******************** (-: Formula1 NEWS :-) ********************* The Electronic Formula 1 News Service for the Internet World Wide Web server at http://www.enigmatic.co.uk/formula1/ *** September 10th 1997 *** *** Issue Number 093 *** ****************************************************************

In This Issue

*Server Problems *A-Z *Alesi To Stay At Benetton? *Berger Offered BMW Deal *Panis Makes Comeback *Jordan / Benetton In Court *Hill To Stay At Arrows? *Williams / BMW Deal Official *Coulthard Comments On Hill *Fittipaldi Survives Plane Crash *Bans For Coulthard And Villeneuve *Monza Results *Drivers Championship *Constructors Championship *Monza Review *News Services *Contacting Us *Formula1 News Back Issues *How To Change Your Address/Unsubscribe etc.

Server Problems

Right, as most of you know we have had some server problems these past two weeks. For some reason the ListServ has been sending out multiple copies of the newsletter. We have now found out why (we think) and hopefully it will be back to normal (well, as near normal as we ever get) from now on. Once again let me just take this opportunity to apologise to you all. Also I would like to ask two things.

1. Please don't e-mail me if it goes wrong. I am on the list too, as the first address and the last. I know when it all goes wrong, and as much as I appreciate your feedback and comments, getting over 10,000 e-mails telling me the server messed up does nothing other than fill up my mail box :-p 2. If you have sent in an e-mail with the subject Re: Formula1 News issue 091 or 092, then it will have been deleted. I had way too many of these to ever read and all I could do was bin them off. If you had a request, observation, comment or some news send it in again.

A-Z

Many of you have e-mailed me asking about a complete copy of the A-Z. Well, good news!. It is nearly compiled and I will be creating a new section on the web site to hold this and other files that originate from the news letter. The A-Z is also being illustrated (photos, diagrams etc.) and this version (acrobat) will be posted too when it is finished. The text only version should be finished this weekend. As a replacement to the A-Z we will be starting two new features, that will run in alternate weeks. "Rear View Mirror" will look at past races, and as there are some 560 races or so that we haven't covered it will run for some time. I expect that we can put two to four in each issue at about 200 words per race. The section that will alternate with Rear View Mirror (for now) will look at the rules and regulations that govern F1. We aim to cover things such as pit stop regs, the flags, how abandoned starts are dealt with, car design etc. Due to the number of races in September, these will probably not begin until October 8th (Issue 097)

Alesi To Stay At Benetton?

It is thought that Jean Alesi and Gerhard Berger have both been offered the chance of a drive at Benetton next year. There is only one seat up for grabs, which Benetton hope will be taken by Fisichella. In the light of the FIA contracts ruling and the possibility that the high court finds in Jordan's favour, Benetton need to have other options open to them. Berger has said that he does not want to drive for Benetton next year, which just leaves Alesi as the replacement for Fisichella.

Berger Offered BMW Deal

Gerhard Berger has apparently been offered the testing role at BMW, while they design and test their F1 engine. BMW will be active in F1 from 2000, but they need an experienced F1 driver to help them with the development of their engine. Berger is thought to be at the top of their wish list.

Panis Makes Comeback

Olivier Panis has progressed to the next level of his recovery. He drove his Prost Mugen Honda at Magny Cours today, clocking a best time of 1.14.5 which would probably have seen him on pole position at this year's French GP. Olivier is expected to be back in race trim soon, possibly in time for the Luxembourg GP.

Jordan / Benetton In Court

Jordan and Benetton started their fight over Giancarlo Fisichella today. The case is being dealt with in the high court, and will be dealt with as quickly as possible due to the driver situation at this time of the year. Jordan are hopeful, after the FIA contracts authority found in their favour.

Hill To Stay At Arrows?

The latest rumour I have heard is that Hill might stay with Arrows. Arrows have John Barnard and TWR's 250 Million pound facility behind next year's car. For the first time in many years, every team has major design changes to their car and it could be that Barnard will give Arrows a much needed boost. Hills other possible options, Jordan and Prost will both have to settle new engines into new cars. The Prost car being designed by a low profile engineer. Arrows are thought to be close to announcing either a deal with Brian Hart, for his new V10 engine, or the retention of the Yamaha unit - but under Hart's control rather than John Judd.

