THE RACE THAT GAVE US THE NAME 'WALL OF THE CHAMPIONS"

Michael Schumacher was one of the three world champions to crash the wall, thereby got its name "Wall of the champions"

Hitting the wall! There is a huge difference using that term in running and motor racing. While it is a case of mental block in running and have all the time to get out of it, which is contrary to what happens in motor racing. In recent times, Formula One has done away with heavy banked roads, and thereby there is a decline in number of cars hitting the wall. However, there are tracks like the one in Montreal, where the 'wall' at the end of turn 13 has gained reputation for being a 'breaker' if a car hits it. Since 1978, a lot of cars have hit the wall, cars were removed or safely parked and race moved on. However, in 1999, 'the wall' got all the attention.

On that day, the wall which had 'Bievenue au Québec' (Welcome to Quebec) written on it had four hits, three of them driven by the world champions and gave birth to the term 'Wall of the champions'.

WALL OF THE CHAMPIONS

13 June 1999, sixth round of F1, Canadian Grand Prix. Michael Schumacher took his first pole position of the 1999 season. That race had four world champions - Mika Hakkinen (1999), Damon Hill (1996), Jacques Villeneuve (1997) and two-time world champion Michael Schumacher (1994 &1995). It will go down as one of the unique races in the history of Canadian Grand Prix as all four drivers made headlines though only one of them ended up finishing the race.

Prior to the 1999 race, the wall at the end of the final chicane and located opposite to the entry of the pit-lane was just another part of the track. Each year, one saw many drivers shaving their cars to the wall, just enough to avoid a crash. However, many drivers in a bid to make up time or extend a lead have crashed owing to imbalance of the car after exiting the final chicane.

FOUR HITS TO THE WALL

The race was an attrition and at the end of it, it had more number of retirements (12) than the finishers (10). On the very first lap, there were three casualties - Alexander Wurz retired due to transmission problems while Jean Alesi and Jarno Trulli collided with each other and took each other out of the race. Safety car!

Lap three, the first of the wall hitters, Ricardo Zonta, got his BAR-Supertec sideways in an awkward position which caused him to hit the wall. Zonta's car was parked next to the wall and this made the stewards to call the safety car back on the track.

The race resumed its normalcy on lap seven and there was no drama up until lap fourteen when the first of the three world champions, Damon Hill spun-off the track and hit the wall. He was not having a good season with Jordan and his woes continued as he had his third retirement out of six races. When asked about it, Hill replied - "Basically, I lost the control of the car and I hit it. There is nothing more to it, really!".

Then came the surprise, Michael Schumacher having led the race was beginning to up his pace in order to build a suitable gap as he was nearing his pit stop window. Each lap, from lap 25 was three-tenths faster than Hakkinen and with each lap, he was pushing his Ferrari really hard. On lap 29, just few metres away from starting the next lap, bang!. Schumacher lost control of his car coming out of the chicane and he was off the racing line, thereby the car was on the dirty part of the circuit, which is always slippery. The car slewed and before he could react, the car had hit the wall which wiped out his front and rear suspension. He shook his fists in frustration as he knew, he had thrown away this race! - "I lost control of the car because I went off the racing line and got on the dirt and ended up in the wall. This was clearly my mistake. I usually make one mistake a year. I hope that this incident was the last for the season".

Now that Schumacher was out of the race, this was now Hakkinen's race to lose. The first round of pit stops was not far away. While the teams and few drivers were getting ready for their fresh tyres and fuel, Jacques Villeneuve on lap 35 became the third world champion to hit the wall. Safety car for the third time on the track. "It was my mistake - I was simply going a little bit too fast. There was a lot dirt down on the track at that point, it was easy to make a mistake".

CHEQUERED FLAG UNDER SAFETY CAR FOR THE FIRST TIME

While the safety car was about to be called on-track, a lot of teams executed their pit stop and the cars were back on track without any significant changes. Lap 40, the safety car came in and within seconds, David Coulthard and Ferrari's Eddie Irvine both push each other out of the track, no damage done, and rejoin the track. All this meant, Mika Hakkinen was on his own now with no one to challenge him from the top runners. Heinz-Harald Frentzen was the last casualty of this race. He was running in second position before brakes failed and his car crashed a barrier. This incident put Giancarlo Fisichella to second place and Eddie Irvine third. With just three laps to go, safety car was called on to the track for the fourth time! In the penultimate lap, just before the final chicane, all cars had lined up behind one other. 

If safety car went in, that would have made a spectacular last lap, especially with the proximity of cars at the first and second turns and at the hair pin! Sense prevailed and safety car was not called in and race culminated with all cars finishing behind the safety car - making this the first instance of a race in Formula One completing under safety car regulations. Irony! as it was at the Canadian Grand Prix (1973), the safety car was first deployed in a F1 race.

Sixteen years hence, the circuit remains one of the most demanding for the cars and drivers. 'Wall of champions' still continues to play a significant role and it remains to be seen, if it has any impact on the outcome of this year's Canadian Grand Prix. 

