Chris Dagnall F1 Career -- 1984/????

[Barbazza]

That three-wheeling reminds me of one of my favourite Murray moments - Stefan Johansson making it to the finish line at Hockenheim in his McLaren three-wheeler : "Look at that! This is abso-lute-ly un-be-LIEV-able!"

[dr-baker]

And Ratzenberger is the faster of the non-qualifiers AGAIN???

[WeirdKerr]

That three-wheeling reminds me of one of my favourite Murray moments - Stefan Johansson making it to the finish line at Hockenheim in his McLaren three-wheeler : "Look at that! This is abso-lute-ly un-be-LIEV-able!"

IIRC was one of his fronts punctured?

[Barbazza]

Yep, it was the right-front - once he'd carefully negotiated the left-hander in the stadium he just leant on the flapping remains through the right-hander to get the car home. Loved it!

[Aerond]

1994 - ROUND 5 - SPAIN

Qualifying

Amazingly good. Wouldn´t have never expected to be up there!!!

1. Senna -- 1.21.762
2. Schumacher -- 1.22.250
3. Dagnall -- 1.22.569
4. Hakkinen -- 1.22.605
5. Barrichello -- 1.22.729
6. Irvine -- 1.22.911
----
20. Zanardi -- 1.24.318
----
DNQ. Ratzenberger -- 1.27.280
DNQ. Gachot -- 1.28.038

Race

Lap 1 --> I keep my 3rd position at the start, although Alesi nearly passed me at the first corner. At the end of the 1st lap Barrichello is 4th, 2.3 behind, while Senna is 1.3 ahead
Lap 3 --> Senna is 0.7 ahead
Lap 6 --> I pass Senna for 2nd. Schumacher is 3.9 ahead
Lap 10 --> Schumacher is 4.4 ahead. Senna 2.7 behind
Lap 11 --> I do a 360º spin at the last corner!
Lap 17 --> Schumacher is 7.6 ahead, Senna 4.7 behind.
Lap 20 --> Another mistake makes Schumacher increase his advantage to 13.7. Senna is 1.3 behind
Lap 21 --> 1st pit-stop. 7th
Lap 22 --> I pass Irvine. Barrichello pits. 5th
Lap 24 --> I pass Hakkinen. 4th. Hill is 17.6 ahead
Lap 27 --> Hill stops. 3rd. Schumacher is 12.8 ahead, while Senna is going for just one stop.
Lap 31 --> Schumacher is 16.7 ahead. Barrichello 7.3 behind.
Lap 34 --> Senna pits. I climb to 2nd.
Lap 36 --> Schumacher is 24.8 ahead. Senna 5.7 behind.
Lap 38 --> I go wide at the chicane and I lose my Front Wing! I have to stop before scheduled, falling to 5th. 2nd place is impossible now (not that I would have gotten it without mistakes anyway)
Lap 39 --> Hill is 25.0 ahead. Hakkinen is 12.9 behind
Lap 42 --> Barrichello pits. 4th
Lap 47 --> Hill pits. 3rd. Senna is 30.8 ahead
Lap 54 --> Senna is 32.1. Hill just 0.9! From there on Hill put great pressure on me, as he was faster but could hold him and earnt tranquility when he got stuck lapping Brundle on lap 63, for another podium finish!!!

FINAL RESULTS




FASTEST LAP -- MICHAEL SCHUMACHER - 1.22.610
DOTR -- Chris Dagnall; Delivered an amazing result for Lotus despite being a little bit keen on visiting gravel traps
ROTR -- JJ. Lehto; His race lasted a few meters after another disappointing qualifying.

Some pics!

The start moment from my car cam



Senna leads at the very beggining...



...and Lehto retires shortly afterwards after being hit twice; first in the rear wing then in the rear right wheel - View from Fittipaldi Footwork



Me passing Senna



And doing a 360 spin a few laps later



Alboreto on fire!



Another trip off the track



------

Chris Dagnall said:

I´m very proud of the team for this result. Senna and Schumacher are clearly ahead of the rest and being able to fight them on race day is very rewarding!

