German Grand Prix 2000
Hockenheim, 28th-30th July

TV Screenshots

Race

Another gearbox failure ends Johnny's race

Jaguar Racing Press Release, 30th July: Eddie Irvine finished 10th in an incident-strewn German Grand Prix today. Team-mate Johnny Herbert retired on lap 12 with a gearbox problem. Both Irvine and Herbert were in the battle for points in the early stages of the race. The safety car made the first of two appearances at the midway paint when a spectator invaded the track. Heavy rain fell with 15 laps left prompting a dash to the pits for wet tyres for the closing stages of the race.

Johnny's comments: 

"We had a clutch-related gear shift problem this morning which, after adjustment, seemed to be fixed. I had my first bad shift when I passed Eddie (Irvine) in the early stages then it was alright again but then I lost fourth gear just before Jos (Verstappen) passed me and then I lost all drive. Once again it’s unfortunate that we haven’t been able to capitalise on a great opportunity especially at this stage in the season when we should be regularly picking up points." 

Eddie's comments:

"I made a great start, staying clear of the mayhem at Turn One but I was losing time in the Stadium because I was struggling for grip and that cost me places in the early stages. I lost out big time with the 'pitch invasion'. We could have cashed in today given that it was fairly chaotic at times. We need to keep plugging away, improve the car, and put ourselve in a position to profit in races like this." 

Gary Anderson, Technical Director, Jaguar Racing: 

"Today was a lost opportunity - we weren’t able to make the best of our starting positions and the drama of the race. Unfortunately, Eddie was in the wrong place at the wrong time. He got caught out at the pit stop because the safety car came out at the time he pitted so he lost positions when he rejoined because he couldn’t get back up to race speed straight away. 

"The rest of the midfield runners came in under the Safety Car and held station. Johnny's run of bad luck continued. He was having a good scrap near the front of the pack until the gearbox problem. We can take encouragement from the performance of the Cosworth Project 2 engine this weekend, but there's still some work to do on the overall package in preparation for Hungary." 

Johnny runs as high as 5th but all for nothing

Johnny had his most competitive race so far for Jaguar, running as high as 5th in the early laps. But it was all for nothing as yet another mechanical failure resulted in a DNF. It was a fantastic race for former team-mate Rubens Barrichello though - from 18th on the grid to race winner in one of the most amazing drives of the season. Johnny's current team-mate fared less well, finishing next to last and struggling to fight off Mazzacane's Minardi in the later stages...

Race results: 

1. Barrichello Ferrari 1H25:34.418 
2. Hakkinen McLaren Mercedes + 7.400 
3. Coulthard McLaren Mercedes + 21.100 
4. Button Williams BMW + 22.600 
5. Salo Sauber Petronas + 27.100 
6. de la Rosa Arrows Supertec + 29.000 
7. R Schumacher Williams BMW + 30.800 
8. Villeneuve BAR Honda + 47.500 
9. Trulli Jordan Mugen-Honda + 50.900 
10. Irvine Jaguar Cosworth + 1:19.600 
11. Mazzacane Minardi Fondmetal + 1:29.500

Qualifying

Johnny 8th and out-qualifies Irvine

In a wet/dry qualifying session, Johnny out-qualified team-mate Eddie Irvine for the second time this season. Both Jaguars went out with the rest of the field right at the start of the session. At that stage, the track was mainly dry but the rain had started at the opposite end from the Stadium. Johnny's first flying lap was good enough for 7th, Irvine was two places behind. Later in the session, Fisichella put in a blinding lap to take second, demoting both Jaguars one place further down the grid. With rain on and off for the rest of the session, nobody was able to better Johnny's time so he retained his best place on the grid for Jaguar.

Jaguar Racing Press Release, 29th July: The Formula One teams were again put on 'weather watch' in Hockenheim today. Light rain falling just before the start of the session sent the entire field out to set times before the rain became heavier. Johnny Herbert and Eddie Irvine finished their first runs inside the top ten and that is where they stayed as intermittent rain showers prevented the track from drying out completely, leaving little room for improvement. Herbert will start the race from eighth on the grid, his best position of the 2000 season, while team-mate Irvine will start from tenth. 

