Thread: Bel′giâ'99: second attempt of Alessandro Alex Zanardi

Bel′giâ'99: second attempt of Alessandro Alex Zanardi

Race #642: August 29, 1999. Grand Prix Of Belgium. Spa
Pole	Mika Hakkinen (McLaren MP4-14) - 1. 50,329 (227,363 km/h)
Best lap	Mika Hakkinen (McLaren MP4-14) - 1. 53,955 (220,128 km/h)
The winner	David Coulthard (McLaren MP4-14) - 1:25. 43,057 (214,595 km/h)

Exceptions, as you know, the good, which once again confirms the rule. Grand Prix of Belgium 1999 became such an exception. On the highway, where the struggle is traditionally formed sharp and unpredictable, in that season, fans in the stands had difficulty finding an intrigue, not to go to a nearby tent for a beer and smoked sausages.

McLaren drivers Mika Hakkinen and David Coulthard started from the first row, but Finn just yanked the car from the place before traffic lights. Had to press on the brake, again off the clutch, and that fraction of a second that had to be spent on these operations, and decided the outcome of the race. David is much better ready for the starting signal and failed to catch up with team-mate to disperse to the first hairpin.

Positions were approximately equal, McLaren racers simultaneously pressed on the brake, and the machine began to converge. In that season Hakkinen and Coulthard already had a accident in Austria, because the event could take the most serious. Eventually it came to contact, but still not too hard, and David was able to come forward.

Mika at first pursued a running mate, but after ten laps and fell markedly in the course of pit stops on lap stuck behind Ralf Schumacher from Williams. After that, the chance to compete with team-mate had already left, and current world champion, realizing this, so dropped the tempo that the bridge team even showed a sign Click!.

However, the second position Hakkinen retained without difficulty, and indeed, all of the top five at the finish turned out to be exactly the same as on the go red water on the first lap. Heinz-Harald Frencen once again proved their excellent form, having won the podium, and the new leader of the Ferrari of Eddie Irvine, who came to the Spa overall standings leader, took fourth place.

Severoirlandtsev would probably complicate things already mentioned Schumacher (the only one of the group leaders, who held a race with one pit stop, not two), but the moment out of the pitlane Ralph was ahead of the second rider of Scuderia Mika Salo, then diligently performed the task of supporting fire team leader from unnecessary risk.

Both said after the finish Ron Dennis, expressing a common view: a great result for us, but a very boring race for everybody else.

Interesting. . .

Two previous world champion received the Grand Prix of Belgium own, albeit small, occasions for joy. Damon Hill led his Jordan to finish sixth: as it turned out, were the last Briton in career points (just eight years there were 360). And Jacques Villeneuve, pleased the other day in a serious mess in the Red water, was able to finish the race 15-m. for the pilot BAR this turned out to be their first opportunity to see the checkered flag since the start of the season!

The second attempt Alessandro Zanardi



Eighth Belgian finished the race Alex Zanardi. Pilot Wiilliams long held the top six, at some point went up even to the fourth position, but in the end, again, the umpteenth time in a row, failed to earn points. This is a nasty tradition of the Italian failed to break to the end of the championship.

The story of Alessandro Zanardi, a man of infinite courage, Paralympic champion and two-time winner of the series CART, deserves a separate and detailed story, we will focus only on one of its episode, which is wonderfully distracting from the overall Conwy. On the performances of Zanardi for Williams in 1999.

By the time he managed to Excel in youth classes, to become Vice-champion Formula 3000, for three years acted in F1 for Jordan, Minardi, Lotus and even finished sixth at the Grand Prix of Brazil in 1993, then moved to America. The first six months in the CART series in Italian literally everything fell from the hands, but then he accelerated so that twice utterly beat all the local stars.

Of course, it gave a new career momentum, and in 1997 to Alex began to receive proposals from the F1 paddock (rumored to be interested in even the countrymen from Ferrari). After reviewing all options, the driver decided to sign a contract with Williams. It would seem, to think there was just about anything: Frank Williams were in the mid 90's the best machine, which has already brought several pilots (including Damon hill, which Zanardi was easily defeated in F) championship titles.