------

CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS - After 5 races

DRIVERS CHAMPIONSHIP

1. Michael Schumacher -- 40 pts
2. Ayrton Senna -- 26 pts
3. Damon Hill -- 24 pts
4. Rubens Barrichello -- 14 pts
5. Chris Dagnall -- 12 pts
6. Mika Hakkinen -- 6 pts
7. Jean Alesi -- 3 pts
=. Martin Brundle -- 3 pts
9. Karl Wendlinger -- 1 pt
=. Eddie Irvine -- 1 pt

CONSTRUCTORS CHAMPIONSHIP

1. Williams-Renault -- 50 pts
2. Benetton-Ford -- 40 pts
3. Jordan-Hart -- 15 pts
4. Lotus-Mugen-Honda -- 12 pts
5. McLaren-Peugeot -- 9 pts
6. Ferrari - 3 pts
7. Sauber-Mercedes - 1 pt

[Aerond]

1994 - ROUND 6 - CANADA

Qualifying

Got the grip fast to the track. Nowadays, after so many seasons of experience; it´s way easier to setup the car since you can use the same base as previous years, therefore just concentrating on lap times rather than car behaviour. Senna was fastest again, looking unbeatable on qualifying; and Ratzenberger finally qualified!!

1. Senna -- 1.21.724
2. Schumacher -- 1.21.863
3. Hill -- 1.22.439
4. Berger -- 1.22.653
5. Alesi -- 1.22.830
6. Dagnall -- 1.22.913
7. Hakkinen -- 1.22.915
---
20. Zanardi -- 1.24.022
---
DNQ. Bernard -- 1.26.363
DNQ. Gachot -- 1.27.064

Race

Lap 1 --> Did a slow start, placed 8th, then passed Frentzen for 7th before the end of the first lap, with Hakkinen 1.6 ahead and Brundle 0.6 behind.
Lap 2 --> Did a mistake exiting the last chicane and got passed by Brundle; Frentzen now 3.6 secs behind
Lap 10 --> Passed Brundle back for 7th. Berger is 2.3 ahead
Lap 14 --> I stepped on the kerb while heading for the straight before the pits and suffered a huge accident at 280 kph!!! (see pics)

The rest of the race consisted on Senna gaining momentum before his car expired and handling an easy win for Schumacher.





Fastest lap -- Michael Schumacher, 1.22.610
DOTR -- Gerhard Berger; Finally developed a brilliant drive for 2nd after running behind Alesi and Hakkinen during the first part of the race.
ROTR -- Chris Dagnall / Mika Hakkinen; Ruined potential podium finishes by accidents.

Chris Dagnall said:

I was having a good race but I just moved the car half a meter into the kerb and It was thrown out into the barrier at the other side. I´m very lucky to be Ok, it was scary when I saw it on the TV

A few pics...

The start;



Touching Frentzen at the hairpin



Then passing him



Passing Brundle



Accident Sequence; I touch the Kerb at 300 kph



Then I hit the barrier at the other side



And the car crosses the track again



----------------

CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS - After 6 races

DRIVERS CHAMPIONSHIP

1. Michael Schumacher -- 50 pts
2. Damon Hill -- 27 pts
3. Ayrton Senna -- 26 pts
4. Rubens Barrichello -- 16 pts
5. Chris Dagnall -- 12 pts
6. Jean Alesi -- 7 pts
7. Mika Hakkinen -- 6 pts
=. Gerhard Berger -- 6 pts
9. Martin Brundle -- 3 pts
10. Karl Wendlinger -- 1 pt
=. Eddie Irvine -- 1 pt
=. Mark Blundell -- 1 pt

CONSTRUCTORS CHAMPIONSHIP

1. Williams-Renault -- 53 pts
2. Benetton-Ford -- 50 pts
3. Jordan-Hart -- 17 pts
4. Ferrari - 13 pts
5. Lotus-Mugen-Honda -- 12 pts
6. McLaren-Peugeot -- 9 pts
7. Sauber-Mercedes - 1 pt
=. Tyrrell-Yamaha - 1 pt

[FullMetalJack]

RATZENBERGER!!!!!!

[Phoenix]

RATZENBERGER!!!!!!

JÄGERMEISTER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Aerond]

1994 - ROUND 7 - FRANCE

Qualifying

I suffered a drop of performance from the last Gp´s, not really knowing where the problem was, but the truth is I also failed to score a better lap time on Saturday due to mistakes on my best laps on both outings, leaving me a distant 17th.