Johnny comments: 

"It's nice to have a change of luck. Even this morning I had problems with water pressure which cost me some preparation time, but the rain arrived at the right time for us during qualifying. Our strategy was the same as everyone’s at the start - go out early, get a lap in the bank, and see what the weather was going to do. It paid off so I'm pleased with the position and looking forward to the race tomorrow."

Eddie's comments: 

"Considering the weather conditions, this is a great result for the team. Obviously we could have been a little luckier, but on the other hand, with the weather so fickle, we could have easily have been caught out. It's pleasing to have both cars in the top 10. Johnny and I are starting in what I consider favourable positions here, so we should be both confident of a good race."

Gary Anderson, Technical Director, Jaguar Racing:  

"We had a bit of help from the him upstairs today. Donations of that kind are always greatly received. It was all about timing really. We decided to go with the main bunch soon after the start of qualifying because the threat of heavy rain was about. As it turned out, we timed it well. We ran the Cosworth Project 2 engine in both cars today. The data suggests it is very strong and the driver feedback has also been very positive. Our plan is to debut the new engine in both cars tomorrow. There are one or two 'hot spots' in the grid formation so, if we keep our noses clean, we can expect a competitive race." 

Qualifying times:

1. Coulthard, McLaren-Mercedes - 1:45.697
2. M Schumacher, Ferrari - 1:47.063  + 1.366
3. Fisichella, Benetton-Supertec - 1:47.130  + 1.433
4. Hakkinen, McLaren-Mercedes - 1:47.162  + 1.465
5. de la Rosa, Arrows-Supertec - 1:47.786  + 2.089
6. Trulli, Jordan-Mugen Honda - 1:47.833  + 2.136
7. Wurz, Benetton-Supertec - 1:48.037  + 2.340
8. Herbert, Jaguar - 1:48.078  + 2.381
9. Villeneuve, BAR-Honda - 1:48.121  + 2.424
10. Irvine, Jaguar - 1:48.305  + 2.608
11. Verstappen, Arrows-Supertec - 1:48.321  + 2.624
12. Zonta, BAR-Honda - 1:48.665  + 2.968
13. Heidfeld, Prost-Peugeot - 1:48.690  + 2.993
14. R Schumacher, Williams-BMW - 1:48.841  + 3.144
15. Salo, Sauber-Petronas - 1:49.204  + 3.507
16. Button, Williams-BMW - 1:49.215  + 3.518
17. Frentzen, Jordan-Mugen Honda - 1:49.280  + 3.583
18. Barrichello, Ferrari - 1:49.544  + 3.847
19. Diniz, Sauber-Petronas - 1:49.936  + 4.239
20. Alesi, Prost-Peugeot - 1:50.289  + 4.592
21. Mazzacane, Minardi-Fondmetal - 1:51.611  + 5.914
22. Gene, Minardi-Fondmetal - 1:53.094  + 7.397

Moving to CART

Johnny tells ITV more about why he's moving on:

"It's time for a new challenge and I think that the challenge of ovals, for one, is something very, very different - it doesn't frighten me in any way. What's nice is that I drove with Alex [Zanardi] at Lotus and then he went to America and ended up winning two championships and came second [in another]. He did very well. From that point of view, it just makes me feel good that I can, maybe, get a championship out there. I think a Formula 1 World Championship is not quite there [for me] now..."

Friday practice

Jaguar Racing Press Release, 28th July 2000: Johnny Herbert was 15th fastest at the end of Friday’s two hour-tong Free Practice sessions for the German Grand Prix. Jaguar Racing team-mate Eddie Irvine was 18th. The weather played a big hand in proceedings. The morning session was held in sunny, dry conditions but heavy showers during the break meant that all but the closing stages of the second session was held on a wet track.

Johnny's comments:

"It was a bit of strange day, particularly with the weather conditions, dry in the morning, wet. For most of the afternoon, I concentrated on set-up, making improvements to the handling for the slow Stadium section. The car tends to move around quite a bit on the brakes because you run so little downforce here because of the fast straights. Overall, though, I’m fairly content - there is definitely more time to be found in the car."

