1997 European Grand Prix
The 1997 European Grand Prix (formally the XLII European Grand Prix) was a Formula One motor race held on 26 October 1997 at the Circuito Permanente de Jerez, Spain. Originally scheduled as the Portuguese Grand Prix at the Estoril circuit, it was moved when Estoril's management had financial difficulties. It was the 17th and final race of the 1997 FIA Formula One World Championship. The 69-lap race was won by Mika Häkkinen in a McLaren, his first Formula One race victory. His teammate David Coulthard finished second and Williams driver Jacques Villeneuve took third, which was sufficient for him to win the World Championship.
| 1997 European Grand Prix | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Race 17 of 17 in the 1997 Formula One World Championship
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| Race details | |||||
| Date | 26 October 1997 | ||||
| Official name | XLII European Grand Prix | ||||
| Location | Circuito Permanente de Jerez, Jerez, Spain | ||||
| Course | Permanent racing facility | ||||
| Course length | 4.428 km (2.748 miles) | ||||
| Distance | 69 laps, 305.532 km (189.612 miles) | ||||
| Weather | Sunny with temperatures reaching up to 25 °C (77 °F) | ||||
| Pole position | |||||
| Driver | Williams-Renault | ||||
| Time | 1:21.072 | ||||
| Fastest lap | |||||
| Driver | Heinz-Harald Frentzen | Williams-Renault | |||
| Time | 1:23.135 on lap 30 (lap record) | ||||
| Podium | |||||
| First | McLaren-Mercedes | ||||
| Second | McLaren-Mercedes | ||||
| Third | Williams-Renault | ||||
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Lap leaders | |||||
Michael Schumacher, driving for Ferrari, had led the championship by a single point ahead of Villeneuve going into the race. During the race, Villeneuve and Schumacher collided while battling for the lead and the resulting damage to Schumacher's car forced him to retire. The blame for the incident was later attributed to Schumacher by the sport's governing body, the FIA, and he was stripped of his second-place finish in the championship. Schumacher's tactics were widely criticised by the media, including publications based in his home country of Germany, and in Ferrari's home country of Italy.
Following the race, Williams and McLaren were accused of colluding to decide the finishing order. Villeneuve stated that "it was better to let them through and win the World Championship". The FIA determined there was no evidence to support the claims, and dismissed the accusations. This is the last World Championship Grand Prix to be held in Jerez and the last season finale to be held on the European continent to date. Häkkinen's victory was the first victory for a Finnish driver in the Formula One World Championship in 12 years since Keke Rosberg won the 1985 Australian Grand Prix.
Häkkinen and Coulthard's first and second place finishes ensured the McLaren team scored their first one-two finish since the 1991 Japanese Grand Prix. This was the last race for Gerhard Berger, who had won 10 times and had been competing in Formula One since 1984, and Ukyo Katayama. This was also the last Grand Prix until the 2009 Australian Grand Prix where slick tyres were used, as grooved tyres would be used in the sport from the start of the 1998 season until the end of the 2008 season. This race was also the only time during the 1997 season that Villeneuve stood on the podium without being the race winner, the other seven of eight podiums Villeneuve achieved that season all being wins.