# 1998 International Formula 3000 Championship

The 1998 International Formula 3000 Championship was the thirty-second season of the second-tier of Formula One feeder championship and also fourteenth season under the International Formula 3000 Championship moniker. The championship was contested over twelve rounds from 11 April to 26 September 1998. The Drivers' Championship was won by Colombian Juan Pablo Montoya of Super Nova Racing, who won four races.

## Drivers and teams

| Team | No. | Driver | Rounds |
| Super Nova Racing | 1 | Juan Pablo Montoya | All |
| Super Nova Racing | 2 | Boris Derichebourg | All |
| Den Blå Avis | 3 | Jason Watt | All |
| Den Blå Avis | 4 | Gareth Rees | All |
| Edenbridge Racing | 5 | Max Wilson | All |
| Edenbridge Racing | 6 | Werner Lupberger | All |
| DAMS | 7 | Jamie Davies | All |
| DAMS | 8 | Grégoire de Galzain | All |
| Auto Sport Racing | 9 | Rui Águas | 1 |
| Auto Sport Racing | 9 | Dino Morelli | 2-5 |
| Auto Sport Racing | 9 | Tomáš Enge | 8-12 |
| Auto Sport Racing | 10 | Oliver Martini | All |
| Team Astromega | 11 | Gastón Mazzacane | All |
| Team Astromega | 12 | Gonzalo Rodríguez | All |
| Draco Engineering | 14 | Bruno Junqueira | All |
| Draco Engineering | 15 | Giovanni Montanari | All |
| Nordic Racing | 16 | Fabrice Walfisch | All |
| Nordic Racing | 17 | Brian Smith | 1-6 |
| Nordic Racing | 17 | Kevin McGarrity | 7-9 |
| Nordic Racing | 17 | Hidetoshi Mitsusada | 10-12 |
| Coloni Motorsport | 18 | Giorgio Vinella | 1-7, 9-12 |
| Coloni Motorsport | 18 | Rui Águas | 8 |
| Coloni Motorsport | 19 | Thomas Biagi | 1-2 |
| Coloni Motorsport | 19 | Rui Águas | 3-6 |
| Coloni Motorsport | 19 | Oliver Tichy | 7-12 |
| Durango Formula | 20 | Bertrand Godin | All |
| Durango Formula | 21 | Soheil Ayari | All |
| Arden Racing KTR | 22 | Christian Horner | All |
| Arden Racing KTR | 23 | Kurt Mollekens | 1-8, 10-12 |
| Redman & Bright F3000 | 24 | Jonny Kane | 1-4 |
| Redman & Bright F3000 | 24 | David Cook | 7-9 |
| Redman & Bright F3000 | 25 | Mark Shaw | All |
| Bob Salisbury Engineering | 26 | Dino Morelli | None, on entry list only |
| Bob Salisbury Engineering | 27 | James Taylor | None, on entry list only |
| Apomatox | 28 | Stéphane Sarrazin | All |
| Apomatox | 29 | Marcelo Battistuzzi | All |
| West Competition | 30 | Nick Heidfeld | All |
| West Competition | 31 | Nicolas Minassian | 1-11 |
| West Competition | 31 | Bas Leinders | 12 |
| RTL Team Oreca | 32 | Alex Müller | All |
| RTL Team Oreca | 33 | Dominik Schwager | All |
| Prema Powerteam | 34 | André Couto | All |
| Prema Powerteam | 35 | André Gaidzinski | None, on entry list only |
| Prema Powerteam | 35 | Paolo Ruberti | 1-6 |
| Prema Powerteam | 35 | Thomas Biagi | 7-12 |
| GP Racing | 36 | Paolo Ruberti | None, on entry list only |
| GP Racing | 36 | Cyrille Sauvage | 1-10 |
| GP Racing | 36 | James Taylor | 11-12 |
| Raceprep Motorsport | 37 | Kevin McGarrity | 1-5 |
| G. S. Team | 38 | Fabrizio Gollin | All |
| G. S. Team | 39 | Cyrille Sauvage | None, on entry list only |
| Elide Racing | 40 | Polo Villaamil | 1, 3 |
| Sources: ||||