Blondie's comments:

"The big issue here as always is making the car work well over the kerbs and improving the stability under braking. Some of the programme we had mapped out was interrupted by the rain but I guess that's the same for everybody. Though the weather conditions didn't allow us to get a clear picture, the early indications are that the new engine is an improvement, I guess we'll know more tomorrow."

Combined lap times:

1. M Schumacher Ferrari 1:43.532 237.318 km/h 
2. Frentzen Jordan Mugen-Honda 1:43.575 + 0.043 
3. Hakkinen McLaren Mercedes 1:44.120 + 0.588 
4. Barrichello Ferrari 1:44.128 + 0.596 
5. Coulthard McLaren Mercedes 1:44.379 + 0.847 
6. Trulli Jordan Mugen-Honda 1:44.521 + 0.989 
7. Zonta BAR Honda 1:44.906 + 1.374 
8. Villeneuve BAR Honda 1:44.985 + 1.453 
9. Fisichella Benetton Playlife 1:45.048 + 1.516 
10. Salo Sauber Petronas 1:45.094 + 1.562 
11. Heidfeld Prost Peugeot 1:45.229 + 1.697 
12. de la Rosa Arrows Supertec 1:45.433 + 1.901 
13. Alesi Prost Peugeot 1:45.520 + 1.988 
14. R Schumacher Williams BMW 1:45.542 + 2.010 
15. Herbert Jaguar Cosworth 1:45.664 + 2.132 
16. Button Williams BMW 1:45.791 + 2.259 
17. Diniz Sauber Petronas 1:45.884 + 2.352 
18. Irvine Jaguar Cosworth 1:45.901 + 2.369 
19. Wurz Benetton Playlife 1:46.573 + 3.041 
20. Gene Minardi Fondmetal 1:46.995 + 3.463 
21. Verstappen Arrows Supertec 1:47.000 + 3.468 
22. Mazzacane Minardi Fondmetal 1:48.062 + 4.530

Race preview

Jaguar Racing Press Release, 24th July 2000: After a positive result in Austria, the Jaguar Racing team heads for Germany with high hopes for another good race performance. The German Grand Prix is held at the notorious Hockenheimring, a high-speed, low downforce circuit which places a premium on engine performance and aerodynamic efficiency. There is always an incredible atmosphere at this race, particularly in the Stadium section which houses up to 100,000 spectators where the flags and firecrackers create a blaze of colour and noise.

The Jaguar Racing team completed a successful two and a half day test at Silverstone last week, working through an intensive programme which included aerodynamic work, race runs and pit-stops with live refuelling. The Jaguar Racing R1 will carry a new specification of the Cosworth engine in Hockenheim. Gary Anderson continues...

"We’re looking forward to Hockenheim after a very productive Silverstone test. We will be running the new spec Cosworth engine and together with the positive results of the aerodynamic development work at the test, we're hoping for a good weekend. Eddie should be feeling refreshed after his break and if we can carry the work we did at the test through to Hockenheim then we can expect a solid performance."

A great race in Austria has put Johnny Herbert in buoyant mood:

"Finishing seventh in Austria is better than what we have achieved in the last few races but it still means nil points. My mission now is to carry the momentum from Austria and to start scoring points for the team. Concentration is the key to a good performance at Hockenheim because you are travelling in a straight line at full throttle for long periods and you have to guard against your mind wandering off. 

"The Stadium can make or break your lap. It's important to have good traction in the Stadium because with so little wing you can’t rely on aerodynamic grip to get you in and out of the slow corners quickly."

After missing the Austrian Grand Prix through illness, Eddie Irvine, the 1999 German Grand Prix winner, is keen to resume racing:

"Having sorted out the medical problem which forced me to miss Austria, I am raring to go again in Germany. Believe me, having to watch qualifying and the race on television was not a pleasant experience! We've got a bit more grunt coming for this race and we will certainly need it down those long, fast straights. 

"The noise from the crowd in the Stadium section comes as a complete contrast to the quiet down the straights where all you can hear is your engine straining at maximum revs. Last year the crowd was cheering for me and Mika Salo in the absence of their hero and we got a great reception on the podium, but all the support will be for Michael Schumacher again this time round."

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Last updated 30th July 2000