1. Senna -- 1.18.381
2. Schumacher -- 1.18.962
3. Hill -- 1.19.299
4. Hakkinen -- 1.19.471
5. Irvine -- 1.19.762
6. Alesi -- 1.19.844
----
16. Herbert -- 1.20.467
17. Dagnall -- 1.20.514
18. Blundell -- 1.20.600
----
21. Zanardi -- 1.20.881
----
DNQ. Ratzenberger -- 1.23.265
DNQ. Gachot -- 1.24.134

Race

Lap 1 --> I arrive 16th to the first corner, then the typical melée at the hairpin happens. i take advantage of it and go up 13th, while Fittipaldi is out. I also get to pass Frentzen later in the lap too, so at the end I´m 12th and pursuing Martini.
Lap 2 --> I pass both Martini and Herbert taking advantage of the superb top speed of the Lotus.
Lap 4 --> I pass Morbidelli. Berger is 3.0 ahead
Lap 7 --> Now is Irvine who I´m pursuing. He´s 3.1 ahead
Lap 11 --> Alesi retires. 8th
Lap 14 --> Irvine is just 1.2 ahead.
Lap 17 --> I proceed with my first stop. I´m back 15th
Lap 18 --> Frentzen pits. I´m 14th
Lap 19 --> I pass Lehto. Wendlinger pits. 12th
Lap 20 --> Irvine is still ahead after his stop by 2.8 secs
Lap 22 --> I pass Irvine for 11th
Lap 23 --> I pass Panis. 10th
Lap 25 --> I pass Blundell, who´s still on track. Katayama pits. 8th. Berger is 8 seconds ahead now
Lap 27 --> Hakkinen retires and Brundle pits. 6th
Lap 30 --> I make the first of my mistakes at the chicane and lose the front wing, so I have to pit a couple of laps earlier than expected. I´m back 12th just ahead of Panis.
Lap 32 --> Wendlinger is 5.9 ahead
Lap 36 --> Lehto pits. 11th
Lap 37 --> Frentzen pits. Katayama is 3.4 ahead now.
Lap 38 --> Wendlinger pits. 9th
Lap 39 --> Irvine exits the pits ahead of me but I´m able to slipstream and pass him before the hairpin!
Lap 45 --> berger is out! I climb to 7th
Lap 46 --> Brundle´s McLaren expires as well. 6th
Lap 47 --> Katayama is proving tough to pass. He´s 2.1 ahead now, with Irvine just behind and the leaders approaching to lap.
Lap 48 --> I finally get to pass Katayama. 5th
Lap 51 --> Katayama stops
Lap 53 --> I spin out and lose my front wing again, forcing me to pit earlier once again. I´m back 7th and behind Katayama.
Lap 55 --> Irvine pits. I climb to 6th.
Lap 59 --> Irvine is just 1 second behind.
Lap 61 --> I spin at the chicane once more while trying to get closer to Katayama! I lose every chance to score points as I´m back 10th. Barrichello also spins while trying to avoid the Lotus but it won´t affect his position.
Lap 70 --> Katayama is out and I end up 9th. Having lost a great chance to score more points.

At the front, Senna was the fastest the whole race but the Williams team screwed up the strategy. Senna went for 3 stops while Schumacher went for one. After his first stint, the Brazilian got trapped behind Schumacher, then, after his 2nd stop, it was Hill (on a 2 stop strategy) who prevented him from earning enough advantage to the German, who gained the lead after Williams last round of stops. Senna was much faster but spent the last 10 laps at the tail of the Benetton, unable to pass, until he commited a mistake 2 laps to the end which ended his chances of charging for a final attack.

Race results




Fastest lap -- Ayrton Senna; 1.22.221
DOTR -- Olivier Panis; Did a solid race to score his first point in F1 in front of his home audience
ROTR -- Williams strategy; They had everything for a 1-2 at Renault´s soil but ruined it with a poor strategy choice.

Chris Dagnall said:

This was a very interesting race. The car was not completely well balanced, otherwise I wouldn´t have lost control 3 times, but I had loads of fun fighting for the points. It´s a pity we didn´t make it in the end but the good news is the car is much faster at races, and that´s where it matters to be fast.

Pics of the race

Senna takes the lead



Passing Herbert early



And Morbidelli, touch included



Running with Lehto



The first Front Wing I destroyed



And the 2nd




Passing Katayama for the 2nd time



And then ruining it all again;



Barrichello almost ran into me!



CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS - After 7 races

DRIVERS CHAMPIONSHIP

1. Michael Schumacher -- 60 pts
2. Ayrton Senna -- 32 pts
3. Damon Hill -- 31 pts
4. Rubens Barrichello -- 19 pts
5. Chris Dagnall -- 12 pts
6. Jean Alesi -- 7 pts
7. Mika Hakkinen -- 6 pts
=. Gerhard Berger -- 6 pts
9. Martin Brundle -- 3 pts
=. Eddie Irvine -- 3 pts
11. Karl Wendlinger -- 1 pt
=. Mark Blundell -- 1 pt
=. Olivier Panis -- 1 pt

CONSTRUCTORS CHAMPIONSHIP

1. Williams-Renault -- 63 pts
2. Benetton-Ford -- 60 pts
3. Jordan-Hart -- 22 pts
4. Ferrari - 13 pts
5. Lotus-Mugen-Honda -- 12 pts
6. McLaren-Peugeot -- 9 pts
7. Sauber-Mercedes - 1 pt
=. Tyrrell-Yamaha - 1 pt
=. Ligier-Renault - 1 pt

[Phoenix]

Mr. Dagnall, word on the paddock is, Benneton is completely outraged at JJ Lehto's lack of form. Taking this into account, it is said that he'll be replaced soon at the team and they're interested in hiring you. What do you think about these rumours?

[Aerond]

Mr. Dagnall, word on the paddock is, Benneton is completely outraged at JJ Lehto's lack of form. Taking this into account, it is said that he'll be replaced soon at the team and they're interested in hiring you. What do you think about these rumours?

Absolutely bollocks. I´m not going back to a team which already has a number one driver. I understand why some drivers would put themselves in a number 2 situation, but remember how Riccardo (Patrese) suffered last year there. I know the team perfectly and Flavio knows me and he´d be honest to me and say "look, we can only afford to support one driver". It would obviously be Michael, now that he´s leading the drivers championship.

[Aerond]

1994 - ROUND 8 - G. BRITAIN

Home sweet home!! I hope this year Silverstone doesn´t shatter my heart anymore (remember 1992 and 1993 failures at the last minute, when I was going for a win) The 1994 Lotus isn´t a winner but I hope to bring something back to the factory. The 1994 modifications aren´t very fun though, they have made the track a bit slower but it still is an interesting track to drive... but safety is ahead of everything, I guess.

Qualifying

Average qualifying, once again not able to extract everything from the car with a low fuel load and not very encouraging towards the GP.

1. Senna -- 1.24.691
2. Schumacher -- 1.24.844
3. Hill -- 1.25.780
4. Hakkinen -- 1.25.901
5. Barrichello -- 1.25.976
6. Irvine -- 1.25.977
---
13. Martini -- 1.26.717
14. Dagnall -- 1.26.910
15. Herbert -- 1.26.914
---
20. Zanardi -- 1.27.282
---
DNQ. Bernard -- 1.29.899
DNQ. Gachot -- 1.30.755

Race

Lap 1 --> I did a great start and passed loads of cars at the first corner, being 8th, then I touched Irvine and momentarily lost control of the car so I was 9th at the end of the first lap.
Lap 2 --> Passed Frentzen, then Alesi and Hakkinen at an incredible double pass!!
Lap 6 --> Passed Barrichello for 5th. Berger is 4.0 ahead
Lap 10 --> Berger made a mistake which allowed me to get closer. 2.4 secs ahead now
Lap 13 --> Passed Berger for 4th! Hill is 13.4 ahead
Lap 18 --> Hill is 15.9 ahead, Berger 2.9 behind.
Lap 21 --> Schumacher makes a big mistake trying to rush to lap Beretta and destroys his Front Wing. He pits and I climb to 3rd!
Lap 23 --> I do my first stop and I fall to 6th.
Lap 24 --> Berger is out of the race. Schumacher is 6.9 ahead.
Lap 25 --> Barrichello pits. 4th
Lap 28 --> Schumacher is 8.5 ahead.
Lap 32 --> Barrichello pits for a new Front Wing.
Lap 35 --> I commit a mistake and Schumacher is 18.9 ahead. Wendlinger loses his Front Wing when I was coming back to the track.
Lap 40 --> Schumacher pits. 3rd
Lap 41 --> I do my 2nd stop. I only lose to Schumacher.
Lap 44 --> Schumacher and Hill touch while battling for 2nd! Schumacher loses his Front Wing and Hill loses several seconds
Lap 45 --> Schumacher is 14.3 down and Hill 4.8 ahead.
Lap 48 --> Schumacher is 6.8 down and Hill 6.0 ahead after Martini almost takes me out of the race.
Lap 53 --> Schumacher passes me at the end of the hangar straight and I make the mistake of trying to holding him at the last minute touching wheels, which ends me crossing the gravel trap and losing my front wing. Barrichello passes me in the pits.
Lap 54 --> Barrichello is 10.1 ahead. Senna retires!! 4th
Lap 57 --> Barrichello is 3.9 ahead.
Lap 59 --> Barrichello is just 1.9 ahead!
Lap 60 (last) --> I don´t manage to pass Barrichello and I end up 4th. Schumacher spends the last two laps trying to pass Hill at all costs but Damon defends well and scores a brilliant win at home!!





