1999 Belgian Grand Prix

Championship standings

Irvine leads the Drivers’ Championship with 56 points; Häkkinen is two behind on 54. Coulthard and Frentzen are both on 36, and with four rounds remaining, neither is out of contention. Ferrari lead the Constructors’ with 94 points; McLaren are four behind on 90.

Previous race

At the Hungaroring, Häkkinen won from pole to move within two points of Irvine. Coulthard finished second and Irvine third — McLaren took a 1-2 that closed the Constructors’ gap as well. It was Häkkinen’s fourth win of the season.

Between-race developments

Teams ran a three-day test at Silverstone in mid-August. Häkkinen was fastest on all three days. Ferrari ran Schumacher at Mugello after doctors cleared him for limited running, but he stopped after 20 laps with ankle pain. Ferrari subsequently announced that Salo will continue as stand-in.

Several driver announcements for 2000 have been made in the past two weeks. Jordan confirmed they have signed Jarno Trulli from Prost on a two-year deal, replacing Hill. Sauber announced a two-year contract for Salo to join alongside Diniz. Benetton confirmed their current pairing of Fisichella and Wurz, with an option for 2001.

Practice

In Friday’s first session, Häkkinen was fastest (1:54.396), half a second ahead of Coulthard. Williams’s Ralf Schumacher was third; Salo, Irvine, and Alesi rounded out the top six. In the second session, Coulthard went fastest (1:53.577), with Häkkinen second.

During qualifying, both BAR drivers suffered massive high-speed accidents at Eau Rouge. Villeneuve and Zonta each crashed separately at the fast sweep, forcing the session to be suspended twice.

Weather

Dry conditions are expected, with air temperature around 20 °C and track temperature around 25 °C.