Germany 1999: Saturday Qualifying
Times
P. No Driver Team - Car Time/Laps
1. 1 Hakkinen McLaren Mercedes 1:42.950 238.590 km/h
2. 8 Frentzen Jordan Mugen-Honda 1:43.000 + 0:00.050
3. 2 Coulthard McLaren Mercedes 1:43.288 + 0:00.338
4. 3 Salo Ferrari 1:43.577 + 0:00.627
5. 4 Irvine Ferrari 1:43.769 + 0:00.819
6. 16 Barrichello Stewart Ford 1:43.938 + 0:00.988
7. 18 Panis Prost Peugeot 1:43.979 + 0:01.029
8. 7 Hill Jordan Mugen-Honda 1:44.001 + 0:01.051
9. 19 Trulli Prost Peugeot 1:44.209 + 0:01.259
10. 9 Fisichella Benetton Playlife 1:44.338 + 0:01.388
11. 6 R Schumacher Williams Supertec 1:44.468 + 0:01.518
12. 22 Villeneuve BAR Supertec 1:44.508 + 0:01.558
13. 10 Wurz Benetton Playlife 1:44.522 + 0:01.572
14. 5 Zanardi Williams Supertec 1:45.034 + 0:02.084
15. 21 Gene Minardi Ford 1:45.331 + 0:02.381
16. 12 Diniz Sauber Petronas 1:45.335 + 0:02.385
17. 17 Herbert Stewart Ford 1:45.454 + 0:02.504
18. 23 Zonta BAR Supertec 1:45.460 + 0:02.510
19. 20 Badoer Minardi Ford 1:45.917 + 0:02.967
20. 14 de la Rosa Arrows TWR 1:45.935 + 0:02.985
21. 11 Alesi Sauber Petronas 1:45.962 + 0:03.012
22. 15 Takagi Arrows TWR 1:46.209 + 0:03.259
107% time : 1:50.156
FIA Press Release
Qualifying, 13.00 to 14.00
Weather conditions: very hot and sunny
100th pole for McLaren
Mika Hakkinen scored his eighth pole position of the season here at Hockenheim in his McLaren-Mercedes MP4/14 (1m 42.950s) - and the team's 100th - when he wound up 0.050sec ahead of Heinz-Harald Frentzen's Jordan. "It was an extremely enjoyable session," he said, "but in fact my advantage should have been bigger. My second-last run was going well until the second-last corner where someone had put sand down and there was no grip at all." David Coulthard wound up third on 1m 43.288s. He said he was quite happy with his first run, after which he lost a front tyre tread and came slowly back to the pits. He took the spare and then went back into the race chassis towards the end "but struggled a bit to get up to speed."
Frentzen splits the McLarens
Heinz-Harald Frentzen's Jordan 199 split the McLarens, benefitting from the use of a development qualifying engine. "For a few minutes I really thought it was possible to be on pole," said Frentzen after recording a 1m 43.000s. "I think we have a good race set-up by the McLarens obviously have a very strong race performance." Damon Hill wound up eighth (1m 44.001s). "On my second run I made a mistake in the stadium," he said. "On my first I ran over debris and on my fourth I had traffic."
Salo's Ferrari takes fourth
Mika Salo was well satisfied with fourth fastest time (1m 43.577s) in the Ferrari F399, but Eddie Irvine had a frustrating time to qualify fifth (1m 43.769s). He slid off coming into the stadium on his first run and then changed the set-up, but he had gone in the wrong direction and there was not time to change it back again. His final run was spoiled by traffic.
Barrichello completes top six
Rubens Barrichello's Stewart-Ford completed the top six qualifiers on 1m 43.938s. "To start in the top six is not that bad, but I had a car today which was capable of being in the top four," he said. Johnny Herbert wound up 17th on 1m 45.454s, having insufficient time to set up the car after his misfortunes this morning.
Briefly:
Olivier Panis wound up seventh (1m 43.979s) in his Prost-Peugeot while team-mate Jarno Trulli was ninth (1m 44.209s) after suffering an engine failure with his race car and then stopping out on the circuit with his spare.
