The Arrows A18 was the car with which the Arrows Formula One team competed in the 1997 Formula One World Championship . It was driven by Briton Damon Hill , the reigning World Champion who had made the surprising move to the team after being dropped by Williams , and Brazilian Pedro Diniz , who had moved from Ligier .
59-740: This was the last Formula One car powered by Yamaha engines after the manufacturer's decision to withdraw from the sport at the end of the season. The A18 was launched in January 1997. 1997 marked a new beginning for the team, with two new drivers, a new engine supplier in Yamaha with the engines tuned by John Judd and new tyres supplied by Bridgestone , supplied under an exclusive deal. The team moved from old premises in Milton Keynes to TWR's purpose-built factory in Leafield. The year also marked
118-507: A Benetton and Michael Schumacher third in a Ferrari. Despite suffering a bout of food poisoning, Damon Hill made it three wins out of three at the Argentine Grand Prix , with Jacques Villeneuve helping Williams to their second one-two of the season. Jos Verstappen scored his only point of the season, while Andrea Montermini registered his only finish of the season. Pedro Diniz was involved in two major incidents during
177-428: A Formula One racing seat for 1997. Badoer moved into FIA GT, while Montermini became a test driver for Lola. Badoer would eventually return to F1 in 1999 with Minardi. The following seventeen Grands Prix took place in 1997. Except for a more detailed description of the impact absorbing structures at the front and rear of the car, there were no changes for the 1997 season. A revised Concorde agreement , laying out
236-455: A McLaren. Drivers' Championship leader, Damon Hill, finished fifth. The Italian Grand Prix was won by Michael Schumacher, giving Ferrari their first victory at Monza since 1988. Jean Alesi finished second in a Benetton, with Mika Häkkinen third. Damon Hill took pole position and led until he made an error and spun off on lap 6, while his teammate and main championship rival, Jacques Villeneuve, could only manage seventh. The penultimate race of
295-464: A minute. Villeneuve dropped down to 16th place and only recovered to fifth. Schumacher won and saw Giancarlo Fisichella and Heinz-Harald Frentzen next to him on the podium. Alesi scored his first and only pole position of the season in Italy , with Frentzen starting second. Villeneuve and Schumacher took off in fourth and ninth, respectively. Coulthard, who started in sixth, got up to third position at
354-571: A poor start to the race and later retired when a wheel fell off his car. The race was won by Damon Hill for his eighth victory of the season, securing the Drivers' Championship in the process. Michael Schumacher finished second in a Ferrari, enabling the Italian team to steal second place in the Constructors' Championship from Benetton, with Mika Häkkinen finishing third in a McLaren. Hill became
413-516: A race. Olivier Panis took the only victory of his career at the Monaco Grand Prix . This was the last championship for a British driver until Lewis Hamilton in 2008 . The numbering system used since 1974 was dropped. Ferrari was given the numbers 1 and 2 after hiring the defending champion Michael Schumacher, despite finishing the previous year's Constructors' Championship in third, Benetton received numbers 3 and 4 for winning
472-462: A simple and basic chassis design. Damon Hill stated in his autobiography that the car was good to drive but lacked downforce. Hill scored a point at Silverstone , but the highlight of the year came at the Hungarian GP , where he qualified third and led for most of the race. The failure of a throttle linkage component saw him drop behind Jacques Villeneuve on the final lap, although second place
531-424: A spin off the track in the closing stages of the race. Jos Verstappen, running fifth after the retirements of Barrichello and Berger, crashed into the tyre barrier with 12 laps left, guaranteeing Diniz his first Formula One point as by this time only six drivers were left in the race. Damon Hill had started the race from pole position, but dropped to 8th after spinning twice in the opening laps, before another spin into
590-528: Is generally regarded as one of the German's finest races. In torrential rain, he produced a stunning drive, helping him to earn the nickname "the Rainmaster". Schumacher recovered from a poor start to take the lead from Villeneuve on lap 13, and from then on he dominated the race, frequently lapping over three seconds faster than the remainder of the field. Jean Alesi finished second, more than 45 seconds behind
