July 2001

31 July 2001 Alain Prost has threatened to call the lawyers in if Alesi joins Jordan before the end of the season. Alesi wanst to leave Prost Grand Prix immediately and drive for Jordan in the Hungarian GP, next race in the Formula 1 calendar.

30 July 2001 In an official press release Jordan have said that they have nothing to say about jean Alesi joining the team to replace Frentzen. According to the press release, any stories currently appearing in the media are purely speculative.

30 July 2001 Arrows will use Ford engine in the 2002 and 2003 seasons. The announcement was made today by Niki Lauda.

30 July 2001 New rumours in the paddock suggest that Alain Prost is about to sell his team to pay off his debts. The alleged buyer is Brazilian driver Pedro Diniz, who already bought a 40% stake of Prost Grand Prix last year. Diniz's backer would be his millionaire father Abilio and the aim would be to build a all-Brazilian team, with Zonta and Burti as drivers.

30 July 2001 Alain Prost said that Jean Alesi has a contract with Prost Grand Prix until the end of the current season and that he has no intention of releasing the driver to Jordan any time soon. Alain also said that he has had a chat with Eddie Jordan and told him not to try to take Alesi from him. Jordan replied that he will not do anything without obtaining Alain Prost's permission first.

29 July 2001 Alesi has been linked with a surprise move to Jordan to take Frentzen's place for the rest of the season, after Zonta failed to impress in yesterday's race.

29 July 2001 The German GP was restarted after a spectacular accident, fortunately without consequences on lap one. M. Schumacher's Ferrari developed gear problems at the start and Burti could not avoid hitting it at the back. The Prost somersaulted in the air above Bernoldi's car and landed the right way up on the side. Because fo the large amount of carbon fiber debris left on teh track followign the crash, the race as stopped and restarted some 2o minutes later. Both M. Schumacher and Burti, who had not been hurt in the accident, were able to jump into their spare cars and retake their positions on the grid. Car or engine problems took out many of the top players, including M. Schumacher, Coulthard, Montoya and Häkkinen, giving the mid-field players the chance to bring home points. R. Schumacher won the GP in front of his home crowd, followed by Barrichello, Villeneuve, Fisichella, Button and Alesi. The full race report is available from the Reports page.

The German GP finishing times:

1. R.SCHUMACHER (Ger-Williams) in 1h18'17"873 2. BARRICHELLO (Bra-Ferrari) + 0'46"100 3. VILLENEUVE (Can-BAR) + 1'02"800 4. FISICHELLA (Ita-Benetton) + 1'03"477 5. BUTTON (GB-Benetton) + 1'05"400 6. ALESI (Fra-Prost) + 1'13"900 7. PANIS (Fra-BAR) + 1'17"500 8. VERSTAPPEN (Ola-Arrows) + 1 lap 9. ALONSO (Spa-Minardi) + 1 lap 10. BERNOLDI (Bra-Arrows) + 1 lap

28 July 2001 Williams took the front row in Hockenheim for tomorrow's German GP after dominating the whole qualifying session. Montoya will be in his first Formula 1 pole position alongside team mate R. Schumacher. Häkkinen managed to stay ahead of M. Schumacher on the second row, while Coulthard will find himself sharing the third row with Barrichello.

The German GP qualifying times:

1. MONTOYA (Col-Williams) 1'38"117 (average 250,415 Km/h) 2. R.SCHUMACHER (Ger-Williams) 1'38"136 3. HAKKINEN (Fin-McLaren) 1'38"811 4. M.SCHUMACHER (Ger-Ferrari) 1'38"941 5. COULTHARD (GB-McLaren) 1'39"574 6. BARRICHELLO (Bra-Ferrari) 1'39"682 7. HEIDFELD (Ger-Sauber) 1'39"921 8. RAIKKONEN (Fin-Sauber) 1'40"072 9. DE LA ROSA (Spa-Jaguar) 1'40"265 10. TRULLI (Ita-Jordan) 1'40"322 11. IRVINE (GB-Jaguar) 1'40"371 12. VILLENEUVE (Can-BAR) 1'40"437 13. PANIS (Fra-BAR) 1'40"610 14. ALESI (Fra-Prost) 1'40"740 15. ZONTA (Bra-Jordan) 1'41"174 16. BURTI (Bra-Prost) 1'41"213 17. FISICHELLA (Ita-Benetton) 1'41"299 18. BUTTON (GB-Benetton) 1'41"438 19. BERNOLDI (Bra-Arrows) 1'41"668 20. VERSTAPPEN (Hol-Arrows) 1'41"870 21. ALONSO (Spa-Minardi) 1'41"913 22. MARQUES (Bra-Minardi) 1'42"716

