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Formula One: Hakkinen hopes for role reversal in Hungary

13 August 1999

INDIANAPOLIS, -- Eddie Irvine is hoping the trend continues. Mika Hakkinen is hoping it won't.

Ferrari's Irvine won the last two Grand Prix races and finished second in the other race. He racked up 26 points in that time and took the lead in the World Championship from Hakkinen.

Hakkinen's trend has been to go the other way. In the same three races he finished only once -- in fourth -- and scored a measly four points in his West McLaren-Mercedes.

"It's very hard," Hakkinen said, "and the things that have happened in the last three Grands Prix have made things very challenging, psychologically. I still feel strong and the team is working harder than ever. I can see a lot of possibilities, but I am going to fight to the maximum in these last six races.

"In this race last year, everything was looking extremely good until I had a mechanical failure in the car which cost a lot of performance and a lot of places. Let's hope this year is different."

This year, overall, has been different for Irvine. He scored his first Grand Prix victory in the season opener. He's taken over the leadership role at Ferrari for the injured Michael Schumacher. And he's leading the World Championship.

"Until this year I had never won a Grand Prix," Irvine said, "and this year I have won three. As the song goes, 'The times, they are a'changin'.'"

In Sunday's Hungarian Grand Prix -- the 11th of 16 on the Formula One calendar -- Irvine could have a chance of a hat trick of victories.

"If I hadn't messed up my pit stop at Silverstone (at the British Grand Prix) that would already have been on the cards," Irvine said. "It would be great if I could do it, but Mika (Hakkinen) will be do everything he can to make sure it doesn't happen."

Still, asked if he now expects to win rather than just hope to, Irvine said: "No, you never 'expect' in F1. I'm just coming here to have a strong race. I'll be disappointed if I come away from here and Mika (Hakkinen) won the race by 30 seconds. If I'm right up his gearbox at the end of the race I won't be disappointed. It's not ideal, but at least we took the race to them."

In recent races, McLaren has made mistakes, and Ferrari has capitalized on them.

"So far we've managed to achieve that," Irvine said. "This weekend it could all turn around, so we've really got to concentrate on what we are doing, try to keep things simple and gets some points, and hopefully McLaren will have problems.

"But here we can give them a good race even if they don't have problems." After racing on the high-speed straights through the deep green forests of Hockenheim, the Formula One circus heads for the tight and twisting Hungaroring. The track, located in the sun-baked hills on the outskirts of Budapest, has been called "Monaco without the buildings."

"The Hungaroring is one of the slowest tracks we race on with regards to average speed," said Williams driver Ralf Schumacher. "Just like in Monaco, the engineers must try to as much aerodynamic downforce as possible, although mechanical grip is important, as well."

"If overtaking on most of the present circuits is difficult, then I must say that in Hungary it is virtually impossible. Therefore, the Winfield Williams team has to push as hard as possible in qualifying to reach a good starting position."

Said Hakkinen: "To race here is a nightmare because if you get stuck behind a car, even if he is one-and-a-half or two seconds slower you can't really overtake because it's a bit like Monaco."

Overtaking is difficult but not impossible at the Hungaroring. In 1989, Nigel Mansell started 12th and won the race.

The question for Sunday is: Can Hakkinen overtake Irvine and can Irvine overtake Hakkinen? Whose trend will continue?

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