649-459: The 1995 Australian Grand Prix . Jordan 's Rubens Barrichello took fourth, equalling his best finish of the season. The final points went to David Coulthard in the second McLaren and Martin Brundle in the second Jordan. Hill took pole position for his home race, but made a slow start and retired shortly before half distance, after a wheel nut problem caused him to spin off at Copse Corner while he
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#1732780381095708-576: The CART series in 1996 . Verstappen, moving from Arrows to Tyrrell, replaced Ukyo Katayama , who found a place at Minardi. Katayama replaced Pedro Lamy , who moved into the FIA GT Championship . Alongside him, Italian rising star Jarno Trulli filled the final seat in the 1997 championship. The Italian team Forti ceased to exist midway through 1996 , and neither of their drivers, Luca Badoer and Andrea Montermini , were able to find
767-585: The Tyrrell and Lola team, respectively. Rosset was joined by Benetton 's test driver Vincenzo Sospiri . Reliant on their Japanese engine partners Mugen-Honda , Japanese driver Shinji Nakano joined Prost besides Olivier Panis , who was retained from 1996 . Thanks in part to the technical deal between Sauber and Ferrari , Ferrari test driver Nicola Larini signed with Sauber. Larini replaced Frentzen, who had moved to Williams. Jordan signed debutant Ralf Schumacher , Michael's younger brother. He
826-417: The Constructors' Championship, Williams got numbers 5 and 6 for finishing second, McLaren got 7 and 8 for finishing fourth, Ligier got 9 and 10 for finishing fifth, and so on, with the number 13 being skipped. The following teams and drivers competed in the 1996 FIA Formula One World Championship. All teams competed with tyres supplied by Goodyear . The 1996 FIA Formula One World Championship comprised
885-410: The Drivers' Championship two years after being beaten by a point by Michael Schumacher , making him the first son of a World Champion (his father Graham having won the title in 1962 and 1968 ) to have won the title himself as well as the only until Nico Rosberg , son of 1982 champion Keke Rosberg , won the title 34 years later in 2016 . Hill, who had finished runner-up for the past two seasons,
944-534: The Drivers' Championship, Frentzen moved up to second, six points ahead of both Coulthard and Alesi. Points were awarded to the top six finishers in each race as follows: Notes: Notes: 1996 Formula One season The 1996 FIA Formula One World Championship was the 50th season of FIA Formula One motor racing. The championship commenced on 10 March and ended on 13 October after sixteen races. Two World Championship titles were awarded, one for Drivers and one for Constructors. Damon Hill won
1003-430: The Drivers' Championship. The European Grand Prix at Jerez saw a noteworthy qualifying session in which three drivers (Villeneuve, Schumacher, and Frentzen) all set the same fastest time. Villeneuve was awarded pole position, since he had set the time first, and this would be the final pole of his F1 career. At the start of the race, Schumacher got away well, overtaking Villeneuve to take the lead. By lap 48, Villeneuve
1062-467: The Ligier team, and the first ever for engine manufacturer Mugen Motorsports, after he made the switch onto slick tyres in a well-timed pitstop. David Coulthard was second, nearly five seconds behind Panis. Johnny Herbert scored his only points of the season, finishing third in a Sauber , more than half a minute behind Coulthard. The Spanish Grand Prix saw Michael Schumacher's first Ferrari victory, and
1121-544: The Nürburgring in Germany was won by Jacques Villeneuve for his first F1 victory in only his fourth race. Michael Schumacher finished second, with David Coulthard third in a McLaren , just ahead of Hill. The San Marino Grand Prix was won by Damon Hill after starting from second position. Michael Schumacher again finished second, despite his front-right brake seizing halfway around the final lap, while Gerhard Berger
1180-563: The Williams and teammate Irvine next to him. Villeneuve earned his sixth pole position of the season in Britain , with teammate Frentzen partnering him on the front row. Villeneuve saw Mika Häkkinen take the lead when he was stuck in the pit lane for half a minute. Häkkinen, however, retired with a blown engine and Villeneuve went on to win the race, with Alesi in second and Alexander Wurz , filling in for Gerhard Berger , coming third. It
