1997 Japanese Grand Prix

The 1997 Japanese Grand Prix, otherwise known as the XXIII Fuji Television Japanese Grand Prix (XXIII フジテレビ日本グランプリ in Japanese), was the sixteenth and penultimate round of the FIA Formula One World Championship, staged at the Suzuka Circuit on 12 October 1997.'Japanese GP, 1997', grandprix.com, (Inside F1 Inc., 2014), https://www.grandprix.com/gpe/rr613.html, (Accessed 24/08/2019) The race proved to be a rather controversial one, with Championship leader Jacques Villeneuve being disqualified for a practice infringement, while Michael Schumacher swept to victory.
The Canadian had started the weekend in fine form, sweeping to pole position in qualifying, only to be told that he had been excluded. Replays showed that the had passed several yellow flags during the session, prompting the officials to prevent the Canadian from racing at all.
Williams, unsurprisingly, appealed the decision, and duly received a reprieve when the officials opted to allow Villeneuve to start from pole, albeit under a wider weekend long appeal. He would hence be joined on the front row by Schumacher, while Eddie Irvine claimed third ahead of Mika Häkkinen.
Raceday saw the warm-up pass without issue, with conditions remaining dry with no threat of rain. With that the field gathered on the grid for the start, with questions over how Villeneuve would take the start.
Unsurprisingly Villeneuve was very aggressive off the line, sweeping to the inside of the circuit to prevent Schumacher from nosing ahead into the first corner. Behind, Häkkinen got the jump on Irvine, while Heinz-Harald Frentzen surged ahead of Gerhard Berger to secure fifth.
Irvine was the man to watch in the early stages, passing both Häkkinen and Schumacher on lap two with a stunning move through the Esses. He duly went on to harass Villeneuve for the lead for the next lap an a half, before selling the Canadian a dummy into the chicane to grab the lead.
With that Irvine was away, pulling out a five second lead in a little over a lap, which exploded out to twelve in the following three. Villeneuve, in truth, was forfeiting his hopes of victory by instead focusing on Schumacher, doing everything he could to keep the German ace behind him, knowing that he would win the Championship, barring appeals, as things stood.
Häkkinen and Berger started the pit sequence on lap thirteen, the start of a tactical battle between and that involved all four of their cars. Irvine and Schumacher, meanwhile, would make their stops on laps sixteen and eighteen, the latter emerging behind Johnny Herbert in the , while Villeneuve stopped on lap twenty.
Schumacher lost a little time behind Herbert, with Ferrari having sent a mechanic down to ask what their customers were doing, and was blasting down the start/finish straight as Villeneuve rejoined. Having been told of Schumacher's progress Villeneuve shot straight across the circuit to try and put Schumacher off, only for the #5 to dive inside the Williams in turn one to secure second.
The second moment of controversy followed soon after, with Ferrari telling Irvine to slow down and allow Schumacher through. The Brit duly did so to let Schumacher through on lap 23, before streaking across the circuit to block Villeneuve from coming through as well.
With that the race was over, with Irvine doing everything in his power to ruin Villeneuve's race without making contact. That, ultimately worked against him, for while Villeneuve remained behind, having seen his attempt at an undercut with an early second stop ruined by a fuel line issue, the #6 Ferrari would slip behind Frentzen.
Frentzen duly went chasing off after Schumacher, but ran out of time to catch the German in-spite of the best efforts of Damon Hill to block the Ferrari when Schumacher came to lap him. Behind, Irvine ran in a lonely third, while Häkkinen managed to get ahead of Villeneuve courtesy of the Canadian's poor stop.
That, ultimately, was how the race finished, with Schumacher claiming victory while Villeneuve finished fifth, meaning the Canadian's lead had been cut to just a single point. Frentzen, meanwhile, would finish second to secure the Constructors Championship for Williams-Renault, while Irvine completed the podium.