Fastest lap; Michael Schumacher - 1.26.950
DOTR; Damon Hill --> He was the one who made less mistakes and won an incident packed race.
ROTR; Pierluigi Martini --> Dangerous driving while being lapped almost took Dagnall out and ended up with his Minardi destroyed.

Pictures (novelty; I´ll add small thumbs so you can click to see them and if not they doesn´t take much time to load)

The start;




Irvine touch from Frentzen´s car;



My double pass on Alesi and Hakkinen;



Passing Berger;



A weird sight; a Ligier with problems



Schumi´s 1st front wing is off



Martini taking off



My car after touching Schumi

Chris Dagnall said;

It´s been a very entertaining GP. That´s the good thing of racing without pressure; I´m having a better time than ever before inside the car, although the mistakes I made have been costly today in the race for another podium. I´m still surprised at the change the car suffers on sundays but it´s much better than the other way round so I won´t issue a complaint here. It would have been impossible to hold Schumacher for longer but i´m entirely responsible for that as it costed the team a 3rd place. Now we´re looking forward for an even better 2nd part of the season, where historically I´ve been stronger and I hope to remain it that way this year.

CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS - After 8 races

DRIVERS CHAMPIONSHIP

1. Michael Schumacher -- 66 pts
2. Damon Hill -- 41 pts
3. Ayrton Senna -- 32 pts
4. Rubens Barrichello -- 23 pts
5. Chris Dagnall -- 15 pts
6. Jean Alesi -- 9 pts
7. Mika Hakkinen -- 6 pts
=. Gerhard Berger -- 6 pts
9. Martin Brundle -- 3 pts
=. Eddie Irvine -- 3 pts
11. Karl Wendlinger -- 1 pt
=. Mark Blundell -- 1 pt
=. Olivier Panis -- 1 pt
=. JJ Lehto -- 1 pt

CONSTRUCTORS CHAMPIONSHIP

1. Williams-Renault -- 73 pts
2. Benetton-Ford -- 67 pts
3. Jordan-Hart -- 26 pts
4. Ferrari - 15 pts
=. Lotus-Mugen-Honda -- 15 pts
6. McLaren-Peugeot -- 9 pts
7. Sauber-Mercedes - 1 pt
=. Tyrrell-Yamaha - 1 pt
=. Ligier-Renault - 1 pt

[FullMetalJack]

Ratzenberger qualified again! WIN!

[Aerond]

1994 - ROUND 9 - GERMANY

Qualifying

The Lotus went well for Q, allowing me to sneak in the top 10, after yet another dominant performance by Senna.

1. Senna -- 1.46.699
2. Schumacher -- 1.46.947
3. Hill -- 1.47.257
4. Berger -- 1.47.373
5. Alesi -- 1.47.409
6. Frentzen -- 1.47.997
---
9. Irvine -- 1.48.291
10. Dagnall -- 1.48.538
11. Panis -- 1.48.542
---
23. Zanardi -- 1.50.176
---
DNQ. Bernard -- 1.52.768
DNQ. Gachot -- 1.52.973

Race

Lap 1 --> I do an average start and I´m passed by Panis before regaining my position at the first straight. Then I touch the back of Irvine under breaking for the first chicane, destroying my Front Wing and making him and Wendlinger spin. I fall to last and have to stop at the end of the lap, with Herbert stopping as well until he´s damaged too.
Lap 2 --> Katayama is out. Herbert is 8.2 ahead
Lap 5 --> Ratzenberger is out. The car doesn´t show any sign of being as competitive as during qualifying. Herbert is 13.3 ahead
Lap 6 --> Fittipaldi is out. I spin and lose even more time
Lap 8 --> Herbert is 18.3 ahead.
Lap 9 --> Beretta is out. 22nd
Lap 10 --> Brabham is now 21st. He´s 13.9 ahead
Lap 13 --> Brabham is 1.9 ahead
Lap 14 --> I pass Brabham. I´m 21st with Martini 9.7 secs ahead.
Lap 17 --> Zanardi is 5.6 ahead. The car drives much better with the lower fuel load.
Lap 18 --> Comas pit. 20th
Lap 19 --> I pass Zanardi for 19th. Martini is 5.5 ahead.
Lap 22 --> Alboreto pits. 18th.
Lap 23 --> I pit and manage to pass Martini in the pitlane. 20th
Lap 24 --> Hill is out. Zanardi pits. 18th
Lap 25 --> Herbert is 4.3 ahead
Lap 26 --> Alboreto pits. 17th.
Lap 27 --> Comas is 1.9 ahead
Lap 29 --> I pass Comas. Brundle is out. 15th. Herbert is 3.4 ahead.
Lap 32 --> I spin and fall back to 16th. Comas is 11.0 ahead now.
Lap 35 --> Comas is 5.3 ahead.
Lap 39 --> I touch Comas when trying to pass at the Motordrome. We both lose our front wings but I decide to stay on track. I´m 16th after Martini passes. Alboreto is 1.7 behind.
Lap 40 --> Blundell is out. 15th.
Lap 43 --> I run wide at the last corner and Alboreto passes. I finish a distant 16th.