Commentary
The session opened with Marc Gene out early, and more expected to join rapidly as the track temperatures are rising quickly.
Alex Zanardi comes out early too, running with steel brakes - which provides improved feedback, at the cost of greater unsprung mass on the wheels. Zanardi had trouble beating Marc Gene's time.... Panis, on a hot lap around eight minutes in, set a mid 1:44 time to make the early running interesting. He's running quite a lot of wing, making his last section quick.
First of the front runners, Hakkinen, made an appearance 12 minutes in, as Trulli takes provisionl pole from Panis. The Flying Finn's first flying lap was significantly quicker in the whole lap, posting 1:43.093 - incredibly quick and just 1.2s off last year's pole. It's a clear indication they sandbagged the other sessions...
Barrichello split the Prosts, looking good in the first section, then Salo posted second place (1s off the pace) as Coulthard, Hill and Frentzen started their first hot laps, and Irvine leaves the pits to join the fray.
Coulthard goes second, two tenths down, then cruises in very slowly, as Hill goes third (nine tenths off pole). Frentzen laps quickly, posting 1:43:448 for third (three tenths off), as Irvine falls off the track (then returns to the pits) and Coulthard reports a problem with his car - time to jump into the test car. Panis, Gene and Herbert all improve their times behind, for 6, 12 and 14th places respectively; Alesi starts his first hot lap.
The track temperature has climbed very high, to 40 degrees (from 28 before the session started), which will make improvements difficult to manage. However, all are clearly within the 107% mark - except Irvine, who should have no problem once he rejoins the track!
The Benettons continued to show the Supertec runners the way forward, but there is little to choose between them. Gene, however, is continuing to look very impressive for Minardi, running in twelfth as Badoer struggles. The revised Minardi has looked very good here...
Zanardi finally starts getting to grips with his car, posting the eleventh fastest time - and finally looking competitive today - as the Hakkinen and both Ferrari's start hot laps. Irvine posted fourth fastest as Mika sat just off his earlier pace. Trulli's Peugeot engine expired as Hill immediately responds to Irvine's time, but does not claim fourth back.
The track temperature rises to 42 degrees, making it even harder to improve, and Frentzen accidentally blocked Hill on his next flying lap. Then Frentzen strings together his best lap so far - fastest of all in sector 2 - to post 1:43:000 and take provisional pole. A stunning lap, putting him .09s ahead of Hakkinen, so it's looking very promising for Jordan.
Zanardi improved again, posting the 13th quickest time, just behind Ralf Schumacher as Fisichella gets into trouble and loses his front wing. Damon Hill starts a hot lap, but it's not looking brilliant (slowed by debris from Fisichella's accident), and Barrichello posts fifth place, displacing Hill to sixth.
Entering the last fifteen minutes, Mika Hakkinen is flat out, using all the track to take provisional pole by 0.05s, as Irvine posts a time eight tenths off the pace, after fighting the Motordrome section. Coulthard has a messy end to his lap, failing to improve his time again - the test car is slower for him than his broken race car.
Frentzen abandoned a hot lap to pit and have the extra front downforce removed, Ralf Schumacher made it into eleveth place, and Salo put his last and best lap together: he posted 1:43.577 to take fourth place (ahead of Irvine), certainly a brilliant achievement.
Entering the last six minutes, and Irvine heads out of the pits to deal with the Salo time. All the front runners have laps left, and are optimistic of improving times.
Irvine's hot lap is hassled by traffic from the masses of cars coming out onto the track for their last laps - it cost him a full second, which ruined his lap, so he runs straight into another hot lap. Trulli's car breaks down with no engine again, from eighth place, and Wurz takes eleventh from Schumacher. Panis posts a 1:43.979 for seventh place, displacing Hill. A good run for the Prost.
As the session closes, Villeneuve moves into eleventh place and Irvine pits. Hakkine and Frentzen and Hill are on flying laps, but the Flying Finn blew it, and Frentzen was off the pace. Hill is looking to improve on eighth position, but running through traffic.
Noone improves from here, putting Hakinnen on pole with Frentzen in second and Coulthard third. Salo beat Irvine to fourth as Barrichello fills the third row. An excellent session!
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