In the weeks after the race the FIA Court of Appeal met to discuss Villeneuve's pre-race penalty, which had seen the Canadian race under appeal. Their study into the incident, using a variety of replays, decided to uphold the original exclusion, meaning Villeneuve was removed from the results entirely. Schumacher would hence head into the finale with a one point lead.
==Background==
Victory for Jacques Villeneuve ensured that the Canadian ace left Luxembourg at the head of the Championship hunt, establishing a nine point lead. Michael Schumacher had made way for the Canadian racer, and would likely have to outscore the Canadian racer in Japan to keep his title hopes alive. Behind, Heinz-Harald Frentzen had retained third, although Jean Alesi had closed to within a point of the German racer.
In the Constructors Championship it was advantage , who needed just a handful of points in Japan to retain their crown. Indeed, had slipped 26 points behind at the Nürburgring, meaning they would have to outscore Williams by eleven points in Suzuka if they were to challenge for the title at the season finale. Behind had delivered a significant blow in the fight for third, moving eighteen clear of with two rounds to go.
===Entry list===
The full entry list for the is outlined below:
No. 	Driver 	Entrant 	Constructor 	Chassis 	Engine 	Model 	Tyre
1 	Damon Hill 	Danka Arrows Yamaha 	 	A18 	 	OX11A 3.0 V10 	
2 	Pedro Diniz 	Danka Arrows Yamaha 	 	A18 	 	OX11A 3.0 V10 	
3 	Jacques Villeneuve 	Rothmans Williams Renault 	 	FW19 	 	RS9 3.0 V10 	
4 	Heinz-Harald Frentzen 	Rothmans Williams Renault 	 	FW19 	 	RS9 3.0 V10 	
5 	Michael Schumacher 	Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro 	 	F310B 	 	046/2 3.0 V10 	
6 	Eddie Irvine 	Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro 	 	F310B 	 	046/2 3.0 V10 	
7 	Jean Alesi 	Mild Seven Benetton Renault 	 	B197 	 	RS9 3.0 V10 	
8 	Gerhard Berger 	Mild Seven Benetton Renault 	 	B197 	 	RS9 3.0 V10 	
9 	Mika Häkkinen 	West McLaren Mercedes 	 	MP4/12 	 	FO 110E 3.0 V10 	
10 	David Coulthard 	West McLaren Mercedes 	 	MP4/12 	 	FO 110E 3.0 V10 	
11 	Ralf Schumacher 	B&H Total Jordan Peugeot 	 	197 	 	A14 3.0 V10 	
12 	Giancarlo Fisichella 	B&H Total Jordan Peugeot 	 	197 	 	A14 3.0 V10 	
14 	Olivier Panis 	Prost Gauloises Blondes 	 	JS45 	 	MF-301HB 3.0 V10 	
15 	Shinji Nakano 	Prost Gauloises Blondes 	 	JS45 	 	MF-301HB 3.0 V10 	
16 	Johnny Herbert 	Red Bull Sauber Petronas 	 	C16 	 	SPE-01 3.0 V10 	
17 	Gianni Morbidelli 	Red Bull Sauber Petronas 	 	C16 	 	SPE-01 3.0 V10 	
18 	Jos Verstappen 	PIAA Tyrrell 	 	025 	 	ED4 3.0 V10 	
19 	Mika Salo 	PIAA Tyrrell 	 	025 	 	ED4 3.0 V10 	
20 	Ukyo Katayama 	Minardi Team 	 	M197 	 	830 AV7 3.0 V10 	
21 	Tarso Marques 	Minardi Team 	 	M197 	 	830 AV7 3.0 V10 	
22 	Rubens Barrichello 	HSBC Malaysia Stewart Ford 	 	SF01 	 	VJ Zetec-R 3.0 V10 	
23 	Jan Magnussen 	HSBC Malaysia Stewart Ford 	 	SF01 	 	VJ Zetec-R 3.0 V10 	
Source:'Japan 1997: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2015), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1997/japon/engages.aspx, (Accessed 24/08/2019)	Source:'Japan 1997: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2015), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1997/japon/engages.aspx, (Accessed 24/08/2019)	Source:'Japan 1997: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2015), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1997/japon/engages.aspx, (Accessed 24/08/2019)	Source:'Japan 1997: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2015), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1997/japon/engages.aspx, (Accessed 