## Calendar

1998 was the last International F3000 season where races were held independently from Formula One Grands Prix. Pau and Pergusa had held International F3000 and previously European Formula Two Championship races uninterruptedly since 1972.
| Round | Circuit | Date | Laps | Distance | Time | Speed | Pole Position | Fastest Lap | Winner | Winning Team | Report |
| 1 | Motorsport Arena Oschersleben | 10 April | 56 | 3.667=205.352 km | 1'24:52.384 | 145.171 km/h | Juan Pablo Montoya | Juan Pablo Montoya | Stéphane Sarrazin | Apomatox | Report |
| 2 | Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari | 25 April | 42 | 4.93=207.06 km | 1'16:38.513 | 162.099 km/h | Juan Pablo Montoya | Gonzalo Rodríguez | Jason Watt | Den Blå Avis | Report |
| 3 | Circuit de Catalunya | 9 May | 44 | 4.728=208.032 km | 1'12:50.057 | 171.272 km/h | Juan Pablo Montoya | Nick Heidfeld | Juan Pablo Montoya | Super Nova Racing | Report |
| 4 | Silverstone Circuit | 16 May | 40 | 5.14=205.60 km | 1'10:08.886 | 175.857 km/h | Juan Pablo Montoya | Juan Pablo Montoya | Juan Pablo Montoya | Super Nova Racing | Report |
| 5 | Circuit de Monaco | 23 May | 50 | 3.367=168.35 km | 1'18:04.956 | 129.363 km/h | Jason Watt | Juan Pablo Montoya | Nick Heidfeld | West Competition | Report |
| 6 | Pau Grand Prix | 1 June | 75 | 2.76=207.00 km | 1'33:10.179 | 133.305 km/h | Juan Pablo Montoya | Juan Pablo Montoya | Juan Pablo Montoya | Super Nova Racing | Report |
| 7 | A1-Ring | 25 July | 43 | 4.319=185.717 km | 1'11:04.222 | 175.019 km/h | Soheil Ayari | Soheil Ayari | Soheil Ayari | Durango Formula | Report |
| 8 | Hockenheimring | 1 August | 31 | 6.823=211.513 km | 1'12:57.599 | 173.942 km/h | Nick Heidfeld | Nick Heidfeld | Nick Heidfeld | West Competition | Report |
| 9 | Budapest | 15 August | 52 | 3.972=206.544 km | 1'20:14.689 | 154.435 km/h | Stéphane Sarrazin | Nick Heidfeld | Nick Heidfeld | West Competition | Report |
| 10 | Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps | 29 August | 29 | 6.968=202.072 km | 1'03:10.530 | 191.900 km/h | Juan Pablo Montoya | Soheil Ayari | Gonzalo Rodríguez | Team Astromega | Report |
| 11 | Autodromo di Pergusa | 6 September | 41 | 4.95=202.95 km | 1'04:29.540 | 188.813 km/h | Nick Heidfeld | Juan Pablo Montoya | Juan Pablo Montoya | Super Nova Racing | Report |
| 12 | Nürburgring | 26 September | 45 | 4.556=205.02 km | 1'12:37.085 | 169.381 km/h | Juan Pablo Montoya | Gonzalo Rodríguez | Gonzalo Rodríguez | Team Astromega | Report |
| Source: ||||||||||||

