1998 Japanese Grand Prix

Championship standings

Heading into the final race at Suzuka, Häkkinen leads the Drivers’ Championship with 90 points. Schumacher is second on 86. Coulthard is third with 52 points in the other McLaren, and Irvine fourth with 41 points in the second Ferrari.

In the Constructors’ Championship, McLaren lead with 142 points and Ferrari are second with 127. A maximum of 16 points is available — Ferrari need a one-two finish with both McLarens outside the points to take the title; if the two teams finish level, McLaren win on countback.

Championship permutations

Häkkinen only needs second place to become World Champion even if Schumacher wins: both drivers would be tied on points and victories, but Häkkinen would take the title by virtue of having finished second three times to Schumacher’s two.

Previous race

At the Nürburgring, Häkkinen beat Schumacher in a straight fight for the first time in weeks. Ferrari locked out the front row and Irvine took the lead at the start, but let Schumacher through at the end of the first lap and then held up Häkkinen. The Finn passed Irvine on lap 14 and gradually closed on Schumacher. After their respective pit stops, Häkkinen emerged just ahead and held on under pressure through the second stint. He extended his lead in the closing laps to win by 2.2 seconds, taking a four-point advantage into Japan.

Between-race developments

After this race, Goodyear leaves Formula One. The American tyre manufacturer has been competing in the sport since the 1960s and was the sole supplier for several seasons. Bridgestone becomes the single tyre supplier for 1999.

Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo has placed Schumacher under strict orders not to repeat the kind of controversial incidents that decided the 1994 and 1997 championships. During the five-week break since Luxembourg, Ferrari concentrated testing at their Mugello facility, while McLaren tested at the Circuit de Catalunya alongside Benetton, Prost, Arrows, and Stewart. New 1999 entrants BAR and Jordan tested at Silverstone.

Milestones

This is the final race for the Tyrrell team, who will be rebranded as British American Racing for the 1999 season.

Practice

In Friday practice, Schumacher set the fastest time with a 1:39.823. Ralf Schumacher was two-tenths behind in second and Frentzen third. Häkkinen was fifth and Coulthard sixth. Irvine was fourth fastest.