24/08/2019)	Source:'Japan 1997: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2015), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1997/japon/engages.aspx, (Accessed 24/08/2019)	Source:'Japan 1997: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2015), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1997/japon/engages.aspx, (Accessed 24/08/2019)	Source:'Japan 1997: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2015), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1997/japon/engages.aspx, (Accessed 24/08/2019)	Source:'Japan 1997: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2015), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1997/japon/engages.aspx, (Accessed 24/08/2019)
==Practice Overview==
==Qualifying==
===Qualifying Report===
===Qualifying Results===
The full qualifying results for the are outlined below:
Pos. 	No. 	Driver 	Constructor 	Time 	Gap 	Ave. Speed
1 	3 	Jacques Villeneuve 	 	1:36.071 	— 	219.737 km/h
2 	5 	Michael Schumacher 	 	1:36.133 	+0.062s 	219.596 km/h
3 	6 	Eddie Irvine 	 	1:36.466 	+0.395s 	218.838 km/h
4 	9 	Mika Häkkinen 	 	1:36.469 	+0.398s 	218.831 km/h
5 	8 	Gerhard Berger 	 	1:36.561 	+0.490s 	218.622 km/h
6 	4 	Heinz-Harald Frentzen 	 	1:36.628 	+0.557s 	218.471 km/h
7 	7 	Jean Alesi 	 	1:36.682 	+0.611s 	218.349 km/h
8 	16 	Johnny Herbert 	 	1:36.906 	+0.835s 	217.844 km/h
9 	12 	Giancarlo Fisichella 	 	1:36.917 	+0.846s 	217.819 km/h
10 	14 	Olivier Panis 	 	1:37.073 	+1.002s 	217.469 km/h
11 	10 	David Coulthard 	 	1:37.095 	+1.024s 	217.420 km/h
12 	22 	Rubens Barrichello 	 	1:37.343 	+1.272s 	216.866 km/h
13 	11 	Ralf Schumacher 	 	1:37.443 	+1.372s 	216.644 km/h
14 	23 	Jan Magnussen 	 	1:37.480 	+1.409s 	216.561 km/h
15 	15 	Shinji Nakano 	 	1:37.588 	+1.517s 	216.322 km/h
16 	2 	Pedro Diniz 	 	1:37.853 	+1.782s 	215.736 km/h
17 	1 	Damon Hill 	 	1:38.022 	+1.951s 	215.364 km/h
18* 	17 	Gianni Morbidelli 	 	1:38.556 	+2.485s 	214.197 km/h
19 	20 	Ukyo Katayama 	 	1:38.983 	+2.912s 	213.273 km/h
20 	21 	Tarso Marques 	 	1:39.678 	+3.607s 	211.786 km/h
21 	18 	Jos Verstappen 	 	1:40.259 	+4.188s 	210.559 km/h
22 	19 	Mika Salo 	 	1:40.529 	+4.458s 	209.993 km/h
107% Time: 1:42.796 	107% Time: 1:42.796 	107% Time: 1:42.796 	107% Time: 1:42.796 	107% Time: 1:42.796 	107% Time: 1:42.796 	107% Time: 1:42.796
Source:'1997 Fuji Television Japanese Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Ltd., 2019), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/1997/races/669/japan/qualifying-0.html, (Accessed 24/08/2019)'Japan 1997: Qualifications', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1997/japon/qualification.aspx, (Accessed 24/08/2019)	Source:'1997 Fuji Television Japanese Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Ltd., 2019), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/1997/races/669/japan/qualifying-0.html, (Accessed 24/08/2019)'Japan 1997: Qualifications', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1997/japon/qualification.aspx, (Accessed 24/08/2019)	Source:'1997 Fuji Television Japanese Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Ltd., 2019), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/1997/races/669/japan/qualifying-0.html, (Accessed 24/08/2019)'Japan 1997: Qualifications', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1997/japon/qualification.aspx, (Accessed 24/08/2019)	Source:'1997 Fuji Television Japanese Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Ltd., 2019), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/1997/races/669/japan/qualifying-0.html, (Accessed 