At the top; Senna won easily as Schumacher mistakenly took a 2 stop option.




Fastest lap; Michael Schumacher - 1.51.118
DOTR; Gerhard Berger - Fought back an early electric problem to score a fantastic podium!
ROTR; Chris Dagnall - Seemed to lose concentration every now and then during the race.

Some pics!!

Terrific Beretta accident during qualifying



1st lap





Spinning out



Both Lotus together



Second spin



Holding Alboreto at the final stages



CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS - After 9 races

DRIVERS CHAMPIONSHIP

1. Michael Schumacher -- 72 pts
2. Ayrton Senna -- 42 pts
3. Damon Hill -- 41 pts
4. Rubens Barrichello -- 23 pts
5. Chris Dagnall -- 15 pts
6. Jean Alesi -- 12 pts
7. Gerhard Berger -- 10 pts
8. Mika Hakkinen -- 8 pts
9. Martin Brundle -- 3 pts
=. Eddie Irvine -- 3 pts
11. Olivier Panis -- 2 pts
12. Karl Wendlinger -- 1 pt
=. Mark Blundell -- 1 pt
=. JJ Lehto -- 1 pt

CONSTRUCTORS CHAMPIONSHIP

1. Williams-Renault -- 83 pts
2. Benetton-Ford -- 73 pts
3. Jordan-Hart -- 26 pts
4. Ferrari - 22 pts
5. Lotus-Mugen-Honda -- 15 pts
6. McLaren-Peugeot -- 11 pts
7. Ligier-Renault - 2 pts
8. Sauber-Mercedes - 1 pt
=. Tyrrell-Yamaha - 1 pt

[Aerond]

1994 - ROUND 10 - HUNGARY

Qualifying

The qualifying went way better than expected, considering the accident I suffered on Friday which didn´t allow me to set a time. On Saturday things were very different, and the result a big surprise for the team.

1. Schumacher -- 1.18.153
2. Senna -- 1.18.271
3. Barrichello -- 1.19.142
4. Hakkinen -- 1.19.221
5. Hill -- 1.19.427
6. Dagnall -- 1.19.586
7. Irvine -- 1.19.718
---
21. Zanardi -- 1.20.753
---
DNQ. Ratzenberger -- 1.23.440
DNQ. Gachot -- 1.24.123

Race

Lap 1 --> My start is not very good and I fall to 8th. Schumacher does a very bad start dropping to 4th while Senna takes the lead over Hill.
Lap 2 --> I pass Irvine for 7th
Lap 3 --> I pass Brundle for 6th. Barrichello is 2.4 ahead
Lap 6 --> The car doesn´t accelerate as normal at the exit of turn 9 and a few seconds later I see black smoke on my mirrors due to an oil leak so it ends a very promising race.

Race results




Fastest lap - Michael Schumacher; 1.20.244
DOTR - Mika Hakkinen; A very solid weekend from the finn
ROTR - Jean Alesi; A rather dull weekend after a poor qualifying and discreet performance in race until his car stopped.

A couple pics

My Q1 accident



The start, with Senna clearly taking the lead





Passing Brundle



The fire from Berger´s car



Even though Schumacher went for a gravel trip he managed to win the race

Chris Dagnall said:

It´s been a fruitless weekend. The car had been showing very regular on reliability terms and points were possible today. Now we have to concentrate on the next three races, which will be very important towards the final balance of the season

CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS - After 10 races

DRIVERS CHAMPIONSHIP

1. Michael Schumacher -- 82 pts
2. Ayrton Senna -- 48 pts
3. Damon Hill -- 44 pts
4. Rubens Barrichello -- 25 pts
5. Chris Dagnall -- 15 pts
6. Jean Alesi -- 12 pts
=. Mika Hakkinen -- 12 pts
8. Gerhard Berger -- 11 pts
9. Martin Brundle -- 3 pts
=. Eddie Irvine -- 3 pts
11. Olivier Panis -- 2 pts
12. Karl Wendlinger -- 1 pt
=. Mark Blundell -- 1 pt
=. JJ Lehto -- 1 pt