Williams / BMW Deal Official

The long rumoured and long expected BMW / Williams deal has finally been announced. Williams will use BMW engines, designed in Munich from the year 2000. Williams will continue to use their current Renault engines until then, though it is expected that BMW will provide substantial amounts of cold hard cash to help Williams pay for the engines - which will be supplied by Mecachrome at a cost of around 13 Million UKP per season.

Coulthard Comments On Hill

David Coulthard has joined the growing band of people that have voiced concern over the future of Damon Hill after the current world champion turned down McLaren's offer of a drive. Coulthard said "we will never know if Damon has made a mistake..........I don't even know if the reports are true. All I know is that money should not be the sole priority, but the opportunity to win races." McLaren's win in Italy was the first race in which Adrian Newey had any significant input on the car, a coincidence perhaps - but still a good omen ;-)

Fittipaldi Survives Plane Crash

Former World Champion Emerson Fittipaldi has survived a light aircraft crash. The plane that he was piloting suffered engine failure and Emerson and his six year old son crashed into a swamp. The (relatively) soft landing left Emerson with a broken vertebrae. His son only suffered cuts and bruises. The attending doctor said the crash would probably have proved fatal if it were on solid ground.

Bans For Coulthard And Villeneuve

David Coulthard and Jacques Villeneuve have both been given suspended bans for yellow flag infringements during the warm up session. This is Villeneuve's third suspended ban this season and consequently his ban is now suspended for nine races, which will probably take him through to next year's Monaco GP. Coulthard's ban runs until the end of this season.

Monza Results

David Coulthard scored his second win of the season at the Italian GP. The young Scot drove a flawless race and with the aid of a slick pit stop he was able to take the lead in the race. The win will be welcomed by McLaren who were stripped of their third place at Spa due to fuel irregularities. Jean Alesi led the early part of the race and finished a strong second, with Heinz Harald Frentzen completing the podium line up. Jacques Villeneuve was fifth, with his main rival Schumacher sixth. Schumacher now has a ten point lead with four races to go.

1  D. Coulthard    McLaren Mercedes    1.17.04.609
2  J. Alesi        Benetton Renault    + 1.937
3  H. H. Frentzen  Williams Renault    + 4.343
4  G. Fisichella   Jordan Peugeot      + 5.871
5  J. Villeneuve   Williams Renault    + 6.416
6  M. Schumacher   Ferrari             + 11.481
7  G. Berger       Benetton Renault    + 12.471
8  E. Irvine       Ferrari             + 17.639
9  M. Hakkinen     McLaren Mercedes    + 49.373
10 J. Trulli       Prost Mugen Honda   + 1.02.706
11 S. Nakano       Prost Mugen Honda   + 1.03.327
12 G. Morbidelli   Sauber Petronas     + 1 Lap
13 R. Barrichello  Stewart Ford        + 1 Lap
14 T. Marques      Minardi Hart        + 3 Laps

Not Classified

15 D. Hill         Arrows Yamaha     46 laps Engine
16 R. Schumacher   Jordan Peugeot    39 laps Collision Damage
17 J. Herbert      Sauber Petronas   38 laps Collision
18 M. Salo         Tyrrell Ford      33 laps Engine
19 J. Magnussen    Stewart Ford      31 laps Transmission
20 J. Verstappen   Tyrrell Ford      12 laps Hydraulics
21 U. Katayama     Minardi Hart      08 laps Puncture/Accident
22 P. Diniz        Arrows Yamaha     04 laps Suspension

Drivers Championship

1  M. Schumacher   Ferrari F310b           67
2  J. Villeneuve   Williams FW19 Renault   57
3  J. Alesi        Benetton B197 Renault   28
4  H. H. Frentzen  Williams FW19 Renault   27
5  D. Coulthard    McLaren MP4/12 Mercedes 24
6  G. Berger       Benetton B197 Renault   21
7  E. Irvine       Ferrari F310b           18
8  G. Fisichella   Jordan 197 Peugeot      17
9  O. Panis        Prost JS45 Mugen Honda  15
10 M. Hakkinen     McLaren MP4/12 Mercedes 14
10 J. Herbert      Sauber C16 Petronas     14
12 R. Schumacher   Jordan 197 Peugeot      11
13 D. Hill         Arrows A18 Yamaha        7
14 R. Barrichello  Stewart SF1 Ford         6
15 A. Wurz         Benetton B197 Renault    4
16 J. Trulli       Prost JS45 Mugen Honda   3
17 S. Nakano       Prost JS45 Mugen Honda   2
17 M. Salo         Tyrrell 025 Ford         2
19 N. Larini       Sauber C16 Petronas      1