24/08/2019)'Japan 1997: Qualifications', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1997/japon/qualification.aspx, (Accessed 24/08/2019)	Source:'1997 Fuji Television Japanese Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Ltd., 2019), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/1997/races/669/japan/qualifying-0.html, (Accessed 24/08/2019)'Japan 1997: Qualifications', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1997/japon/qualification.aspx, (Accessed 24/08/2019)	Source:'1997 Fuji Television Japanese Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Ltd., 2019), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/1997/races/669/japan/qualifying-0.html, (Accessed 24/08/2019)'Japan 1997: Qualifications', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1997/japon/qualification.aspx, (Accessed 24/08/2019)	Source:'1997 Fuji Television Japanese Grand Prix - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Ltd., 2019), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/1997/races/669/japan/qualifying-0.html, (Accessed 24/08/2019)'Japan 1997: Qualifications', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1997/japon/qualification.aspx, (Accessed 24/08/2019)
*T Indicates a driver used their test/spare car to set their best time in that session.
*Bold indicates a driver's best/qualifying time.
** Morbidelli was unable to start the race due to injuries sustained in an accident during qualifying.
===Grid===
==Race==
===Report===
===Results===
The full results for the are outlined below:
Pos. 	No. 	Driver 	Constructor 	Laps 	Time/Retired 	Grid 	Points
1 	5 	Michael Schumacher 	 	53 	1:29:48.446 	2 	10
2 	4 	Heinz-Harald Frentzen 	 	53 	+1.378s 	6 	6
3 	6 	Eddie Irvine 	 	53 	+26.384s 	3 	4
4 	9 	Mika Häkkinen 	 	53 	+27.129s 	4 	3
5 	7 	Jean Alesi 	 	53 	+40.403s 	7 	2
6 	16 	Johnny Herbert 	 	53 	+41.630s 	8 	1
7 	12 	Giancarlo Fisichella 	 	53 	+56.825s 	9 	
8 	8 	Gerhard Berger 	 	53 	+1:00.429 	5 	
9 	11 	Ralf Schumacher 	 	53 	+1:22.036 	13 	
10* 	10 	David Coulthard 	 	52 	Engine 	11 	
11 	1 	Damon Hill 	 	52 	+1 Lap 	17 	
12 	2 	Pedro Diniz 	 	52 	+1 Lap 	16 	
13 	18 	Jos Verstappen 	 	52 	+1 Lap 	21 	
DSQ† 	3 	Jacques Villeneuve 	 	53 	Disqualified 	1 	
Ret 	21 	Tarso Marques 	 	46 	Gearbox 	20 	
Ret 	19 	Mika Salo 	 	46 	Engine 	22 	
Ret 	14 	Olivier Panis 	 	36 	Engine 	10 	
Ret 	15 	Shinji Nakano 	 	22 	Wheel bearing 	15 	
Ret 	20 	Ukyo Katayama 	 	8 	Engine 	19 	
Ret 	22 	Rubens Barrichello 	 	6 	Spin 	12 	
Ret 	23 	Jan Magnussen 	 	3 	Spin 	14 	
DNS 	17 	Gianni Morbidelli 	 	 	 	 	
Source:'Japan 1997: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1997/japon/classement.aspx, (Accessed 24/08/2019)	Source:'Japan 1997: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1997/japon/classement.aspx, (Accessed 24/08/2019)	Source:'Japan 1997: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1997/japon/classement.aspx, (Accessed 24/08/2019)	Source:'Japan 1997: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1997/japon/classement.aspx, (Accessed 24/08/2019)	Source:'Japan 1997: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1997/japon/classement.aspx, (Accessed 24/08/2019)	Source:'Japan 1997: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1997/japon/classement.aspx, (Accessed 24/08/2019)	Source:'Japan 1997: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1997/japon/classement.aspx, (Accessed 24/08/2019)	Source:'Japan 1997: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1997/japon/classement.aspx, (Accessed 24/08/2019)
*T Indicates a driver used their test/spare car.