1239-458: The beginning of the 1997 season was Damon Hill , 1996 champion, being dropped by Williams in favour of Heinz-Harald Frentzen . Hill was partnered with Brazilian Pedro Diniz , signed from Ligier . This was the only time in Arrows' history that the team had the number 1 on their car after signing the reigning World Champion. Arrows' former drivers Jos Verstappen and Ricardo Rosset joined
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#17327803810951298-462: The conclusion of the season, with engine manufacturer Renault also leaving after 1997. Two-time defending world champion Michael Schumacher had moved to Ferrari and despite numerous reliability problems, they had gradually developed into a front-running team by the end of the season. Defending Constructors' Champion Benetton began their decline towards the middle of the grid, having lost key personnel due to Schumacher's departure, and failed to win
1357-479: The final race. Schumacher came to a halt in the gravel while Villeneuve finished third, giving him enough points to secure the drivers' championship . Schumacher was later deemed at fault for the accident by the FIA. He kept his five race wins, but was stripped of all his points for the season, promoting Villeneuve's Williams teammate Heinz-Harald Frentzen to second in the championship. The Constructors' Championship
1416-539: The first full season for Tom Walkinshaw 's outfit TWR in running the team, as the Scotsman had bought it from one of its founders, Jackie Oliver during 1996 . After a disastrous start to the season which saw the cars almost fail to make the grid in Australia , the team improved, hiring John Barnard as Technical Director. The A18 was proven to be woefully unreliable, despite Walkinshaw's claims that he had wanted
1475-559: The first son of a World Champion to win the championship himself, his father Graham having twice been champion, in 1962 and 1968. Points are awarded to the top six classified finishers in each race for the drivers and constructors championships. Notes: Notes: The 1996 season also included a single event which did not count towards the World Championship, the Formula One Indoor Trophy at
1534-510: The following races: Damon Hill won the season opener in Australia from his Williams teammate Jacques Villeneuve , with Ferrari's Eddie Irvine finishing third. Villeneuve was leading but late on in the race the team found out that Villeneuve had an oil leak and ordered him to swap places with teammate Hill. The Brazilian Grand Prix took place in heavy rain, and was won from pole position by Damon Hill, with Jean Alesi second in
1593-466: The lead and he made several attempts to pass, but failed and had to settle for second. Debutant Ralf Schumacher managed to get onto the podium in third place. Villeneuve continued his run of consecutive pole positions in San Marino , but it was his German teammate Frentzen that won his first and only Grand Prix for Williams. After Villeneuve retired with a gearbox failure, Frentzen was joined on
1652-535: The lead but, like it happened at Silverstone , had to retire with a blown engine. Schumacher had again started in ninth, but recovered to third during the race. However, he was handed a stop-go penalty for overtaking under yellow flags and fell down to sixth at the finish. Villeneuve went on to win the Grand Prix, with Coulthard and Frentzen joining him on the podium. The gap between the championship rivals had now closed up to just one point. Frentzen (31 points)
1711-487: The lead until the last part of the race, when he reported that problems with his car. On the final lap, Jacques Villeneuve took the lead, achieving a milestone 100th Grand Prix victory for Williams. After two very exciting Grands Prix, the fans' hopes were high for Belgium . Villeneuve took pole position, with Alesi in the Benetton behind him and his championship rival, Michael Schumacher, in third. Villeneuve had dominated
1770-594: The morning warm-up, held in hot, dry weather. But when heavy rain fell with half an hour to go before the race start, his championship rival, Michael Schumacher, decided to run his spare car, which was set up for wet conditions. The front two started the race on full-wet tyres , while the rest of the grid used the intermediates . This turned out to be the right call. After the first safety car start in Formula One history, Schumacher overtook Alesi and Villeneuve within two laps and by lap 12, his lead had stretched to over
