Formula One: Frentzen enters title picture with win; Hakkinen spins away apparent victory

13 September 1999

MONZA, Italy--Heinz-Harald Frentzen headed for victory in the Italian Grand Prix while a devastated Mika Hakkinen walked back to the pits. And while Frentzen celebrated his second win of the season, Hakkinen contemplated the win and the points he had thrown away.

Hakkinen comfortably led the first 29 laps of the race -- the 13th of 16 on the Formula One world tour -- before he made the mistake of shifting into first gear instead of second gear as he entered the first turn, locked the rear wheels of his West McLaren-Mercedes, stalled the engine and spun.

"I saw him (Hakkinen) spinning off in the first chicane," Frentzen said, "and I told myself, I cant believe it. He had a seven-second lead in front of me, but by then the gap was consistent and he wasnt going any faster."

Frentzen went on to win by 3.272 seconds over Ralf Schumacher, who crossed the line second in his Winfield Williams-Supertec. Mika Salo gave the "tifosi" fans something to cheer about as he finished third in his Ferrari and joined Frentzen and Schumacher in the celebrations on the podium. Eddie Irvine only managed to finish sixth in his Ferrari, but the one point he earned means that he and Hakkinen are now tied for first place in the World Championship with 60 points each.

With Frentzen earning 10 points for his victory, he now moves into third place in the standings with 50 points. David Coulthard, who placed fifth in Italy, is fourth with 48 points.

Averaging 147.874 mph (237.938 km/h) in his Benson & Hedges Jordan-Mugen-Honda, Frentzen completed the 53-lap, 189.858-mile (305.548-km) race in one hour, 17 minutes and 2.923 seconds.

Hakkinen, who had won the pole, led from the start, with Frentzen second and two-time CART champion Alex Zanardi in third. Zanardi, however, would be plagued by a broken floor section and drift back to finish seventh. But in the early stages of the race, he let his teammate Ralf Schumacher through into third place.

Rubens Barrichello put in an aggressive drive to claim fourth in his Stewart-Ford, ahead of Coulthards McLaren-Mercedes and Irvines Ferrari. Former Indianapolis 500 winner Jacques Villeneuve, eighth, finished the second Grand Prix of the season in his British American Racing-Supertec.

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