Formula 1
San Marino GP Saturday Salo notes
Imola, Saturday, May 1, 1999 -- Mika Salo may "only just" have qualified 19th today for Sunday's San Marino Grand Prix, but the complete team effort that got him and the 555 World Racing Team there was a victory in its own right. Team mechanics ...
Edited: May 8, 2001, 12:19 PM
Copy link
Share on Viber
Imola, Saturday, May 1, 1999 -- Mika Salo may "only just" have qualified 19th today for Sunday's San Marino Grand Prix, but the complete team effort that got him and the 555 World Racing Team there was a victory in its own right.
Team mechanics and engineers were under the gun when British American Racing's No. 23 car, usually that of Brazilian Ricardo Zonta, went down with hydraulic problems during the morning's free practice session that preceded the official qualifying period.
The Flying Finn, taking over from Zonta after the latter injured a foot prior to the Brazilian Grand Prix two weeks ago, was without a ride until the team decided to move him to the spare car with just 20 minutes remaining in the hour-long qualifying session. That decision was made possible by a stellar performance from Jacques Villeneuve who would qualify fifth for Sunday's race.
The Finnish driver watched as his 555 World Racing Team crew adjusted the set-up of the spare car, which had been prepared for his British American Racing team-mate whose different style of driving requires the car to be set up to his preferences. Changes in settings for aerodynamics, suspension and pedal, as well as seat positioning, were just some of the many tasks that needed to be carried out under a ticking clock. It took just 15 minutes to complete all the complex adjustments necessary for the 555 driver to take to the track, leaving a window of only five minutes in qualifying for Salo to turn in a competitive time and reserve his grid position for the race.
Showing true determination, the 555 driver sped around the track during the closing five minutes of the session, surrounded by world-class drivers who had already established stellar Q-times on several lap passes. With no time to adapt to the spare car, Salo showed his mettle, clocking 1:29.451 for 19th overall on Sunday's grid.
Salo's sense of purpose for Sunday's race was not shaken by his close call. "We had a really good car all weekend, but after the first run we had a hydraulic pressure problem and I had to get in the spare car which was set up for Villeneuve, who has a very different driving style to mine. But I am used to fighting from the back of the grid so I hope to have a good race and try for a good result," remarked the Finn.
The San Marino Grand Prix gets under way at 1400 hrs local time.
We want your opinion!
What would you like to see on Motorsport.com?
Take our 5 minute survey.
- The Motorsport.com Team
Read and post comments
Read also :
Share Or Save This Story
Copy link
Share on Viber
Previous article Monaco GP Bridgestone Preview
Next article USGP Indianapolis - Inaugural date set
Top Comments
There are no comments at the moment. Would you like to write one?
View More & Comment
More from
Mika Salo
Which modern Formula 1 driver raced for the most teams?
Formula 1
Formula 1
Which modern Formula 1 driver raced for the most teams?
Salo to race alongside son Max in Fuji 24 Hours
Super Taikyu
Super Taikyu
Salo to race alongside son Max in Fuji 24 Hours
F1 career in numbers: Mika Salo
Formula 1
Formula 1
F1 career in numbers: Mika Salo
Latest news
McLaren to use final 2026 developments to test 2027 F1 car concepts
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1 2 min
McLaren to use final 2026 developments to test 2027 F1 car concepts
Toyota answers critics who doubted it could win in WEC’s competitive Hypercar era
WEC
WEC WEC
Barcelona
1 h
Toyota answers critics who doubted it could win in WEC’s competitive Hypercar era
Honda ADUO engine upgrade pegged driveability back near Spec 1 level
Formula 1
F1 Formula 1
United States GP
2 h
Honda ADUO engine upgrade pegged driveability back near Spec 1 level
Why Alex Marquez hasn't been able to replicate his 2025 MotoGP form
MotoGP
MGP MotoGP 2 h
Why Alex Marquez hasn't been able to replicate his 2025 MotoGP form
Feature
Discover prime content
Subscribe and access Motorsport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.
You have 2 options:
- Become a subscriber.
- Disable your adblocker.
Subscribe now Already subscribed? Sign in here
Already disabled your adblocker?
Reload page
Manage Alerts
Subscribe