1829-471: The only 1-2 finish by a team during the 1997 season. After the race, Schumacher was deemed by the FIA to have caused an avoidable accident and was disqualified from the championship, although his race results (grid positions, finishing positions, points) were held up. This meant no damage to Ferrari's constructor points, but Williams still won the 1997 Constructors' Championship with a difference of 21 points. In
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1888-516: The order and McLaren looked set for a 1–2 finish, until both cars broke down in quick succession. Williams ' Jacques Villeneuve was therefore gifted a win (which would end up to be the last of his career). For the first time since Spain , Villeneuve now had the lead in the championship. Jean Alesi and Heinz-Harald Frentzen completed the podium, making it, for the second time in the 1997 season, an all- Renault -powered podium. Villeneuve continued his strong form by taking his eighth pole position in
1947-653: The other Williams, and Jean Alesi again third for the Benetton team. This was the last Grand Prix where a Forti car started the race (two weeks later the team would fail to qualify for the British Grand Prix, the final Formula One event they would enter), however both cars were forced to retire. Jacques Villeneuve took his second win of the season at the British Grand Prix , with Benetton's Gerhard Berger second and McLaren's Mika Häkkinen coming home third for his first podium since his near-fatal crash at
2006-517: The pit wall on lap 12 ended his race. The Canadian Grand Prix was won from pole position by Damon Hill, with home driver Jacques Villeneuve second, and Frenchman Jean Alesi third. The second half of the season began with the French Grand Prix at Magny-Cours. Michael Schumacher qualified in pole position but his engine blew on the warm-up lap and he did not start. The race was won by Damon Hill, with Jacques Villeneuve finishing second in
2065-524: The podium by the Ferraris of Schumacher and Irvine. At this point, Villeneuve was on top of the standings with 20 points. He was followed by Schumacher with 14 and five drivers in a shared third place, all with 10 points. Heinz-Harald Frentzen managed to end Jacques Villeneuve 's run of pole positions at the Monaco Grand Prix . For the second time in successive seasons, the race was run in very wet conditions. Michael Schumacher won his first race of
2124-580: The race was restarted, and the Canadian took the lead on lap 49 from Gerhard Berger . The Austrian finished second and Olivier Panis continued his impressive form from 1996 with third place. For the third time in a row, Jacques Villeneuve took pole position in Argentina . This time, it was Michael Schumacher who was out at the first turn, when he collided with Rubens Barrichello . Schumacher's teammate Eddie Irvine went on to challenge Villeneuve for
2183-429: The race, until his engine failed with three laps remaining. Berger's teammate Jean Alesi was second and Jacques Villeneuve was third. The win meant Hill extended his lead over Villeneuve in the Drivers' Championship to 21 points with five races remaining. The Hungarian Grand Prix was won by Jacques Villeneuve after starting from third position. Villeneuve's teammate Damon Hill finished second, with Jean Alesi third. This
2242-498: The race, with fellow French-speaking drivers, Olivier Panis and Jean Alesi , coming second and third respectively. Panis was actually closing on the leader with rapid pace, but got held up by Irvine, which got him served a stop-go penalty . In a slight shift of power, Michael Schumacher took pole position and the race win in the next two Grands Prix. In Canada , he was joined on the podium by Benetton 's Jean Alesi and Jordan 's Giancarlo Fisichella . In France , he saw Frentzen in
2301-424: The race. First he collided with Luca Badoer , whose Forti was flipped and landed upside down in the gravel, forcing the marshals to bring out the safety car. Diniz managed to continue and made a pit stop as the safety car was preparing to pull in, only to retire when he came back onto the circuit and his Ligier burst into flames because a safety-valve in the fuel tank had jammed open. The European Grand Prix at
