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Sunday, July 15
Coulthard's bid for points title hurt
Reuters
SILVERSTONE, England -- Mika Hakkinen
surged to his first victory in almost a year Sunday as McLaren
teammate David Coulthard suffered a British Grand Prix
nightmare.
|  | | Mika Hakkinen of Finland enjoys his 33.6-second victory in the British Grand Prix on Sunday. |
Ferrari's Formula One world champion Michael Schumacher was
well beaten in second place, but still was cruising to a fourth
title with his overall lead now 37 points with only 60 remaining
to be won.
"It feels really good, after all the troubles going on this
year," said Hakkinen, who this week denied speculation that he
was contemplating retirement from Formula One and had lost his
motivation.
Coulthard's failure to complete three laps Sunday could
prove the fatal blow to the Scot's already faltering title
ambitions as Schumacher's sole rival.
His exit at a track where he has triumphed for the last two
years followed a first corner collision with the Jordan of
Jarno Trulli.
"I think he should have taken it easy at the first corner
because the championship is now gone," said Trulli after what he
called a racing accident.
Hakkinen's victory was his first since August 2000 and
prevented Schumacher from chalking up a record-tying 51st
victory at the circuit where Ferrari first triumphed with Argentine
Jose Froilan Gonzalez 50 years ago.
Schumacher, who started on pole for the first time at
Silverstone, was followed home by teammate Rubens
Barrichello after being overtaken by Hakkinen on the fifth of
the 60 laps.
The crucial move came when the Finn powered past the German
coming out of Copse and swiftly pulled away from Schumacher.
"My car wasn't really the way I would have liked to have it
and into Copse I had a lot of problems," commented the German
afterward. "I had a pretty difficult day honestly."
Juan Pablo Montoya was fourth in a Williams,
followed by the Ferrari-powered Saubers of Kimi Raikkonen
and Nick Heidfeld.
Montoya blamed a second pit stop of 10.9 seconds for not
finishing higher, but said the strategy of stopping twice had
been correct.
"It paid off. I started eighth and finished fourth. It's not
too bad," he said.
Montoya's teammate and Michael's brother Ralf failed to
finish, parking his Williams after 38 laps.
"It was a technical problem. There was this strange noise
going on in the engine and so I stopped the car," said the
younger Schumacher.
It was Hakkinen's first victory in Britain and the 19th of his
career. The two-time champion last won at the Belgian Grand
Prix on Aug. 27 last year.
"It is something incredible, something that was missing,"
said Hakkinen, who was given a champagne shower by the two
Ferrari teammates on the podium.
And he admitted that the thought had crossed his mind that
he might never win again.
"It is a fear for every Grand Prix driver who has won," said
the 32-year-old.
The Finn, with a 33.6-second advantage at the finish, slowed
down on his final lap, taking no risks after seeing what seemed
a surefire victory vanish in Spain in April.
That time, his clutch exploded five laps from the checkered flag while he had a healthy lead.
Hakkinen now has 19 points from the first 11 races, and is
mathematically out of contention for the title. Schumacher has
the advantage of fighting the next Grand Prix on home territory
at Hockenheim in two weeks.
Coulthard, seeking to become the first driver since
compatriot Jim Clark in the 1960s to win three British Grands
Prix in a row, veered off at Priory on the fourth lap.
"It was a rear suspension failure, I think (due to) the
contact with Trulli going into the first corner," said
Coulthard. "The whole thing just let go."
Trulli, who went off into the gravel, said he had given
Coulthard as much space as he could on the inside.
"There was no way to go. It was a racing accident. I'll have
a word with him about it later to clear the air." Send this story to a friend | Most sent stories
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