1999 Austrian Grand Prix

The 1999 Austrian Grand Prix, otherwise known as the XXIII Großer Preis von Österreich, was the ninth round of the FIA Formula One World Championship, staged at the A1 Ring in Spielberg, Austria, on the 25 July 1999.'Austrian GP, 1999', grandprix.com, (Inside F1 Inc., 2014), https://www.grandprix.com/gpe/rr639.html, (Accessed 28/08/2019) The race would see Eddie Irvine claim victory for , after David Coulthard tipped title challenging teammate Mika Häkkinen into a spin.
The two had been on their own during qualifying, with Häkkinen sweeping to pole ahead of Coulthard. Irvine was next, almost a full second off the pace, with new teammate Mika Salo, standing in for Michael Schumacher, secured seventh.
The start of the race saw the two McLarens start with some formation flying, with Häkkinen sprinting away ahead of Coulthard. Behind, Irvine gave chase ahead of a fast starting Rubens Barrichello, with the rest of the field making it into the first corner without issue.
Instead it was the third corner where things unravelled for McLaren, with Coulthard lunging inside of Häkkinen on the brakes for Remus. However, while Häkkinen left the Scot room Coulthard contrived to clamber over the kerb and tap the back of the #1 car, tipping the Finn into a spin.
Coulthard duly escaped with the lead, while Barrichello got ahead of Irvine as they found their way past the pirouetting McLaren. Elsewhere, Salo damaged his car on the back of Johnny Herbert, while Häkkinen would recover at the back of the field, having miraculously emerged without damage.
The Finn quickly began carving his way back up the order, while Coulthard did his best to build a lead, knowing that Irvine was stuck behind Barrichello. Indeed, the race seemed to be in the Scot's hands well before the pitstops, with the Scot one of the earliest pit callers.
It was at that point that Coulthard's bid for victory collapsed, for he simply lacked any real pace with a heavy fuel load. Irvine, meanwhile, would be released by Barrichello when the Brazilian peeled off to make his stop, and duly delivered a series of strong laps to get ahead of the Scot after his stop.
With the #4 Ferrari emerging ahead of the #2 McLaren Coulthard's hopes were severely hampered, for overtaking in F1 had become increasingly hard, particularly with cars running at a similar pace. Häkkinen was somewhat proving this, having stormed into the top ten in the early stages, before slowly chipping his way up into the points over the rest of the race.
Coulthard eventually rediscovered his early pace once a fair amount of fuel had burned off, although the McLaren never looked likely to pass the Ferrari. Indeed, while the Scot managed to tuck himself right under the rear wing of Irvine's car in the closing stages, the Ulsterman would only have to make a couple of defensive manoeuvres.
With that the race was effectively over, with Irvine holding onto a 0.313s lead over Coulthard through to the chequered flag. Behind, Häkkinen ended up in a lonely and frustrated third, having set a series of fastest laps, while Heinz-Harald Frentzen, Alexander Wurz and Pedro Diniz completed the points.
==Background==
It was status quo at the head of the Championship as a result of the British Grand Prix, for neither Mika Häkkinen nor Michael Schumacher had scored. That meant that the Finn held an eight point lead, although with Schumacher set to miss most of the season the German ace was no longer the Finn's biggest threat. Instead, it was Eddie Irvine who left Silverstone as the main pretender to Häkkinen's throne, sitting eight behind the Finn at the halfway point in the season.
In the Constructors Championship, however, there had been some changes, for had managed to all but eliminate 's lead at the halfway point. Indeed, the Anglo-German alliance ended the weekend just two behind the Scuderia, with those two the only realistic contenders for the title. Indeed, third placed had lost ground, holding half the points of McLaren, while and completed the top five.