28 July 2001 Ferrari have extended their contract with Bridgestone until 2004.

27 July 2001 Eddie Irvine clocked the fastest time in the combined free practice session for the German GP. Irvine beat Montoya, Häkkinen, Barrichello, M. Schumacher and De La Rosa.

The German GP combined free practice session times:

1. IRVINE (GB-Jaguar) 1'41"424 (average 242,250 km/h) 2. MONTOYA (Col-Williams) 1'41"487 3. HAKKINEN (Fin-McLaren) 1'41"949 4. BARRICHELLO (Bra-Ferrari) 1'41"953 5. M.SCHUMACHER (Ger-Ferrari) 1'42"25 6. DE LA ROSA (Spa-Jaguar) 1'42"302 7. COULTHARD (GB-McLaren) 1'42"304 8. ALESI (Fra-Prost) 1'42"828 9. TRULLI (Ita-Jordan) 1'42"941 10. R.SCHUMACHER (Ger-Williams) 1'42"987 11. FISICHELLA (Ita-Benetton) 1'43"014 12. HEIDFELD (Ger-Sauber) 1'43"211 13. ZONTA (Bra-Jordan) 1'43"461 14. PANIS (Fra-BAR) 1'43"487 15. BUTTON (GB-Benetton) 1'43"496 16. RAIKKONEN (Fin-Sauber) 1'43"528 17. VILLENEUVE (Can-BAR) 1'43"815 18. VERSTAPPEN (Hol-Arrows) 1'44"143 19. BURTI (Bra-Prost) 1'44"162 20. BERNOLDI (Bra-Arrows) 1'44"549 21. ALONSO (Spa-Minardi) 1'44"730 22. MARQUES (Bra-Minardi) 1'45"005

27 July 2001 Jarno Trulli is not excluding that he might leave Jordan at the end of the current season. The Italian said that he had nothing to do with Frentzen's sacking and that he is looking around to see what is available for next year.

27 July 2001 Eddie Jordan spoke out about the shock sacking of driver Frentzen. Jordan said that disagreements about the way forward for the development of the car followed the British GP and he felt that it was time to change. He said that it is never a nice thing to do, but that sometimes it is necessary. He also said that he has always considered Frentzen to be one of the nicest drivers in Formula 1, as well as a good driver.

27 July 2001 Barrichello dominated the first hour of the German GP free practice session ahead of a good De La Rosa and Coulthard. The two Schumacher brothers followed, with Micheal in front of Ralf and Häkkinen.

The German GP first free practice session times:

1. BARRICHELLO Ferrari 1'41"953 (average 240,993 km/h) 2. DE LA ROSA Jaguar 1'42"302 3. COULTHARD McLaren Mercedes 1'42"621 4. M.SCHUMACHER Ferrari 1'42"826 5. R.SCHUMACHER Williams BMW 1'42"987 6. HAKKINEN McLaren Mercedes 1'42"994 7. MONTOYA Williams BMW 1'43"212 8. IRVINE Jaguar 1'43"275 9. FISICHELLA Benetton Renault 1'43"894 10. TRULLI Jordan Honda 1'43"970 11. ZONTA Jordan Honda 1'44"333 12. HEIDFELD Sauber Petronas 1'44"351 13. RAIKKONEN Sauber Petronas 1'44"372 14. VILLENEUVE BAR Honda 1'44"532 15. PANIS BAR Honda B 1'44"616 16. ALESI Prost 1'45"151 17. BERNOLDI Arrows Asiatech 1'45"469 18. BURTI Prost 1'45"767 19. BUTTON Benetton Renault 1'45"798 20. ALONSO Minardi 1'46"627 21. MARQUES Minardi 1'47"292

27 July 2001 The two Schumacher brothers have attacked Eddie Jordan over the sacking os fellow German driver Heinz-Harald Frentzen days before their home GP. Michael said that he feels sorry for Frentzen because he is not a bad driver, however, he might get a better opportunity now. He also said that when times are difficult teams should stick with their drivers. Ralf then revealed that he too had had problems in the team, when he had his Formula 1 debut with them 1997. Ralf said that he understand that Eddie Jordan is under lots of pressure to perform from big sponsors.

