Austrian GP 1998 - Race, Comments

Drivers

Jean Alesi

"We used a longer first gear today, and because of that I didn't get
the necessary amount of wheelspin at the start so the engine just pulled
away relatively gently and I lost some places straight away. Giancarlo and
I left the pits side by side after our first stops, fighting for fourth
place, but I had a light fuel load and as I braked for the corner he just
disappeared behind me. As I turned into it he slid into me, and we both
spun. Because of the long first gear, and the steep uphill gradient in that
corner, the engine stalled when I tried to restart. I never like to have
accidents, but it's even worse when you have them with somebody that you
like, and I really like Giancarlo!"


Rubens Barrichello

"I had a brake problem right from the start. Even on the first lap
when I went inside Fisichella I felt there was too much travel in the brake
pedal. I wasn't sure whether it was just the feel of the pedal but I had no
choice but to come in because I couldn't drive the car, it was too
dangerous. It's a very disappointing way to end what has been a tremendous
weekend. I was fifth on Friday, fifth in qualifying and I was running
competitively in the race."


David Coulthard

"It's great to be back on the podium especially as I had such a bad
qualifying session yesterday which put me so far back on the grid. The
incident on the first corner was a bit frustrating as I just wanted to keep
out of trouble, but I was fortunate that the safety car came out which
meant I was able to come in and change my front wing and rejoin at the back
of the pack from the pit lane. From there I was able to work my way through
the field and I have to say that all the other drivers were 100% fair when
I overtook them. Naturally it is great to finished second and I enjoyed the
race."


Pedro Diniz

"I had a good start and was driving side by side with Jos Verstappen
in a straight line. He pushed me into the grass, I lost control of my car
and sadly I hit my team-mate Mika. Naturally I am very upset about this
accident, which could have been avoided if other drivers would not make
such unnecessary manoeuvres."


Giancarlo Fisichella

"I don't want to complain about Jean Alesi, usually he is a very fair
driver, but this incident could have been avoided. I had just left the pits
after a tyre stop when I found myself alongside Jean. I overtook him, then
when I breaked I saw him shoot passed on my left and close the door in
front of me. It is a shame because the car was going really well and I was
driving very carefully. In the first few laps I had avoided battling with
Michael Schumacher and Hakkinen because my main concern was to finish on
the podium."


Mika Hakkinen

"The team played a very important part in this excellent victory, the
one stop strategy was ideal for me and I was able to go flat out all the
time and that was fantastic. The start is always a gamble but I was able to
make the best of it. However, my brake balance wasn't too good at the
beginning of the race and I wasn't able to brake as late as I would have
liked into the corners which meant that Michael Schumacher was catching me.
But once I found a more consistent balance with the brakes and the tyres I
was able to charge and the gap started to open up. David's storming
performance through the pack made me a bit nervous but I am just glad that
we both made it to the podium."


Johnny Herbert

"Since I was starting so far back I decided to let everyone get the
madness out of their systems and to stay out of trouble. That worked as far
as the first corner, where one of the Minardis just came flying into my
vision and shoved me into the gravel. The car was okay and I was lucky not
to lose any real time as the safety car came out, but from then on I had to
put up with stones and gravel rattling round the cockpit, and lodging
behind my back. That wasn't comfortable! Our single stop strategy worked
okay, but even though I tried very hard to save my tyres, the understeer
that plagued me this morning kept coming back. It was thus a case of
pushing hard for a few laps, trying to let the tyres cool, and then pushing
again when the grip came back."


Damon Hill

"We had to gamble on the strategy to move us up the grid at the start
which worked extremely well - I made one of the best starts I can remember.
But that strategy meant I had to stop early, and so overall I was not able
to make up enough places to win points. But it was a good race, a good
strategy and both cars ran strongly. But for a bit of traffic here and
there we could have had both cars in the points. The car felt the best it
has felt all season so things are looking good."