Gentlemen's Agreement or Team Orders - McLaren at the 1998 Australian Grand Prix

In sporting context, one of the exciting parts of any year is the first weekend leading up to the F1 race. Like every year in the recent past, Australia is the destination that gets to host the F1 circus led by Bernie Ecclestone. A lot of incidents have engulfed the initial race - though none would have the drama which the final races are usually associated with. However, the first race often indicates what to expect and how teams are placed with their competitiveness. More than anything none can beat the excitement of a season opener.  

The year 1998 was one such scenario. The team of Mika Hakkinen and the Scot David Coulthard recorded stunning lap times in the pre-season testing and the MP4/13 was tipped to be the 'best' car on circuit. This was McLaren's year on paper and the only way it was going to be achieved is when their drivers do not take out each other in the heat of the battle.

In view of this, David Coulthard and Mika Hakkinen made a pre-race pact whereby "whichever of the two was ahead taking the turn to the first corner would be allowed to stay at number one for the rest of the Grand Prix unless there were to be any mishaps."

As predicted the two McLarens dominated the qualifying session with Mika Hakkinen taking the pole and his team mate coming in second. The fiercely fought rivals in the previous season Michael Schumacher and Jacques Villeneuve were in 3^rd and 4^th respectively. The silver-arrows duo were 0.7 seconds clear of the rest of the cars and certainly looked to be racing on another planet. Anything less than 1-2 to McLaren would have been a unhappy weekend. A first one-two pole for McLaren since Adelaide 1991 when Senna and Berger had put the two cars on the front row was anything but surprise.

The five red lights went off and race began - Mika Hakkinen ahead of Coulthard coming into turn one. Unless there were to be any incidents, the race was firmly decided in Mika's favour. With Coulthard not willing to try harder to make an attempt to pass Hakkinen, it was clear how the race would finish as per the pre-race pact. The only driver that could match Hakkinen's pace was his teammate while rest of the field were off the pace. Michael Schumacher unsuccessfully made attempts to overtake the Scotsman and eventually retired on lap six owing to engine trouble. It would have been an uphill task even if he were to be racing.

With none of the other drivers able to stay with the McLarens, it seemed like the Hakkinen and Coulthard would coast to victory without having to look at their rear-view mirrors. On lap 36 when Hakkinen was just  about to lap Eddie Irvine, he heard blurred messages on his radio. Mika chasing Eddie Irvine was close to the pit- lane entry and without thinking and confirming with the team he dashed into the pits (he was nearing his pit stop schedule). While rest of the field were going flat-out, the race leader cruising in pit lane speed limits found no mechanics in the garage and he simply drove straight on and rejoined rest of the cars. It was an misjudgement on the part of Mika.

This unplanned diversion cost Mika the lead and he was now behind his team mate by 13 seconds. On lap 41, this time Mika came in for his scheduled and final pit stop of the race. Mika known to be ice cool was anxious and in that nervous moment made an error. He dropped his clutch while one of his mechanics was working on his left rear wheel. It didn't cost much time. He came out and still was in second position - 41 seconds behind. That huge lead was short-lived as Coulthard dashed his way in for his final stop of the race. With fifteen laps to go, it was 1-2 McLaren and it was a mere formality for the rest of the race. Drivers barring McLaren duo were battling the race of attrition. By this time only nine cars out of twenty-two were on track and a lap down.

McLaren crew took some time, close to eight laps after that detour from Hakkinen to inform David Coulthard about Hakkinen losing his lead owing to a misunderstanding. 

Towards the fag end of the race, Hakkinen was racing a second quicker than Coulthard and on lap 53 he took 3 seconds out of Coulthard's lead - the next lap add another two seconds. With just three laps remaining Coulthard's car was within striking distance to Mika's. Next moment Mika takes the lead in a manner quite strange and unsatisfactory!

'It was a very difficult decision to take. But I was alone in front without any pressure, which allowed me to think about it calmly and to reach the decision that this was Mika's race by right.' This was the explanation given by Coulthard post-race when asked about this bizarre move. McLaren and David Coulthard were criticised and the matter went to World Motorsports Council. The verdict went this way - "Any future act prejudicial to the interests of the competition should be severely punished in accordance with the article 151c of the International Sporting Code."

In 2007 at the Monaco Grand Prix,  McLaren were criticised for ordering their cars not to race each other after the first round of pit stops, when it was clearly established McLaren duo of Alonso and Hamilton were much superior to the rest of the pack. To add to Hamilton's frustration, he was told not to race Alonso.

The above matter again raised the question of possible violation of article 151c. Ron Dennis defended the move by stating - "Team strategy is what you bring to bear to win a grand prix. Team orders are what you bring to bear to manipulate a grand prix. We do not and have not manipulated grands prix, unless there were some exceptional circumstances, which occurred in Australia (1998), when someone had tapped into our radio and instructed Mika Hakkinen to enter the pits." 

He went on to add - "He entered the pits and I reversed that, because that was unfair, that was an outside influence on the outcome of the race. That is one of the rare occasions that there's been a team order. I have a clear conscience, both on that particular race - and this race today."

The 1998 Australian GP was Mika Hakkinen's second victory and both times under controversial circumstances. Was it a team order or Coulthard's gentlemanly gesture? I would say it had good proportions of both. In the end, the result didn't matter - Hakkinen was much superior and went on to win his maiden World championship title.