** Coulthard was still classified despite retiring as he had completed 90% of the race distance.
*† Villeneuve was excluded from the results having ignored yellow flags during practice/qualifying.
==Milestones==
* declared as the FIA Formula One World Championship for Constructors Champions.
** This was the ninth Constructors Championship claimed by Williams.'16. Japan 1997', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1997/japon.aspx, (Accessed 24/08/2019)
** Renault registered their sixth title as an engine supplier.
* 100th Grand Prix entry for Michael Schumacher.
* 500th entry for a car using #3 as its race number.'1997 Japanese GP', chicanef1.com, (Chicane F1, 2014), http://www.chicanef1.com/racetit.pl?year=1997&gp=Japanese%20GP&r=1, (Accessed 24/08/2019)
* Schumacher claimed his 27th victory.
* scored their 113th win as a constructor and engine supplier.
==Standings==
Michael Schumacher moved back to the top of the Championship after Jacques Villeneuve's retroactive disqualification, leaving Japan with a one point lead. That meant that the German ace simply had to finish ahead of the Canadian in Jerez to claim the crown, while Villeneuve had to score a point or more regardless. Behind, Heinz-Harald Frentzen had enhanced his hold on third, leaving Japan five ahead of Jean Alesi.
In the Constructors Championship the fight for the crown was over, with leaving Japan with 118 points to their name. That left the Anglo-French squad eighteen clear of , and with only sixteen points available at each race, Williams-Renault were hence declared as Champions with a race to spare. Ferrari were hence declared in second, while were safe in third ahead of .
World Championship for Drivers	World Championship for Drivers	World Championship for Drivers	World Championship for Drivers
Pos. 	Driver 	Pts. 	+/-
1 	Michael Schumacher 	78 	1
2 	Jacques Villeneuve 	77 	1
3 	Heinz-Harald Frentzen 	41 	
4 	Jean Alesi 	36 	
5 	David Coulthard 	30 	
6 	Gerhard Berger 	24 	
7 	Eddie Irvine 	22 	1
8 	Giancarlo Fisichella 	20 	1
9 	Mika Häkkinen 	17 	1
10 	Olivier Panis 	16 	1
11 	Johnny Herbert 	15 	
12 	Ralf Schumacher 	13 	
13 	Damon Hill 	7 	
14 	Rubens Barrichello 	6 	
15 	Alexander Wurz 	4 	
16 	Jarno Trulli 	3 	
17 	Pedro Diniz 	2 	
18 	Mika Salo 	2 	
19 	Shinji Nakano 	2 	
20 	Nicola Larini 	1 	
World Championship for Constructors	World Championship for Constructors	World Championship for Constructors	World Championship for Constructors
Pos. 	Team 	Pts. 	+/-
1 	 	118 	
2 	 	100 	
3 	 	64 	
4 	 	47 	
5 	 	33 	
6 	 	21 	
7 	 	16 	
8 	 	9 	
9 	 	6 	
10 	 	2 	
Only point scoring drivers and constructors are shown.
==References==
Images and Videos:
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References:
Category:Grand Prix articles
Category:Grand Prix articles
Category:1997 Grands Prix
Category:Japanese Grand Prix
Category:Formula One races in Japan