Eddie Irvine

"This morning I had trouble with the clutch, so we changed it. But the
problem reoccurred at the start, so I had to dump the clutch. I had a lot
of wheelspin but still got away quite well. Alesi let me through quite
easily and Barrichello went out so that made my life simpler. I chased
Fisichella and got the gap down to four seconds. Unfortunately I then lost
a few seconds behind Michael when he had lost his nose. Brake wear had been
critical through the race and I was told to ease off, which is how Michael
caught me. Once he got past I pushed again for a couple of laps as Ralf was
behind me but the team again told me to back off."


Michael Schumacher

"This was an extraordinary race. Considering what happened to me, I
could not have expected to walk away with four points, so I am extremely
satisfied. As for my accident, I lost control as I was going too quickly,
went wide on the dirt and I could not keep it on the track. It was a stupid
mistake. As the car jumped through the gravel and I lost the front wing, I
thought there was more damage, but the car proved to be very strong. Once
again the team did a great job in the pits and for this I thank my
engineers and mechanics. The car felt okay and I could do quick laps and I
began to pick up places. All the drivers I passed were very fair. I had a
good battle with my brother, who drove a very good race. Towards the end,
Eddie and I both had brake problems so we had to back off a bit."


Shinji Nakano

"It was a good race. The car was OK and the whole Team did a great
job. Just at the end I had a problem with the engine arriving at the
imiter, but this didn't prevent me from finishing this Grand Prix and from
taking a good result to my Team."


Olivier Panis

""


Ricardo Rosset

"I made a really good start and successfully avoided the Prost that
has stalled on the grid and the cars that spun when Tora went off at the
first corner. I was up to 13th by lap four and then settled down into a
good rhythm. The team did two excellent pit stops and I moved into 12th
place after Verstappen's retirement. I had a big fright on the last lap
when a tyre deflated without warning and took off the rear wing. I managed
to drive very slowly back to the pits and was still classified 12th."


Ralf Schumacher

"I am very happy with how the race worked and our strategy was, once
again, very good. The car is getting better each race and it was great to
be able to score more points. The car performed well until my battle with
Michael, after which my front tyre was not so good so I had to back off to
clean it up. By the end of the race, once the tyre was clean, I was able to
push again. I really enjoyed fighting with Michael and think it was a very
clean and fair battle. In the end he won, which I expected really, but I am
looking forward to more battles like that."


Mika Salo

"I didn't have a good start to the race, lost some places and then I
was hit from behind by Pedro. It was a most unfortunate accident and I can
appreciate how Pedro must feel about it. I am naturally very disappointed
for the entire team who had produced fantastic work during the weekend. I
intend to put this race behind me as quickly as possible and concentrate on
the rest of the season ahead."


Toranosuke Takagi

"Olivier Panis stalled his Prost in front of me on the grid as the red
lights went out and in order to get around him and avoid the other cars on
the start, I moved to the right, up close to the pit wall. I then got good
traction and caught up with a group when I hit the brakes, the back end of
the car snapped away from me and I spun off the circuit. It's a shame
because the car felt really good in dry weather race trim during the
warm-up and I had high hopes for a good result."


Jarno Trulli

""


Esteban Tuero

"My race had many problems. Initially, during my installation lap, I
had an engine problem that forced me to take the T-car. Then, right after
the START, at the very first corner, I was pushed off by Takagi. I managed
to re-start but a lot of stones had entered the cockpit and interfered with
the pedals. I managed to get rid of many stones during the first pit-stop,
but not all of them. After a while, thinking that the safety car was still
out, I went to the box a second time - again because of the stones - but I
kept on when I realised that the safety car was no more out. To recover the
lost time I went faster, but in a fast corner I lost control and I went off
the track."


Jos Verstappen

"I made a good start and moved up to 9th. I managed to drive round the
early trouble between Diniz and Coulthard but I touched with Wurz a couple
of laps later and lost three places. It is disappointing that engine
trouble ended my race because the car was feeling good."


Alexander Wurz

"Having started the race in seventeenth place, I couldn't have done
any better. The race was good, I really enjoyed it, but I have learnt how
important it is to get a good grid position. I took a very high risk trying
to overtake Jos Verstappen, but knew I had no choice if I wanted to battle
for some points. I went into the grave, but managed to continue with no
major problems."