But in this case there was one caveat: to return to the Formula 1 Italian could only in 1999) it is Clear that for a year and a half to happen could all, but, as argued Alessandro, Williams hardly will slide during this time, the outsiders. Side hit on his hands.

In fact, the changes were quite tangible, and they wore the minus sign is gone air genius Adrian Newey, and mechanics of Renault decided to turn the program in F1. Already in 1998, the team has not won a single victory. Third place in the Cup of designers with four (!) behind the glasses from Champions of the McLaren looked less attractive. But to retreat, Zanardi not used.

He got the first opportunity to bring to the test track red-and-white Williams FW21, the team was actively preparing for the season, but in the first Grand Prix technical problems still brought a lot of headaches. And in Australia, and Brazil pilot lost a lot of time in the course of the training, started from the middle of the second ten and was unable to get to the finish line because of the failure of the machine. In Sao Paulo it, in addition, was fined $ 5,000 for speeding in the pits.

Things went smoothly at Imola, where Sandro showed in qualifying in tenth place. But at the start of the failed electronics, and although the pilot then played several positions at the end of the race he was only the seventh (at the time points were accrued only the top six). In addition, two laps before the finish of Zanardi took off, slipping on the oil from the failed motor Stewart johnny Herbert.

In the Principality of Monaco racer for the first time ahead of team-mate in the qualification, however, after a dozen laps broke the seat mount. On the track, where each inaccuracy in pilot promises accident, our little capsule in cockpit provoked a series of errors, and to finish the Italian got only eighth. It was his first of the season travel under the checkered flag.

In Spain at the pit stop is denied box, in Canada, where Alessandro played four places at the start, failed brakes, casting a racer on the last position. Trying to recoup, he got into an accident. French race was held under the rain, and after driving through a deep puddle stalled motor.

Only the British Grand Prix, the eighth stage of the season, turned out for the first time without adventure. But from the outset weekend, the engineers could not find the right settings, because the result is very modest: 13th place at the start and 11th at the finish.

In Austria by car broke radio and ACEX was so fond of fighting Pedro Denizen, he forgot about the pit stop, and burned all the fuel to drop. Stage in Hockenheim was marked by a fine for speeding and failure of the differential, this problem has prevented the racer to reach the finish line and in Hungary.

A visit to the Spa, it seemed, was to put an end to the black band: tactics with only one pit stop allowed Zanardi started eighth, count on early in the season points. But during refueling due to someone's negligence in a tank filled only half of the required amount of fuel. I had to go in the boxes again. The result was only finish eighth position.

Home Grand Prix in Monza, the Italian started the fourth. Playing two positions at the start and then losing one of them, he confidently held the third when, after half a dozen laps through the wreckage of a strange accident has damaged the bottom of his Williams. Aerodynamics was broken, and on the long straight Autodromo Nazionale it had the most dire consequences. To finish turned out to be only the seventh.

18th starting position at the nürburgring was the worst in the season. Pilot vinyl qualifying traffic, and at the start, cool got off with a jerk, in the first turn was forced to brake sharply, dodging the collided cars in front of him. The result again was the last position and the collision with Pedro de La Rosa when trying to recoup.

A visit to far Malaysia has been marked invalid in the crush of the first round wheel drive, departure on the lawn under the finish and only a 10-m final destination. Now to try at least to repeat the best career result (the same sixth place in the Grand Prix of Brazil in 1993 driving a Lotus) Zanardi could only in Suzuka.

What went wrong in 1999? The point, as usual, was not limited only factor. First, tired from a few very intense seasons, secondly, after the light atmosphere overseas races Alex felt too tight in all the Grand Prix paddock. In the CART he was a master of late braking, but more effective brakes F1 drove this trump card. Finally, tires with grooves are also not the best way podhodili style Italian. . .

In Japan, ahead of seven machines during the first round, Zanardi came down because of failure of the electrical system of the engine. Despite a three-year contract, he and Williams decided to break the relationship by mutual consent. Racer was paid 4 million dollars of compensation. And this, perhaps, was the only pleasant moment in the season.

The other pilot Williams, Ralf Schumacher, in the same 16 races of the championship 11 times could finish in the top five three times and has been on the podium, vklucaja second place in Monza.