## Season summary

After winning the 1997 championship with Ricardo Zonta, Super Nova Racing chose to recruit championship runner-up Juan Pablo Montoya to lead their main team, and also expanded their second Den Blå Avis team to two cars by hiring Gareth Rees to partner Jason Watt. Montoya's former team RSM Marko did not compete in 1998, but there were new entries from GT specialists Oreca and the new West Competition team, established as a McLaren junior team and run by former Williams race engineer David Brown.
With seven pole positions, Montoya was the fastest man in the championship all season, but a poor start to the season left him trailing several title rivals. In the event, the championship turned into a duel between the Colombian and newcomer Nick Heidfeld, who remained consistent throughout the season despite his relative inexperience. Watt often matched their pace but made several key mistakes costing him points, while Uruguay's Gonzalo Rodriguez finished the season strongly with two wins in the last three races, becoming the first driver from the South American nation to win a Formula 3000 event.
Montoya led Heidfeld by three points going into the final round at the Nürburgring. However, after qualifying second on the grid, Heidfeld's times were deleted and he was relegated to the back of the grid, only making the race after Brown withdrew his new teammate Bas Leinders from the event. Despite recovering through the field, Heidfeld failed to climb into the top six, and Montoya's third-place finish clinched him the championship. Rodriguez beat Watt to the race win and third place in the standings.
Montoya moved to the North American CART series for 1999 with Chip Ganassi Racing, going on to win the championship as a rookie. He went on to graduate to Formula One with Williams in 2001, and became the only International Formula 3000 champion to win more than one grand prix in his career. The only driver from the field to participate in Formula One in 1999 was Stéphane Sarrazin, who secured a one-off drive in the Brazilian Grand Prix for Minardi in place of the injured Luca Badoer. Most of the leading Formula 3000 drivers instead remained in the series for 1999.