Teams

Benetton

David Richards, Chief Executive
"It was a weekend that held a lot of promise with a pole position for
Giancarlo which is something we can all feel proud of. Alexander drive a
solid race and got the best result possible. Overall, it didn't worked out
as we hoped and we now have to focus our attention on next weekend in
Germany."


Ferrari

Jean Todt, Team Chef
"In order to fight for first place, Michael, who was on a two stop
strategy, absolutely had to pass Hakkinen and so he was driving right on
the limit. The car was damaged when he went off and was repaired in the
pits. He then climbed up through the field from last place to get onto the
podium. After a good start, Eddie drove an attacking race. He had brake
problems in the final stages and we warned him of this. For that reason, he
did not take any unneccessary risks in keeping his team-mate behind him.
The championship is still very open and we have picked up seven points. We
know our main opposition is very strong, but we will not give up the
fight."


Jordan

Eddie Jordan, Team Owner
"Today was a very good team performance by everyone at Jordan. The pit
stops were excellent, the strategy worked as planned and the drivers did a
good job. It is great to have won more points, and I am only sorry that
Damon was not able to score, as he ran a very good race. I think people who
thought Ralf would be an easy touch for his brother will have to think
again. Our reliability has improved and we are certainly competitive now
thanks to the new modifications and the improvement in performance of tyres
and engine. Our aim now is to get points at every race."


McLaren

Ron Dennis, Team Chef
"An incredible race for David perhaps his best. The opening laps for
Mika were interesting. Our one stop strategy worked and allowed us to
comfortably control the race after the initial pressure from Schumacher.
Above all else I am pleased for everybody in the team whom have all worked
extremely hard to produce this kind of result."

Norbert Haug, Sporting Director Mercedes Benz
"A great race. Our tyres were excellent, our team worked perfectly and
our drivers were super. Its fantastic that we go to Hockenheim as the
leaders of the World Championship."


Minardi

Gian Carlo Minardi, Team Owner
"Shinji's result is good and - very important - it permits us to
maintain our Championship position. The combination driver-car-tyres
allowed us to maintain a good rhythm during the whole race which finished
with a good result. Regarding Tuero, unfortunately a spin spoilt his good
race and prevented us from having both cars at the finish line. Even though
he was unlucky to be involved with Takagi's accident, Esteban was going
very well, confirming that his strategy was good - as good was the one
chosen for Nakano, even if different."

Trevor Knowles, Ford Cosworth Support Engineer
"The problem with Tuero's engine was probably caused by a failure of a
drive. Anyway, we are still verifying."


Prost

Alain Prost, Team Owner
""


Sauber

Peter Sauber, Team Owner
"Unfortunately we were unable to exploit our position on the front row
of the grid today. I think the incident that cost Jean another likely
finish in the points was Fisichella's fault. It was a great pity that
Jean's engine stalled and he could not rejoin. Given his grid position, and
especially after the collision in the first corner, Johnny did everything
that was possible today."


Stewart

Paul Stewart, Managing Director
"It's disappointing to have Rubens' race ended like it was after
having such an excellent chance of a strong finish. We had a rear brake
fluid leak with his car and he had no choice but to retire. I feel bad for
Rubens because he has driven brilliantly all weekend. For him it's a huge
let-down after so much promise. Jos also performed strongly. It's not often
we have run at the front this season."

Alan Jankins, Technical Director
"The team were looking forward to seeing how well we could run near
the front so it is disappointing to have let Rubens down so early in the
race. Rubens made a really good start and with a few other front runners
going out a good result was possible. Jos did extremely well to avoid the
first lap mayhem and then lost a few places after a tangle with Wurz. Now
on to Hockenheim - the recent Monza test went well and the SF-2 looks good
in low downforce aerodynamic configuration."

Martin Whitaker, Ford European Director of Motorsport
"While it was encouraging to see Rubens running strongly at the head
of the field it was tremendously disappointing to see his early retirement
with brake failure. Jos also ran strongly in the early stages although an
excursion with Wurz dropped him back. His race was run when the engine
failed on lap 52."

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