Formula One: Villeneuve takes fourth as Bar Honda does it the hard way
17 July 2000
Jacques Villeneuve delivered a magnificent performance in this afternoon's Austrian Grand Prix, charging through the field from 15th position at the end of the first lap to claim his and Lucky Strike Reynard BAR Honda's second consecutive fourth place finish. After an eventful race, characterised by the first corner incident that cost both BAR Honda drivers around ten track positions, Villeneuve's three points have moved BAR Honda into fifth position in the Constructors' championship. Having made an excellent start from his career-best grid position of sixth, Ricardo Zonta spied an opportunity to move further up the field. But the first corner of the A1 Ring is a tight right-hander at the end of an uphill drag and as the Ferraris ahead of him slowed, Ricardo was unable to avoid championship leader Michael Schumacher. The faintest of touches sent the German into a spin and caused the following pack to slow almost to a standstill. Both Villeneuve and Zonta were caught up in the melee, running wide through the gravel to regain the track, and by the end of the first lap were placed 15th and 17th respectively. A stop-go penalty for Zonta on lap 17 saw the Brazilian drop further back, but Villeneuve was able to keep pace with the cars ahead. Starting with full fuel tanks, Villeneuve's plan was to run for as long as possible before making his pit stop. The strategy proved to be perfect. Visibly quicker than the cars ahead, Villeneuve could not find a way past, but as his rivals made their stops, the Canadian was able to capitalise on the now clear track to make up valuable seconds. By running his fuel mix ever leaner, Villeneuve delayed his crucial stop until lap 49, by which time he had secured sufficient advantage to emerge from the pits in fourth place and on course for a further three World Championship points. Zonta's race ended on lap 59. He had experienced engine temperature problems throughout the afternoon and twelve laps from the end his race was over. However, Zonta will take heart from his most competitive showing this weekend and will hope to better this performance in Hockenheim in two weeks. Jacques Villeneuve Position: 4th "After the first lap, I really didn't think we could score points today, so that makes this fourth place even more pleasing. I didn't make a good start and Ricardo was a little over aggressive into the first corner. We both went onto the grass and a load of cars went past so we were right at the back. The car was fine but with so much fuel on board I had trouble passing the cars ahead, especially Heidfeld who was driving like he was back in F3000, so I had to wait for the pit stops. Our strategy was absolutely right and once I had clear track ahead of me I was able to go much quicker. This has been a competitive weekend for the team and the car should be well suited to Hockenheim so I am looking forward to the next race." Ricardo Zonta DNF - Lap 59 "I got a really good start, but was caught behind the two Ferraris. Michael was on a really tight inside line and almost stopped as he was turning. I braked as hard as I could but I touched the back of his car and damaged my front wing. I'm really sorry that this happened - the guys you know not to hit are McLaren and Ferrari because they are fighting for the championship." Takefumi Hosaka - Managing Director, Honda R&D "Jacques and the team did a very good job today and they did not give up even when the situation did not look very good. We have excellent technology to measure how much fuel is left in the car and by controlling the fuel consumption we were able to run for two laps longer than planned. The correct strategy and excellent pit work made it possible for these elements to bring us a good result. We are sorry for Ricardo who has worked very well this weekend. It was tough because after his accident the engine water temperature was rising throughout the race and unfortunately his engine expired before end of the race." Craig Pollock - Managing Director, British American Racing "I'm happy for what I would say is our best team effort to date and the best performance I've seen from Jacques in a long, long time. Without the first corner incident, both cars could have been in the points." Jordan Mugen Honda had hoped for a good race after Jarno Trulli had qualified an excellent fifth yesterday. The Italian, however, was caught up in the first corner incident and his race was ended before it had scarcely begun. Heinz-Harald Frentzen fared no better after an oil leak induced a spin on lap five. The Formula One teams move north for the German Grand Prix in a fortnight at Hockenheim, Sunday 30 July. BAR Honda is testing this week at Silverstone (18-20 July).