27 July 2001 Toyota Formula 1 boss Ove Andersson had dropped hints that Scot Allan McNish will partner Mika Salo next season when the team debuts. McNish has been testing alongside Salo all season and has impressed with his performance. Andersson also denied that Toyota are in talks with recently-sacked Frentzen.

26 July 2001 Jacques Villeneuve and Olivier Panis have both been confirmed as BAR drivers for next season. The team is confident that they will be able to compete with Ferrari, McLaren and Williams.

26 July 2001 Ricardo Zonta currently is to replace Frentzen only for the German GP. It is likely that Zonta will keep the drive for the rest of the season, though Takuma Sato also is in with a good chance of landing the seat. Sato is currenty racing in Formula 3 and has tested for Jordan.

25 July 2001 Heinz-harald Frentzen has been axed by the Jordan team following poor performance this year. His place in the German GP, scheduled for next weekend, will be taken by test driver Ricardo Zonta. Frentzen, who had a contract for 2001 and 2002 with Jordan, is taking legal advice on how to proceed. He said that he disagrees with the reasons for replacing him, but that currently he does not want to discuss the matter as there are legal implications.

23 July 2001 Bernie Ecclestone has given his approval to the project to build a circuit in Moscow in order to introduce a Russian GP inthe calendar. The circuit is expected to be ready in 2003.

23 July 2001 The German GP will stay at Hockenheim until 2008, with the option to extend for a further five years. The contract between the management of the Hockenheimring and Bernie Ecclestone will be signed on Sunday, after the German GP.

20 July 2001 Rubens Barrichello revealed today that after M. Schumacher's accident Ferrari modified the car. The Brazilian also said that the new evolution engine, the '050', is going well and Ferrari will use it in Hockenheim.

20 July 2001 In statement released to the Ferrari Media Center, M. schuamcher said that he feels fine, though on Wednesday adn Thursday he still sufferde a bit from the consequences of the accident. The doctors advised him to rest, so he did not take place in the scheduled tests.

19 July 2001 German newspaper Bild has revealed that immediately after M. Schumacher's accident at Monza yesterday Ferrari took the video of the crash and nobody has seen it since. Bild suggests that Ferrari are trying to hide simething. The official explanation of the crash is that a stone damaged the bottom of the car and that it was not a driver's mistake, but Bild says that "experts" do not believe this explanation.

19 July 2001 A sport nwespaper has published the news that there are disagreements between Ferrari and M. Schumacher. According to the paper, M. Schumacher has refused to take part in the tests at Monza tomorrow, while Ferrari wants him to be there. Ferrari has released a statement saying that there are no disagreements with the driver and that, if it was up to him, he would be back in the car now, but the team wants him to rest and recover from the accident.

18 July 2001 The testing in Monza was marred by another accident today. Trulli's EJ11 lost its rear wing while approaching the Ascari bend at speed and ended up in the escape route. The Italian was not hurt in the accident. Meanwhile Coulthard was unable to partecipate in the scheduled tests due to food poisoning and Alex Wurz took his place. It is unlikely that the Scot will be able to test tomorrow and his place will be taken by Häkkinen, who arrived in Monza today.

18 July 2001 M. Schumacher has undergone more medical tests today and the doctors have concluded that he has not suffered any physical damage in yesterday's accident. M. Schumacher is currently at home in Switzerland undergoing massage therapy. It is not known whether he will test again before next GP, but he will certainly take part in the race.

18 July 2001 Luca Badoer will not be at Minardi as race driver next year. Giancarlo Minardi said that due to financial constraints the team will be unable to employ Italian drivers next season. Giancarlo Minardi also admitted that next year Minardi may be running with Ferrari engines.