## Drivers' Championship

| Pos | Driver | OSC | IML | CAT | SIL | MON | PAU | A1R | HOC | HUN | SPA | PER | NÜR | Points |
| 1 | Juan Pablo Montoya | 15 | Ret | 1 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 65 |
| 2 | Nick Heidfeld | 2 | 4 | 26 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 9 | 58 |
| 3 | Gonzalo Rodríguez | Ret | 3 | 21 | Ret | 2 | Ret | 4 | 11 | 7 | 1 | Ret | 1 | 33 |
| 4 | Jason Watt | 7 | 1 | 7 | 3 | Ret | Ret | 3 | 2 | 10 | 8 | Ret | 2 | 30 |
| 5 | Soheil Ayari | Ret | Ret | 5 | Ret | DNQ | Ret | 1 | Ret | Ret | 3 | 3 | Ret | 20 |
| 6 | Stéphane Sarrazin | 1 | 24 | 15 | 24 | 4 | Ret | 8 | Ret | 2 | Ret | Ret | 19 | 19 |
| 7 | Kurt Mollekens | Ret | 2 | 2 | 8 | 5 | 5 | 10 | Ret | | DNQ | 8 | 4 | 19 |
| 8 | Gareth Rees | Ret | Ret | Ret | 4 | Ret | 4 | Ret | 6 | DNS | 12 | 4 | Ret | 10 |
| 9 | Max Wilson | Ret | Ret | 6 | 5 | DNPQ | 2 | Ret | Ret | Ret | 13 | Ret | Ret | 9 |
| 10 | Jamie Davies | 3 | 8 | 13 | 16 | 3 | Ret | Ret | 16 | 15 | 15 | 7 | 14 | 8 |
| 11 | André Couto | Ret | 5 | 14 | Ret | Ret | 6 | Ret | Ret | 5 | 14 | 9 | 5 | 7 |
| 12 | Boris Derichebourg | 11 | 6 | 3 | 12 | Ret | Ret | 15 | 7 | Ret | 17 | 11 | Ret | 5 |
| 13 | Nicolas Minassian | Ret | 19 | Ret | 7 | 9 | 7 | 5 | Ret | 4 | 19 | 19 | | 5 |
| 14 | Dominik Schwager | 14 | 11 | 4 | 14 | 10 | DNQ | Ret | 14 | 18 | Ret | Ret | 7 | 3 |
| 15 | Thomas Biagi | 4 | 10 | | | | | 12 | 10 | 13 | 10 | Ret | 12 | 3 |
| 16 | Kevin McGarrity | DNQ | 14 | 27 | Ret | DNQ | | Ret | 4 | Ret | | | | 3 |
| 17 | Oliver Martini | 16 | 9 | 9 | Ret | DNPQ | 10 | 9 | 13 | 6 | 9 | 5 | Ret | 3 |
| 18 | Bruno Junqueira | Ret | 16 | 16 | 9 | Ret | Ret | 6 | 5 | Ret | Ret | 18 | Ret | 3 |
| 19 | Cyrille Sauvage | 5 | Ret | 11 | Ret | 15 | Ret | 13 | Ret | 8 | 20 | | | 2 |
| 20 | Alex Müller | Ret | Ret | 10 | 11 | Ret | Ret | 11 | Ret | 20 | 5 | 20 | 13 | 2 |
| 21 | Gastón Mazzacane | 6 | 7 | Ret | 6 | 12 | 9 | Ret | Ret | Ret | DNQ | 13 | Ret | 2 |
| 22 | Tomáš Enge | | | | | | | | 15 | 12 | 7 | Ret | 6 | 1 |
| 23 | Werner Lupberger | Ret | 13 | 12 | 18 | 14 | Ret | 16 | 8 | 17 | 11 | 6 | Ret | 1 |
| 24 | Marcelo Battistuzzi | DNQ | 22 | Ret | Ret | Ret | DNQ | 18 | Ret | 11 | 6 | Ret | Ret | 1 |
| 25 | Rui Águas | 9 | | 17 | 17 | 7 | Ret | | Ret | | | | | 0 |
| 26 | Brian Smith | 10 | Ret | Ret | 15 | 11 | 8 | | | | | | | 0 |
| 27 | Giovanni Montanari | Ret | 15 | 8 | 13 | 13 | Ret | 14 | Ret | 19 | 16 | Ret | 10 | 0 |
| 28 | Dino Morelli | | Ret | 19 | 10 | 8 | | | | | | | | 0 |
| 29 | Bertrand Godin | 8 | Ret | 22 | 19 | Ret | DNQ | 19 | 12 | 14 | 21 | 12 | 11 | 0 |
| 30 | Fabrice Walfisch | 13 | 18 | 20 | Ret | DNQ | DNQ | Ret | Ret | Ret | 22 | Ret | 8 | 0 |
| 31 | Oliver Tichy | | | | | | | 22 | 9 | 9 | 18 | Ret | Ret | 0 |
| 32 | Grégoire de Galzain | DNQ | Ret | 18 | 23 | DNPQ | DNQ | Ret | 17 | Ret | 25 | 10 | 16 | 0 |
| 33 | Christian Horner | Ret | 12 | Ret | Ret | 16 | DNQ | 17 | 18 | Ret | DNQ | 17 | 17 | 0 |
| 34 | Jonny Kane | 12 | 21 | Ret | 20 | | | | | | | | | 0 |
| 35 | Fabrizio Gollin | DNQ | 17 | DNQ | Ret | Ret | DNQ | 21 | DNQ | Ret | DNQ | 14 | Ret | 0 |
| 36 | Giorgio Vinella | DNQ | Ret | 25 | 22 | DNQ | DNQ | Ret | | 21 | DNQ | 15 | 22 | 0 |
| 37 | Hidetoshi Mitsusada | | | | | | | | | | 23 | Ret | 15 | 0 |
| 38 | Mark Shaw | Ret | 20 | Ret | Ret | DNPQ | DNQ | 20 | 19 | 16 | 24 | 16 | 18 | 0 |
| 39 | Paolo Ruberti | DSQ | Ret | 23 | 21 | 18 | Ret | | | | | | | 0 |
| 40 | James Taylor | | | | | | | | | | | 21 | 21 | 0 |
| 41 | Polo Villaamil | DNQ | | 24 | | | | | | | | | | 0 |
| – | David Cook | | | | | | | Ret | DNQ | DNS | | | | 0 |
| – | Bas Leinders | | | | | | | | | | | | DNS | 0 |
| Pos | Driver | OSC | IML | CAT | SIL | MON | PAU | A1R | HOC | HUN | SPA | PER | NÜR | Points |
| Sources: |||||||||||||||
| Colour | Result |
| Gold | Winner |
| Silver | Second place |
| Bronze | Third place |
| Green | Points finish |
| Blue | Non-points finish |
| Blue | Non-classified finish (NC) |
| Purple | Retired (Ret) |
| Red | Did not qualify (DNQ) |
| Red | Did not pre-qualify (DNPQ) |
| Black | Disqualified (DSQ) |
| White | Did not start (DNS) |
| White | Withdrew (WD) |
| White | Race cancelled (C) |
| Blank | Did not practice (DNP) |
| Blank | Did not arrive (DNA) |
| Blank | Excluded (EX) |