===Entry List===
The full entry list for the is outlined below:
No. 	Driver 	Entreat 	Constructor 	Chassis 	Engine 	Model 	Tyre
1 	Mika Häkkinen 	West McLaren Mercedes 	 	MP4/14 	 	FO110H 3.0 V10 	
2 	David Coulthard 	West McLaren Mercedes 	 	MP4/14 	 	FO110H 3.0 V10 	
3 	Mika Salo 	Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro 	 	F399 	 	048 3.0 V10 	
4 	Eddie Irvine 	Scuderia Ferrari Marlboro 	 	F399 	 	048 3.0 V10 	
5 	Alex Zanardi 	Winfield Williams 	 	FW21 	 	FB01 3.0 V10 	
6 	Ralf Schumacher 	Winfield Williams 	 	FW21 	 	FB01 3.0 V10 	
7 	Damon Hill 	Benson & Hedges Jordan 	 	199 	 	MF-301 HD 3.0 V10 	
8 	Heinz-Harald Frentzen 	Benson & Hedges Jordan 	 	199 	 	MF-301 HD 3.0 V10 	
9 	Giancarlo Fisichella 	Mild Seven Benetton Playlife 	 	B199 	 	FB01 3.0 V10 	
10 	Alexander Wurz 	Mild Seven Benetton Playlife 	 	B199 	 	FB01 3.0 V10 	
11 	Jean Alesi 	Red Bull Sauber Petronas 	 	C18 	 	SPE-03A 3.0 V10 	
12 	Pedro Diniz 	Red Bull Sauber Petronas 	 	C18 	 	SPE-03A 3.0 V10 	
14 	Pedro de la Rosa 	Repsol Arrows 	 	A20 	 	T2-F1 3.0 V10 	
15 	Tora Takagi 	Repsol Arrows 	 	A20 	 	T2-F1 3.0 V10 	
16 	Rubens Barrichello 	HSBC Stewart Ford 	 	SF3 	 	CR-1 3.0 V10 	
17 	Johnny Herbert 	HSBC Stewart Ford 	 	SF3 	 	CR-1 3.0 V10 	
18 	Olivier Panis 	Gauloises Prost Peugeot 	 	AP02 	 	A18 3.0 V10 	
19 	Jarno Trulli 	Gauloises Prost Peugeot 	 	AP02 	 	A18 3.0 V10 	
20 	Luca Badoer 	Fondmetal Minardi 	 	M01 	 	Zetec-R 3.0 V10 	
21 	Marc Gené 	Fondmetal Minardi 	 	M01 	 	Zetec-R 3.0 V10 	
22 	Jacques Villeneuve 	British American Racing 	 	01 	 	FB01 3.0 V10 	
23 	Ricardo Zonta 	British American Racing 	 	01 	 	FB01 3.0 V10 	
Source:'Austria 1999: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2015), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1999/autriche/engages.aspx, (Accessed 28/08/2019)	Source:'Austria 1999: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2015), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1999/autriche/engages.aspx, (Accessed 28/08/2019)	Source:'Austria 1999: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2015), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1999/autriche/engages.aspx, (Accessed 28/08/2019)	Source:'Austria 1999: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2015), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1999/autriche/engages.aspx, (Accessed 28/08/2019)	Source:'Austria 1999: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2015), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1999/autriche/engages.aspx, (Accessed 28/08/2019)	Source:'Austria 1999: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2015), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1999/autriche/engages.aspx, (Accessed 28/08/2019)	Source:'Austria 1999: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2015), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1999/autriche/engages.aspx, (Accessed 28/08/2019)	Source:'Austria 1999: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2015), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1999/autriche/engages.aspx, (Accessed 28/08/2019)
==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 	1 	Mika Häkkinen 	 	1:10.954 	— 	219.134 km/h
2 	2 	David Coulthard 	 	1:11.153 	+0.199s 	218.521 km/h
3 	4 	Eddie Irvine 	 	1:11.973 	+1.019s 	216.031 km/h
4 	8 	Heinz-Harald Frentzen 	 	1:12.266 	+1.312s 	215.155 km/h
5 	16 	Rubens Barrichello 	 	1:12.342 	+1.388s 	214.929 km/h
6 	17 	Johnny Herbert 	 	1:12.488 	+1.534s 	214.496 km/h
7 	3 	Mika Salo 	 	1:12.514 	+1.560s 	214.419 km/h