17 July 2001 Twenty-year-old Felipe Massa will be Ferrari's second test driver next season alongside Badoer. Massa won the Brazilian Formula Chevrolet championship and last year raced in Formula Renault, winning the Italian and European titles. He is currently leading the Euro 3000 Series in the Draco team.

17 July 2001 M. Schumacher suffered a serious accident while testing in Monza today. The German crashed his car against the guard-rail at the Roggia. Fisichella, who was behind him, reported that the crash had been violent and that the Ferrari was wedged underneath the tyre barrier. The Italian rushed back to the pits and was the first to break the news to the Ferrari mechanics, who were unaware that the accident had happened. Other witnesses later said that the crash had been worse than the one in Silverstone in which the current World Champion broke his leg two years ago. M. Schumacher was taken to the medical center by ambulance, but was able to walk. After the accident the Ferrari tests were stopped and he returned home to Switzerland. Later in the day Ferrari released a press statement saying that the accident was caused by a technical fault with the car, possibly due to a collision with the kerb that damaged the exhaust pipe. Tomorrow M. Schumacher will rest at home and his place in the tests will be taken by Barrichello.

16 July 2001 Benetton revealed that last year they were the victim of a hacker attack in which some of the new car development project data was stolen. The theft forced the design team to find alternative solutions and change direction, but they now are 99 percent sure that there are no parts in the engine that have been seen by outsiders. Tha statement was made by Renault technical director Jean-Jacques His.

15 July 2001 Coulthard's Championship hopes were all but shattered today, when the Scot retired on lap four with a broken suspension following a collision with Trulli at the start of the British GP. As soon as he learnt that his title rival was out of the picture M. Schumacher, who had taken the lead from pole position, let Häkkinen through and cruised in second position for much of the race to take the six points. Barrichello finished third, putting both the Ferrari drivers on the podium, ahead of Montoya, who had briefly led the race but who had been penalised by a stuck fuel pipe during a pit stop. Räkkönen showed off his talent again by bringing two points home to Sauber, while team mate Heidfeld finished in sixth place.

The British GP finishing times:

1. Häkkinen (McLaren-Mercedes) in 1h25'33"770 (average 216.231 km/h) 2. M. Schumacher (Ferrari) + 33"646 3. Barrichello (Ferrari) a 59"280 4. Montoya (Williams-BMW) + 1'08"772 5. Räikkönen (Sauber-Ferrari) + 1 lap 6. Heidfeld (Sauber-Ferrari) + 1 lap 7. Frentzen (Jordan-Honda) + 1 lap 8. Villeneuve (Bar-Honda) + 1 lap 9. Irvine (Jaguar-Ford) + 1 lap 10. Verstappen (Arrows-Asiatech) + 2 laps 11. Alesi (Prost-Ferrari) + 2 laps 12. De la Rosa (Jaguar-Ford) + 2 laps 13. Fisichella (Benetton-Renault) + 2 laps 14. Bernoldi (Arrows-Asiatech) + 2 laps 15. Button (Benetton-Renault) + 2 laps 16. Alonso (Minardi-European) + 3 laps

14 July 2001 M. Schumacher took pole position (the 40th in his career) for the British GP in today's qualifying session. Häkkinen, who is keen to prove that he is not past it, clocked the second fastest time and will share the front row with the German. Title contender Coulthard on the second McLaren will start from the second row alongside Trulli. Frentzen and Barrichello will be on the third row. Due to the weather conditions nobody went out for the first 25 minutes, waiting for the track to dry out. Tarso Marques failed to qualify by finishing outside the 107% time.