Constructors Championship

1  Ferrari            85
2  Williams Renault   84
3  Benetton Renault   53
4  McLaren Mercedes   38
5  Jordan Peugeot     28
6  Prost Mugen Honda  20
7  Sauber Petronas    15
8  Arrows Yamaha       7
9  Stewart Ford        6
10 Tyrrell Ford        2

Monza Review

Jean Alesi got away from the lights well, as did David Coulthard who managed to get behind Frentzen. Giancarlo Fisichella was relegated to fourth place followed by Villeneuve, Hakkinen and Schumacher. Alesi was the quickest in the early part of the race and he soon began to set fastest laps as he pulled away from Frentzen. By the end of lap 3, Alesi was 1.9 seconds ahead, increasing that to 2.77 seconds by the end of lap four. His lead then settled and he remained about 2.9 seconds ahead for some time. Behind him, Coulthard was giving Frentzen a tough time, pressing the Williams for second place. These two were pulling away from fourth placed Fisichella and for the first 20 laps the order remained the same. Between lap 16 and 20, Hakkinen, Frentzen, Coulthard and Villeneuve all posted new fastest lap times. Frentzen and Coulthard began to close in on Alesi and by lap 24 the Benetton driver's lead had been cut to 0.799 seconds. The race changed when the pit stops began. Williams were first, with Villeneuve and then Frentzen coming in. After Fisichella had pitted the running order was Alesi, Coulthard, Hakkinen, Schumacher, Berger and Irvine. Alesi and Coulthard came in together, leaving Hakkinen to lead the race and set a new fastest lap. Coulthard's stop was 7.8 seconds, Alesi's was 8.7 seconds. The McLaren got back out in front of the Benetton and effectively led the race. On the road the running order was actually Schumacher, Coulthard, Alesi, Frentzen, Hakkinen and Fisichella. Schumacher, Hakkinen and Berger all pitted on lap 34, Hakkinen having to pit again a few laps later with a suspected puncture. By lap 38, Coulthard led Alesi by 2.9 seconds. Frentzen was third, followed by Fisichella, Villeneuve and Schumacher. Lap 38 also saw Ralf Schumacher and Johnny Herbert touch wheels, causing Herbert to go off at over 180 mph. Ralf Schumacher pitted for inspection to his car and then retired a lap later with handling problems caused by the incident. Mika Hakkinen continued to press on, even though he was well outside the points positions. He set the fastest lap of the race on lap 48 (1.24.808) while chasing Damon Hill, who retired when his Yamaha engine gave out. The race finished with Coulthard crossing the line ahead of Alesi. Frentzen joined them on the podium with Fisichella fourth, Villeneuve fifth and Schumacher sixth.

Man of the match: David Coulthard - flawless.

News Services

We have changed the news pages on the web server and now the News and gossip, news archive, weekly e-mail subscription form and the new daily news e-mail service are all grouped on a single page entitled (rather imaginatively we thought) News Services.

Contacting Us

While we are always pleased to hear from people on the list, if you are going to write to us try not to resend the whole newsletter with your e-mail, we've already read it (we get the first copy!) We can be contacted using either "Neil@bigvern.demon.co.uk" or "F1@bigvern.demon.co.uk".

Formula1 News Back Issues

If you are a new or recent subscriber to Formula1 News, back issues can be obtained from the home page under the news services link. You might have to save the pages as "text" and view them in your word processor to get the text to wrap properly. The newsletters are formatted in Courier 12pt (I know it is a sh*te font, but everyone has a copy) and are best viewed in this or in your favourite monospaced font. You may have to adjust the point size if you use a font other than Courier to get columns to line up properly.

How To Change Your Address/Unsubscribe etc.

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Copyright September 1997 Formula 1 News

Check out our Web Site at: http://www.enigmatic.co.uk/formula1/ Updated news available from the home page. ---------------------------------------------------------------- This document is most definitely Copyright September 1997 Formula 1 News. This publication is free for the Internet community and may be freely distributed to news groups and forums provided it is reposted completely, in a wholly unedited form complete with this copyright notice and credited to Neil Whiley.

None of these articles are guaranteed 100% true, accurate or correct. We report it as we hear it. In many cases one weeks story will be completely contradicted by next weeks. Such is life :-)

Formula 1 News is written and edited by Neil Whiley at Enigma Publishing (Neil@bigvern.demon.co.uk).