8 	6 	Ralf Schumacher 	 	1:12.515 	+1.561s 	214.416 km/h
9 	22 	Jacques Villeneuve 	 	1:12.833 	+1.879s 	213.480 km/h
10 	10 	Alexander Wurz 	 	1:12.850 	+1.896s 	213.430 km/h
11 	7 	Damon Hill 	 	1:12.901 	+1.947s 	213.281 km/h
12 	9 	Giancarlo Fisichella 	 	1:12.924 	+1.970s 	213.214 km/h
13 	19 	Jarno Trulli 	 	1:12.999 	+2.045s 	212.995 km/h
14 	5 	Alex Zanardi 	 	1:13.101 	+2.147s 	212.697 km/h
15 	23 	Ricardo Zonta 	 	1:13.172 	+2.218s 	212.491 km/h
16 	12 	Pedro Diniz 	 	1:13.223 	+2.269s 	212.343 km/h
17 	11 	Jean Alesi 	 	1:13.226 	+2.272s 	212.334 km/h
18 	18 	Olivier Panis 	 	1:13.457 	+2.503s 	211.667 km/h
19 	20 	Luca Badoer 	 	1:13.606 	+2.652s 	211.238 km/h
20 	15 	Tora Takagi 	 	1:13.641 	+2.687s 	211.138 km/h
21 	14 	Pedro de la Rosa 	 	1:14.139 	+3.185s 	209.720 km/h
22 	21 	Marc Gené 	 	1:14.363 	+3.409s 	209.088 km/h
107% Time: 1:15.921 	107% Time: 1:15.921 	107% Time: 1:15.921 	107% Time: 1:15.921 	107% Time: 1:15.921 	107% Time: 1:15.921 	107% Time: 1:15.921
Source:'Grosser Preis von Österreich 1999 - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Ltd., 2019), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/1999/races/695/austria/qualifying-0.html, (Accessed 28/08/2019)'Austria 1999: Qualifications', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1999/autriche/qualification.aspx, (Accessed 28/08/2019)	Source:'Grosser Preis von Österreich 1999 - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Ltd., 2019), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/1999/races/695/austria/qualifying-0.html, (Accessed 28/08/2019)'Austria 1999: Qualifications', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1999/autriche/qualification.aspx, (Accessed 28/08/2019)	Source:'Grosser Preis von Österreich 1999 - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Ltd., 2019), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/1999/races/695/austria/qualifying-0.html, (Accessed 28/08/2019)'Austria 1999: Qualifications', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1999/autriche/qualification.aspx, (Accessed 28/08/2019)	Source:'Grosser Preis von Österreich 1999 - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Ltd., 2019), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/1999/races/695/austria/qualifying-0.html, (Accessed 28/08/2019)'Austria 1999: Qualifications', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1999/autriche/qualification.aspx, (Accessed 28/08/2019)	Source:'Grosser Preis von Österreich 1999 - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Ltd., 2019), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/1999/races/695/austria/qualifying-0.html, (Accessed 28/08/2019)'Austria 1999: Qualifications', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1999/autriche/qualification.aspx, (Accessed 28/08/2019)	Source:'Grosser Preis von Österreich 1999 - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Ltd., 2019), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/1999/races/695/austria/qualifying-0.html, (Accessed 28/08/2019)'Austria 1999: Qualifications', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1999/autriche/qualification.aspx, (Accessed 28/08/2019)	Source:'Grosser Preis von Österreich 1999 - QUALIFYING', formula1.com, (Formula One World Championship Ltd., 2019), https://www.formula1.com/en/results.html/1999/races/695/austria/qualifying-0.html, (Accessed 28/08/2019)'Austria 1999: Qualifications', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1999/autriche/qualification.aspx, (Accessed 28/08/2019)
*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.