The British GP qualifying times:

1. M.SCHUMACHER (Ferrari) 1'20"447 (average 230.060 Km/h) 2. HAKKINEN (McLaren-Mercedes) 1'20"529 3. COULTHARD (McLaren-Mercedes) 1'20"927 4. TRULLI (Jordan-Honda) 1'20"930 5. FRENTZEN (Jordan-Honda) 1'21"217 6. BARRICHELLO (Ferrari) 1'21"715 7. RAIKKONEN (Sauber-Ferrari) 1'22"023 8. MONTOYA (Williams-BMW) 1'22"219 9. HEIDFELD (Sauber-Ferrari) 1'22"223 10. R.SCHUMACHER (Williams-BMW) 1'22"283 11. PANIS (Bar-Honda) 1'22"316 12. VILLENEUVE (Bar-Honda) 1'22"916 13. DE LA ROSA (Jaguar-Ford) 1'23"273 14. ALESI (Prost-Ferrari) 1'23"392 15. IRVINE (Jaguar-Ford) 1'23"439 16. BURTI (Prost-Ferrari) 1'23"735 17. VERSTAPPEN (Arrows- Asiatech) 1'24"067 18. BUTTON (Benetton-Renault) 1'24"123 19. FISICHELLA (Benetton-Renault) 1'24"275 20. BERNOLDI (Arrows-Asiatech) 1'24"606 21. ALONSO (Minardi-European) 1'24"792 22. MARQUES (Minardi-European) 1'26"506

13 July 2001 Despite his earlier statements that he runs to win, Häkkinen has said that since his chances in the current World Championship are very small (he is 69 points behind the leader with a maximum of 70 points left), he will put himself at the disposal of the team, if it is required. This means that he will follow team orders and help team mate Coulthard, should he be told to do so. The Finn then repeated once more that the rumours that he is planning to leave Formula 1 at the end of the season are untrue.

13 July 2001 McLaren came back with a vengeance in second hour of the British GP free practice session. Häkkinen, who recently said that he wants to become the top driver again, beat team mate Coulthard to the fastest time, while Ferrari's Barrichello and M. Schumacher had to settle for the third and fourth places. Frentzen managed the fifth best time ahead of Heidfeld. The Williams suffered from set-up problems all day and did not shine as they have done recently.

The British GP final free practice times:

1. HAKKINEN (McLaren-Mercedes) 1'22"827 (average 223.449 Km/h) 2. COULTHARD (McLaren-Mercedes) 1'22"894 3. BARRICHELLO (Ferrari) 1'23"578 4. M.SCHUMACHER (Ferrari) 1'23"619 5. FRENTZEN (Jordan-Honda) 1'23"877 6. HEIDFELD (Sauber-Ferrari) 1'24"096 7. DE LA ROSA (Jaguar-Ford) 1'24"116 8. R.SCHUMACHER (Williams-BMW) 1'24"222 9. TRULLI (Jordan-Honda) 1'24"343 10. RAIKKONEN (Sauber-Ferrari) 1'24"387 11. VILLENEUVE (Bar-Honda) 1'24"436 12. PANIS (Bar-Honda) 1'24"562 13. IRVINE (Jaguar-Ford) 1'24"733 14. ALESI (Prost-Ferrari) 1'24"832 15. VERSTAPPEN (Arrows-Asiatech) 1'25"026 16. BERNOLDI (Arrows-Asiatech) 1'25"209 17. MONTOYA (Williams-BMW) 1'25"267 18. BURTI (Prost-Ferrari) 1'25"448 19. BUTTON (Benetton-Renault) 1'25"673 20. ALONSO (Minardi-European) 1'26"695 21. FISICHELLA (Benetton-Renault) 1'26"730 22. MARQUES (Minardi-European) 1'27"203

13 July 2001 M. Schumacher clocked the fastest lap time in the British GP first free practice session at Silverstone. Rubens Barrichello clocked the second fastest lap time, while McLaren took the third and fourth times with Häkkinen and Coulthard. Frentzen clocked the fifth best time and Irvine the sixth.

