page_title: 2000 Belgian Grand Prix
section_title: Practice
hierarchical_section_title: 2000 Belgian Grand Prix / Practice
caption_attribution_description: Français&#160;: Jarno Trulli (Jordan) at the 2000 Belgian Grand Prix
context_page_description: The 2000 Belgian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on 27 August 2000 at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot, Belgium. It was the thirteenth race of the 2000 Formula One season, and the 58th Belgian Grand Prix. The 44-lap race was won by McLaren driver Mika Häkkinen, who started from the pole position. Michael Schumacher finished second in a Ferrari, and Williams driver Ralf Schumacher was third.
  The race began behind the safety car, and when the car returned to the pit lane Häkkinen built a comfortable lead over Jarno Trulli. As the track dried and his rivals made pit stops, Häkkinen maintained his lead until a lap-13 spin gave Michael Schumacher the lead for most of the remainder of the race. By the 34th lap Schumacher's tyres began to degrade; he drove off the racing line to cool them, which allowed Häkkinen to close the gap. On lap 41 Häkkinen overtook Michael Schumacher for the lead, lapping BAR driver Ricardo Zonta and maintaining the lead to win. Although Rubens Barrichello set the fastest lap time in the other Ferrari, he was hampered by a poor qualifying performance and retired with a fuel-pressure problem thirteen laps from the finish.
context_section_description: Four practice sessions were held before the Sunday race, two each on Friday and Saturday. The Friday morning and afternoon sessions each lasted an hour; the third and fourth sessions, on Saturday morning, lasted 45 minutes each. Conditions were dry for the Friday morning and afternoon practice sessions. Coulthard set the first session's fastest time with a lap of 1 minute, 53.398 seconds, eight-tenths of a second quicker than Michael Schumacher. Häkkinen had the third-fastest time, with Jarno Trulli, Barrichello and Jacques Villeneuve in the next three positions. The two Benetton drivers were seventh and eighth (with Wurz ahead of Fisichella), and the Williams cars of Ralf Schumacher and Button completed the top ten. Alesi's Prost had a fuel-pressure problem which prevented him from completing a timed lap, and he was the slowest overall. In the second practice session, due to a slow rear puncture Coulthard's first-session lap was still the fastest; Häkkinen had the second-fastest time. Jaguar driver Johnny Herbert changed his car's balance, improving its performance and finishing third-fastest. Villeneuve moved into fourth after changes to his car's setup; Michael Schumacher slipped to fifth, and Wurz finished sixth. Jos Verstappen was seventh-fastest, ahead of Fisichella, Barrichello and Trulli.
  The weather remained dry for the Saturday-morning practice sessions. Häkkinen set the fastest lap of the third session at 1 minute, 51.043 seconds, quicker than his best on Friday and ahead of Frentzen, Trulli and Ralf Schumacher. Coulthard, who had an engine problem early in the session, was fifth-fastest (ahead of Button and Michael Schumacher). Alesi, Villeneuve and Sauber driver Nick Heidfeld rounded out the top ten. During the final practice session Häkkinen could not improve his time, although he remained the fastest. Button, much happier with his car's handling, set the second-fastest time. The Jordan drivers were third and fourth, with Trulli ahead of Frentzen. Ralf Schumacher and Coulthard completed the top six. Of the slower drivers, Marc Gené had an anxious moment when his Minardi car shed its engine cover but was able to return to his garage.
caption: Jarno Trulli qualified in the front row of the grid, behind Mika Häkkinen.
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