===Grid===
==Race==
===Report===
===Results===
The full results for the are outlined below:
Pos. 	No. 	Driver 	Constructor 	Laps 	Time/Retired 	Grid 	Points
1 	4 	Eddie Irvine 	 	71 	1:28:12.438 	3 	10
2 	2 	David Coulthard 	 	71 	+0.313s 	2 	6
3 	1 	Mika Häkkinen 	 	71 	+22.282s 	1 	4
4 	8 	Heinz-Harald Frentzen 	 	71 	+52.803s 	4 	3
5 	10 	Alexander Wurz 	 	71 	+1:06.358 	10 	2
6 	12 	Pedro Diniz 	 	71 	+1:10.933 	16 	1
7 	19 	Jarno Trulli 	 	70 	+1 Lap 	13 	
8 	7 	Damon Hill 	 	70 	+1 Lap 	11 	
9 	3 	Mika Salo 	 	70 	+1 Lap 	7 	
10 	18 	Olivier Panis 	 	70 	+1 Lap 	18 	
11 	21 	Marc Gené 	 	70 	+1 Lap 	22 	
12* 	9 	Giancarlo Fisichella 	 	68 	Engine 	12 	
13 	20 	Luca Badoer 	 	68 	+3 Laps 	19 	
14 	17 	Johnny Herbert 	 	67 	+4 Laps 	6 	
15* 	23 	Ricardo Zonta 	 	63 	Clutch 	15 	
Ret 	16 	Rubens Barrichello 	 	55 	Engine 	5 	
Ret 	11 	Jean Alesi 	 	49 	Out of fuel 	17 	
Ret 	14 	Pedro de la Rosa 	 	38 	Spin 	21 	
Ret 	5 	Alex Zanardi 	 	35 	Out of fuel 	14 	
Ret 	22 	Jacques Villeneuve 	 	34 	Halfshaft 	9 	
Ret 	15 	Tora Takagi 	 	25 	Engine 	20 	
Ret 	6 	Ralf Schumacher 	 	8 	Spin 	8 	
Source:'Austria 1999: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1999/autriche/classement.aspx, (Accessed 28/08/2019)	Source:'Austria 1999: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1999/autriche/classement.aspx, (Accessed 28/08/2019)	Source:'Austria 1999: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1999/autriche/classement.aspx, (Accessed 28/08/2019)	Source:'Austria 1999: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1999/autriche/classement.aspx, (Accessed 28/08/2019)	Source:'Austria 1999: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1999/autriche/classement.aspx, (Accessed 28/08/2019)	Source:'Austria 1999: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1999/autriche/classement.aspx, (Accessed 28/08/2019)	Source:'Austria 1999: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1999/autriche/classement.aspx, (Accessed 28/08/2019)	Source:'Austria 1999: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1999/autriche/classement.aspx, (Accessed 28/08/2019)
*T Indicates a driver used their test/spare car.
** Fisichella and Zonta were still classified despite retiring as they had completed 90% of the race distance.
==Milestones==
* 50th Grand Prix start for Giancarlo Fisichella.'9. Austria 1999', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1999/autriche.aspx, (Accessed 28/08/2019)
* Eddie Irvine claimed his second career victory.
** Also the twentieth podium for Irvine.
* 123rd win for as a constructor and engine supplier.
* Mika Häkkinen set the 25th fastest lap to be recorded using a engine.
==Standings==
The early collision between Mika Häkkinen and teammate David Coulthard may have proved crucial to the outcome of the Championship, for it had ensured that the Finn's Championship lead had been almost completely wiped out. Indeed, race winner Eddie Irvine had closed to within two points of Häkkinen at the head of the field, ten points clear of the injured Michael Schumacher in third. Elsewhere, Heinz-Harald Frentzen had closed up on his absent compatriot, while Coulthard completed the top five.
In the Constructors Championship it had been an even day for and at the head of the hunt, meaning the gap between them remained at two points. Behind, had lost more ground in third, but with having failed to score the Irish squad were still in a fairly secure position. Elsewhere, completed the top five, three behind Williams, with in sixth.
World Championship for Drivers	World Championship for Drivers	World Championship for Drivers	World Championship for Drivers
Pos. 	Driver 	Pts. 	+/-
1 	Mika Häkkinen 	44 	
2 	Eddie Irvine 	42 	1
3 	Michael Schumacher 	32 	1
4 	Heinz-Harald Frentzen 	29 	
5 	David Coulthard 	28 	
6 	Ralf Schumacher 	19 	
7 	Giancarlo Fisichella 	13 	
8 	Rubens Barrichello 	10 	
9 	Damon Hill 	5 	
10 	Alexander Wurz 	3 	4
11 	Pedro Diniz 	3 	
12 	Johnny Herbert 	2 	2
13 	Jarno Trulli 	1 	1
14 	Pedro de la Rosa 	1 	1
15 	Olivier Panis 	1 	
16 	Jean Alesi 	1 	
World Championship for Constructors	World Championship for Constructors	World Championship for Constructors	World Championship for Constructors
Pos. 	Team 	Pts. 	+/-
1 	 	74 	
2 	 	72 	
3 	 	34 	
4 	 	19 	
5 	 	16 	
6 	 	12 	
7 	 	4 	
8 	 	2 	
9 	 	1 	
Only point scoring drivers and constructors are shown.
==References==
Images and Videos:
*
References:
Category:Grand Prix articles
Category:1999 Grands Prix
Category:Austrian Grand Prix
Category:Formula One races in Austria