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Sunday, 7 May, 2000, 18:10 GMT 19:10 UK
Hakkinen's day as Ferrari falter
![]() Nigel Stepney is injured as Schumacher sets off
Mika Hakkinen won a dramatic Spanish Grand Prix on a bad day for Ferrari and Michael Schumacher.
The Finn led home team-mate and air crash survivor David Coulthard in second place. Schumacher lost crucial time due to an injury to his fuel refilling mechanic.
The incident appeared to be the fault of the team's "lollipop man" who told Schumacher to set off before the pipe had been detached.
The German finished fifth, with young Briton Jenson Button suffering a final lap engine failure while in sixth place.
Ferrari's Rubens Barrichello was third ahead of Schumacher's younger brother Ralf. The start was a triumph for the Schumacher brothers, with pole position-holder Michael holding off Mika Hakkinen down the straight into the first corner. Meanwhile Ralf surged from fifth place on the grid to join the leaders. The younger brother, in his Williams, passed Coulthard and Barrichello, and even challenged Hakkinen as the Finn himself tried to take the lead.
And Hakkinen forced Ralf to brake in the s-shaped bend which provides a right start to the Barcelona circuit. Behind them was a frustrated Coulthard and Barrichello - who lost two places in the start.
Former world champion Jacques Villeneuve was sixth but later stopped with a fire in his car.
Hakkinen stayed close to leader Schumacher and closed right up behind the German due to traffic. The leader made his first pit stop ahead of Hakkinen, leading to Stepney's injury. Ferrari were so keen to get the German back out again that the mechanic with the stop-go "lollipop" allowed him to leave before the fuel hose was disconnected.
As the German accelerated away his car hit Stepney, leaving the fuel man requiring medical attention.
The speed of the stop did mean that Schumacher stayed ahead when Hakkinen stopped two laps later. But it also led to the problems during the German's second stop, with the man standing in for Stepney failing to get the fuel in quickly enough, with Hakkinen gaining a 10 second lead as a result. And after the decisive pit moment of the race, came its best overtaking manoeuvre and then the finest piece of teamwork on show all afternoon - from Ferrari. As in Britain two weeks ago the overtaking move was Coulthard's, with the Scot benefitting from Michael Schumacher's next problem. Tyre trouble led to Coulthard closing up and then steaming around the outside of the German at the end of one lap to take second place.
Before too long Ralf Schumacher was right behind his brother with Barrichello behind.
The two German siblings showed tremendous rivalry as they went into a series of corners side-by-side and Michael forced Ralf to run wide and leave a gap for Barrichello to surge through. With a good team job done at the expense of his brother Schumacher stopped a third pit time - without serious incident this time - and held fifth place until the end. Button suffered final disappointment when his engine blew within sight of another championship point, handing sixth place to Heinz-Harald Frentzen. Results
1. Mika Hakkinen (Finland) McLaren one hour 33 minutes
55.390 seconds (average speed 196.324 kph) Not classified (Did not finish)
Jos Verstappen (Netherlands) Arrows 25 laps completed Did not start (failed to complete first lap) Pedro Diniz (Brazil) Sauber |
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See also:
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