2360-480: The rules for the 1997 to 2001 seasons, was signed by the FIA and eight of the eleven F1 teams that participated in the 1996 season. These were some of the changes made to the sporting regulations: From this season on, the regulations gave room for starts behind the Safety Car if the track was wet. The season started in Australia , with Canadian Jacques Villeneuve taking the first pole position of
2419-498: The season was the Portuguese Grand Prix . Williams's Jacques Villeneuve won from teammate Damon Hill in second and Ferrari's Michael Schumacher in third. This victory, Villeneuve's fourth of the season, ensured that the Drivers' Championship battle between him and Hill would go to the final round. Benetton's Jean Alesi finished fourth, just behind Schumacher, while Eddie Irvine in the second Ferrari and Gerhard Berger in
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2478-431: The season. Rubens Barrichello came home in second and gave Stewart not only their first podium finish, but their first points finish and their first finish of any kind. Schumacher's teammate Eddie Irvine took the final step on the podium for the second time in a row. In Spain , Williams was back on top in qualifying : Villeneuve took his fifth pole and Frentzen joined him on the front row. Villeneuve went on to win
2537-485: The season. The moment was short-lived, however, as Villeneuve was out of the race at the first corner, when he collided with Johnny Herbert . McLaren 's David Coulthard went on to win the race, the second of his career, with Michael Schumacher finishing second and Mika Häkkinen finishing in third place. Villeneuve once again took pole position in Brazil , and once again he was off at the first corner. Luckily for him,
2596-415: The second Benetton survived a last-lap collision to take fifth and sixth respectively. The 1996 season concluded with the title-deciding Japanese Grand Prix on 13 October. Before the event, Hill was leading the Drivers' Championship standings, with teammate Villeneuve needing to win the race without Hill scoring in order to win the championship himself. In qualifying, Villeneuve took pole position, but made
2655-399: The start and moved into the lead during the pit stops . He scored his second win of the season, ahead of Alesi and Frentzen. This was the only race in the year without Villeneuve and Schumacher on the podium. In Austria , Villeneuve managed to get his seventh pole position of the season. The Canadian was partnered on the front row by Finnish driver Mika Häkkinen . Häkkinen actually took
2714-399: The winner, with Jacques Villeneuve third. Rubens Barrichello , who was running in second place after Jacques Villeneuve and Alesi made their pit stops, put in a strong performance in this race, but was forced to retire due to a clutch problem with 20 laps remaining. After an uneventful race on his part, Heinz-Harald Frentzen finished in fourth, while Mika Häkkinen took fifth after surviving
2773-495: The year in Japan . However, during qualifying , he was deemed to have ignored the yellow flags. A disqualification hang over him and with his appeal being judged, he started the race and finished fifth. Michael Schumacher won the race, ahead of Williams ' Frentzen and Ferrari teammate Eddie Irvine . Williams dropped their appeal after the race, leaving Japan with no points for Villeneuve and seeing Schumacher again one point ahead in
2832-495: Was Williams's fifth 1–2 finish of the season, and it secured their fourth Constructors' Championship in five years. The Belgian Grand Prix saw Michael Schumacher take victory, driving a Ferrari. Schumacher had crashed heavily in Friday practice, but recovered to qualify third before taking his second win of the season. Jacques Villeneuve, who had started from pole position, finished second in his Williams, with Mika Häkkinen third in
2891-735: Was an all- Renault -powered podium. Schumacher failed to complete the race after he retired with a wheel bearing problem. In the championship, Schumacher had the lead with 47 points, closely followed by Villeneuve with 43. Third place was being contested by Alesi (21 points) , Frentzen (19) and Irvine (18). On his return, Gerhard Berger managed to get pole for the German Grand Prix . Fastest lap and race victory followed, which would ultimately be Berger's and Benetton 's final win. Championship leader Michael Schumacher came second and Mika Häkkinen came third. The next race, in Hungary ,