The British GP first free practice times:

1. M.SCHUMACHER (Ferrari) 1'23"619 (average 221.332 Km/h) 2. BARRICHELLO (Ferrari) 1'24"405 3. HAKKINEN (McLaren-Mercedes) 1'24"413 4. COULTHARD (McLaren-Mercedes) 1'24"430 5. FRENTZEN (Jordan-Honda) 1'25"234 6. IRVINE (Jaguar-Ford) 1'25"572 7. PANIS (Bar-Honda) 1'25"617 8. VILLENEUVE (Bar-Honda) 1'25"627 9. TRULLI (Jordan-Honda) 1'25"908 10. RAIKKONEN (Sauber-Ferrari) 1'25"923 11. R.SCHUMACHER (Williams-BMW) 1'26"168 12. HEIDFELD (Sauber-Ferrari) 1'26"324 13. MONTOYA (Williams-BMW) 1'26"663 14. VERSTAPPEN (Arrows-Asiatech) 1'26"809 15. ALESI (Prost-Ferrari) 1'26"814 16. BERNOLDI (Arrows-Asiatec) 1'27"212 17. BURTI (Prost-Ferrari) 1'27"311 18. BUTTON (Benetton-Renault) 1'27"857 19. FISICHELLA (Benetton-Renault) 1'28"213 20. ALONSO (Minardi-European) 1'28"541 21. MARQUES (Minardi-European) 1'29"850 22. DE LA ROSA (Jaguar-Ford) no time

12 July 2001 After Haug and Rosberg's comments, Häkkinen himself has spoken out about the speculations on his future. The Finn released an official statement saying that the rumours started because he took some relaxing time off and that his aim is to win as many races as possible, starting from Silverstone. Häkkinen's long term goal is to become the top driver again.

11 July 2001 Finn Kimi Räikkönen said he is sure that one day he will drive for Ferrari. For him, he added, it is a goal comparable to winning a Championship. Räikkönen currently has a three year contract with Sauber.

11 July 2001 European Minardi will launch a bicycle line, produced by the Italian company Turro. The bikes collection, that includes the "Push Road" montain bike, the "Paddock Limited" racing bike (of which only 300 specimen are to be produced), the "Chicane" extralight racing bike and the "Traction Control" and "24 Hours" cross country bikes, will be presented next weekend at Silverstone.

10 July 2001 British financial company HSBC will continue sponsoring the Jaguar team until the end of the 2004 season.

10 July 2001 Norbert Haug of McLaren has denied that twice World Champion Mika Häkkinen is planning to leave McLaren and Formula 1. Häkkinen's personal manager, Keke Rosberg, also confirmed that the Finn has a contract with McLaren for the 2002 season.

9 July 2001 According to the German press Mika Häkkinen is planning to retire from Formula 1 at the end of the current season. His place is supposed to be taken by test driver Olivier Panis.

8 July 2001 Arrows is expected to announce that the team will use the same Ford engines as Jaguar next season. The announcement is expected next weekend after the first practice session for the British GP.

4 July 2001 Autosport reported that a proposal has been put forward for Malaysia to host the first ever Formula 1 GP to be run at night at Sepang.

1 July 2001 M. Schumacher won the French GP ahead of brother Ralf, team mate Barrichello, Coulthard, Trulli and Heidfeld. Mika Häkkinen did not even start the race after problems with his car on the formation grid.

The French GP finishing times:

1 Michael Schumacher Ferrari 1h33m35.636s 2 Ralf Schumacher Williams BMW +10.399s 3 Rubens Barrichello Ferrari +16.381s 4 David Coulthard McLaren Mercedes +17.106s 5 Jarno Trulli Jordan Honda +1m08.285s 6 Nick Heidfeld Sauber Petronas +1 lap 7 Kimi Räikkönen Sauber Petronas +1 lap 8 Heinz-Harald Frentzen Jordan Honda +1 lap 9 Olivier Panis BAR Honda +1 lap 10 Luciano Burti Prost Acer +1 lap 11 Giancarlo Fisichella Benetton Renault +1 lap 12 Jean Alesi Prost Acer +2 laps 13 Jos Verstappen Arrows Asiatech +2 laps 14 Pedro de la Rosa Jaguar +2 laps 15 Tarso Marques European Minardi +3 laps 16 Jenson Button Benetton Renault +4 laps 17 Fernando Alonso European Minardi +7 laps 18 Eddie Irvine Jaguar +18 laps 19 Juan Pablo Montoya Williams BMW +20 laps 20 Enrique Bernoldi Arrows Asiatech +55 laps 21 Jacques Villeneuve BAR Honda +67 laps 22 Mika Häkkinen McLaren Mercedes +72 laps

Last updated on by Federica Massagrande