Just finished the 1995 Portuguese Grand Prix, and whilst the F1 community celebrates David Coulthard's first win, I'd have to give his teammate Damon Hill Reject of the Race. If we didn't know it before, it was at the end of the Estoril race that it was completely understood Hill was not going to win the 1995 season. Locking out the front row with his teammate, he spent the entire first half of the race behind Schumacher, dropping further and further back. Even when changing strategy and jumping the German in the pits, he proceeded to get overtaken in a masterclass of clean overtaking by his championship rival, one race after he himself had ploughed into Michael at Monza.
Thoroughly embarrassed by Coulthard and by Schumacher, the Estoril race showed Hill really didn't deserve the 1995 title.
Murray Walker at the 1997 Austrian Grand Prix wrote:The other [Stewart] driver, who nobody's been paying attention to, because he's disappointing, is Jan Magnussen.
Hungary 1999 - Mika Salo, 18th on the grid, 12th in the race in a Ferrari that he almost won the previous with. Did surrendering the win to Irvine really damage his confidence that badly?
Can we include non-Championship races? (Sorry for the resurrection)
1978 BRDC International Trophy:
The World Champions, only Emerson Fittipaldi made the finish and he was driving for his brother's team by this time, plus he got beaten by a Theodore! Remember, Keke Rosberg was only in his 2nd F1 race at this point, and the only other finishers were Tony Trimmer, Brett Lunger and Rupert Keegan!