2950-459: Was awarded to Williams - Renault . As of 2024, this is the last championship for a non- European driver, the last Constructors' and Drivers' championships for Williams , and the last championship won on Goodyear tyres. It was also the last championship for a Renault -powered driver, until Fernando Alonso 's championship in 2005 . The following teams and drivers competed in the 1997 FIA Formula One World Championship. The biggest news at
3009-670: Was catching up and attempted to overtake. Braking later than the German at the Dry Sac corner, he had the inside line and was slightly ahead. Schumacher then turned into him and the Ferrari's front right wheel connected with the sidepod of the Williams. Schumacher retired on the spot. Villeneuve dropped to third, but it earned him four points, enough to take the 1997 Drivers' Championship. Mika Häkkinen went on to take his first ever career victory and with Coulthard finishing second, McLaren scored
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#17327803810953068-627: Was fighting Coulthard (30) and Alesi (28) over third place. At the Luxembourg Grand Prix , held at the Nürburgring in Germany , Mika Häkkinen managed to earn pole. It was his first career pole, McLaren 's first pole since 1993 and Mercedes 's first since their return to Formula One in 1994 . Ferrari 's Michael Schumacher started in fifth, but was taken out at the first corner. Häkkinen's teammate David Coulthard shot up
3127-631: Was one of the most memorable races in the 1997 season. Schumacher took pole, with Villeneuve partnering him on the front row. 1996 champion Damon Hill in the Arrows had only qualified as high as ninth this season, but got up to third place on the Hungaroring . The start of the race saw Hill overtake the Williams ahead of him, and on lap ten, the Brit overtook the leading Scuderia Ferrari . Hill kept
3186-522: Was rumoured to be partnered with Nigel Mansell , but the 1992 champion rejected the offer. So the team went for Giancarlo Fisichella , who drove his first races for Minardi in 1996 . Jordan's former driver Rubens Barrichello moved to newcomer Stewart Grand Prix , with his 1996 ex-teammate Martin Brundle unable to find a seat for 1997 and reluctantly leaving the sport as a driver. Stewart also signed Jan Magnussen , who had filled in at McLaren for an unwell Mika Häkkinen in 1995 and had raced in
3245-441: Was seriously threatened only by his teammate, newcomer Jacques Villeneuve , the 1995 IndyCar and Indianapolis 500 champion. Williams - Renault easily won the Constructors' title, as there was no other competitor strong enough to post a consistent challenge throughout the championship. This was also the beginning of the end of Williams's 1990s dominance, as it was announced that Hill and designer Adrian Newey would depart at
3304-430: Was still a great success for the team. Diniz also scored two points at the Nürburgring . The team eventually finished eighth in the Constructors' Championship, with nine points. ( key ) (results in bold indicate pole position) This Formula One –related article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . 1997 Formula One World Championship The 1997 FIA Formula One World Championship
3363-498: Was the 51st season of FIA Formula One motor racing. It featured the 1997 Formula One World Championship for Drivers and the 1997 Formula One World Championship for Constructors, which were contested concurrently over a seventeen-race series that commenced on 9 March and ended on 26 October. The Drivers' Championship was won by Jacques Villeneuve under controversial circumstances: championship leader Michael Schumacher deliberately rammed him whilst trying to defend his race lead in
3422-408: Was third, driving for the Benetton team. Jacques Villeneuve retired near the end of the race after being hit by Jean Alesi. Round six at Monaco was run in wet weather, causing significant attrition and setting a record for the fewest cars (three) to be running at the end of a Grand Prix. Olivier Panis scored what would be his sole career Formula One victory, earning the last Formula One victory for
3481-410: Was trying to pass Häkkinen. For the third consecutive race, Ferrari drivers Michael Schumacher and Eddie Irvine were both forced to retire with technical issues. The German Grand Prix at Hockenheim was won by Damon Hill, taking his seventh victory of the season after he started from pole position. Austrian driver Gerhard Berger started alongside Hill on the front row in his Benetton and led for much of
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