioci Informedical
@4.680
5 C Hohenadel IAXIS
@6.312
6 J Keen Pendant
Alumin @8.200
Damien Faulkener became the first driver this year to take two victories at one meeting. He was under pressure from Robbie Kerr until the Englishman spun his car off the track.
Monday's round 16 result: mins secs
1 D Faulkner www.f1gp
23:27.494
2 J Carlsen Brask
@0.803
3 B Besson BBC Europe
@6.438
4 A Simonsen Brask
@7.161
5 J Keen Pendant
Alumin @7.463
6 R Tarling JSP
@17.351
CATERHAM SUPERLIGHT CHALLENGE (Oulton Park):- Rob Jenkinson finished fourth at Oulton Park on Monday afternoon to clinch the Caterham Superlight Challenge title. The result puts the 24-year-old beyond team mate Matt Bettley, who won the Oulton Park race.
Monday results (round 12): mins secs
1 M Bettley GB
28:24.394
2 G Taylor GB JSP
+0.15
3 S Worley GB BBC Europe
+0.66
4 R Jenkinson GB Informedical +7.90
5 D Garrett GB IAXIS
+9.39
6 J Stack GB Pendant Alumin +11.58
29.08.2000
F1:- The future of Formula One's Grand Prix weekends will be discussed at a meeting of team chiefs and the sport's leading powerbrokers on Wednesday. One of the issues due to be discussed is the possible shortening of the three-day Grand Prix weekend to just Saturday and Sunday. Proposals for a ban on testing at Grand Prix circuits, and a total testing ban during August, will also be discussed. A ban on testing at circuits could make Friday sessions relevant again.
MONZA TESTING
Tuesday's testing times: mins:secs
1 J Verstappen Arrows
1:25.454
2 P Diniz
Sauber 1:26.204
3 L Badoer
Ferrari 1:26.330
4 D Manning BAR
1:26.681
5 D Coulthard McLaren
1:26.721
6 G Fisichella Benetton 1:26.948
7 HH Frentzen Jordan
1:27.092
8 O Panis
McLaren 1:27.189
9 M Salo
Sauber 1:27.930
10 P Lemarie BAR
1:27.007
11 J Herbert Jaguar
1:28.036
12 B Junqueira Williams 1:28.710
13 N Heidfeld Prost
1:28.801
14 M Gene
Minardi 1:29.457
BRITISH GTs:- Martin Parsons will not complete the rest of the season
in the Privilege Insurance British GT Championship with the Hennessy Racing
Corse Stratos. He may partner Andrew Delahunty in a number of long-distance
Porsche events before the end of the season.