CONSTRUCTORS CHAMPIONSHIP

1. Williams-Renault -- 92 pts
2. Benetton-Ford -- 83 pts
3. Jordan-Hart -- 28 pts
4. Ferrari - 23 pts
5. Lotus-Mugen-Honda -- 15 pts
=. McLaren-Peugeot -- 15 pts
7. Ligier-Renault - 2 pts
8. Sauber-Mercedes - 1 pt
=. Tyrrell-Yamaha - 1 pt

[FullMetalJack]

I've got GP2 now, because from what i've heard, it's the best game out there. I was wondering how to actually mod the game?

[Aerond]

I've got GP2 now, because from what i've heard, it's the best game out there. I was wondering how to actually mod the game?

You have to install Gp2lap, create a folder in your gp2 folder called circuits and transfer the original circuit files there to install new circuits. To install carsets you´ll need Gp2Edit. A great tool for managing and modifying carsets.

[Aerond]

1994 - ROUND 11 - BELGIUM

Qualifying

bathplug good. Amazingly good, despite crashing during Q1. Given that Senna and Schumacher were completely invincible the result was like taking Pole.

1. Schumacher -- 1.51.427
2. Senna -- 1.51.434
3. Dagnall -- 1.51.960
4. Hill -- 1.52.251
5. Irvine -- 1.53.112
6. Hakkinen -- 1.53.151
---
17. Zanardi -- 1.54.897
---
DNQ. Bernard -- 1.59.057
DNQ. Gachot -- 1.59.272

Race

Lap 1 --> I pass Schumacher at La Source and then Senna at Les Combes! I´m leading a race after one year!! Then...

Gap evolution

Lap 1 --> 1.2
Lap 3 --> 3.5
Lap 6 --> 6.5
Lap 9 --> Hill gets 2nd. 9.0
Lap 13 --> 9.7
Lap 16 --> Hill pits. Senna is 16.5

On lap 17 I do my first stop. I exit just behind Senna and I pass him on lap 18 to take 1st again. On lap 22 Senna is 4.0 behind and he stops two laps later, leaving Hill 2nd again, now 21.5 behind! Schumacher retires around that time with an engine failure and two laps later Senna crashes and retires!!! Hill is now 28.2 behind. I stop again on lap 29. Hill is still 15.0 behind and with another stop to go so it´s time to take it easy! However, not everything goes alright... Ratzenberger blocks me on lap 36 and brakes at a weird point me ramming his back. Hill is still 20.3 on lap 37 and he breaks his front wing three laps later!!!
To add a little bit of spice, Barrichello decides to imitate Ratzenberger and I have to run the last 3 laps without a front wing but I score the first win for Lotus since the 1989 Brazilian GP!!!!




Fastest lap; Damon Hill - 1.56.315
DOTR; Chris Dagnall; Took the Lotus for glory and his win was never in doubt during the race.
ROTR; Ayrton Senna; Crashed while trying to pass Zanardi at an impossible race and he´s lost a great chance to attack the championship lead.

Chris Dagnall said;

Yeah! I can´t believe we´ve won today!!! I expected to be fast in the manner we were fast in Barcelona, but never going faster than the Williams or Schumacher. It´s amazing we´ve achieved this and I´m so proud I´m over the moon right now! Of course it wasn´t an easy race and I had to fight every mile to keep my advantage. [...] Ratzenberger is an idiot. I don´t know what he was up to, but he has to learn to make way for the leaders. For some weird reason Barrichello decided to imitate him. If Hill hadn´t made that mistake I´d have lost the lead.

1st corner



Me taking the lead



Brundle being taken out by Barrichello



Benetton on trouble: Not very usual



Lapping Alboreto



The ratzenberger incident



And the repetition with Barrichello



Checkered flag!!!!



CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS - After 11 races

DRIVERS CHAMPIONSHIP

1. Michael Schumacher -- 82 pts
2. Damon Hill -- 50 pts
3. Ayrton Senna -- 48 pts
4. Rubens Barrichello -- 25 pts
=. Chris Dagnall -- 25 pts
6. Jean Alesi -- 16 pts
=. Mika Hakkinen -- 12 pts
8. Gerhard Berger -- 11 pts
9. Eddie Irvine -- 5 pts
10. JJ Lehto -- 4 pts
11. Martin Brundle -- 3 pts
12. Olivier Panis -- 2 pts
=. Mark Blundell -- 2 pts
14. Karl Wendlinger -- 1 pt



CONSTRUCTORS CHAMPIONSHIP

1. Williams-Renault -- 98 pts
2. Benetton-Ford -- 86 pts
3. Jordan-Hart -- 30 pts
4. Ferrari - 27 pts
5. Lotus-Mugen-Honda -- 25 pts
6. McLaren-Peugeot -- 15 pts
7. Ligier-Renault - 2 pts
=. Tyrrell-Yamaha - 2 pts
9. Sauber-Mercedes - 1 pt

[TomWazzleshaw]

You sir, are a bathplugging legend.

[FullMetalJack]

I've got GP2 now, because from what i've heard, it's the best game out there. I was wondering how to actually mod the game?

You have to install Gp2lap, create a folder in your gp2 folder called circuits and transfer the original circuit files there to install new circuits. To install carsets you´ll need Gp2Edit. A great tool for managing and modifying carsets.

Thanks very much mate, and congrats on the win. Hopefully not the last for Lotus or Dagnall.

[WeirdKerr]

Hmmmmm with part of the body work missing would the stewards not find it underweight?

[Aerond]

1994 - ROUND 12 - ITALY

Qualifying

I was like 24th on Friday after having trouble negotiating the third chicane, which made me lost the car. For Saturday I was expecting to be around 12th, but suddenly I was again near the top!

1. Senna -- 1.24.852
2. Hill -- 1.25.351
3. Dagnall -- 1.26.127
4. Berger -- 1.26.209
5. Schumacher -- 1.26.256
6. Frentzen -- 1.26.294
---
18. Zanardi -- 1.27.083
---
DNQ. Bernard -- 1.30.134
DNQ. Gachot -- 1.30.465

Race

Lap 1 --> I´m 6th after the start, then I´m passed by Hakkinen and Frentzen. Wendlinger places himself 2nd!!
Lap 3 --> Wendlinger is out of the race and I manage to pass Frentzen. 6th. Hakkinen is now 5.0 secs ahead, with Alesi right behind.
Lap 7 --> Alesi passes me at the 2nd chicane, then Frentzen goes kamikaze at the first Lesmo and tries an impossible overtake, it touched my wheel and I spin to the gravel. So I´m down to 21st.
Lap 8 --> Hill retires. I slightly go off track and Brabham passes me.
Lap 9 --> I pass Brabham. 20th
Lap 10 --> Beretta is 6.8 ahead.
Lap 13 --> Martini is out. 19th. Beretta is 4.2 ahead.
Lap 16 --> I pass Beretta. 18th.
Lap 17 --> Beretta touched me under breaking for the first chicane and it results in another spin. He loses his front wing. Comas is 17.4 ahead.
Lap 20 --> Berger is out running 2nd. Alboreto pits. 16th. Comas is 13.9 ahead
Lap 23 --> Schumacher is out! 15th
Lap 26 --> Brundle retires too. Irvine is 6.8 ahead after losing his front wing at the first lap.
Lap 31 --> I do my stop. I´ve passed Irvine who stopped two laps earlier, so I´m 15th.
Lap 32 --> Alboreto is 20.1 ahead.
Lap 34 --> Now Comas is ahead. 5.2
Lap 36 --> Alboreto pits. 14th.
Lap 37 --> I pass Comas for 13th. Zanardi is 14.4 ahead, so mostly the rest of my race will be chasing my team-mate.
Lap 39 --> Senna suffers an accident at the 2nd Lesmo and is out of the race!!! 12th.
Lap 42 --> Zanardi is 7.1 ahead.
Lap 47 --> Alesi passes Hakkinen for the lead. The tiffosi go mad!!!
Lap 49 --> I pass Zanardi. 11th.
Lap 50 --> Katayama is out. 10th.
Lap 51 --> Fittipaldi retires too. Just as I´m passing by his car the rear left tyre blows and I crash into the barriers out of the race.

Race results




Fastest lap: Ayrton Senna - 1.26.513
DOTR: Jean Alesi; Qualified low and fought the first half of the race out of the points but managed to pass everyone stopping early and then passed Hakkinen for the 1st Ferrari win since 1990!
ROTR: Williams drivers; Both suffered accidents which put Schumacher very close to secure the championship win.

Chris Dagnall said:

When Frentzen touched me I knew my race was over. Obviously I never gave up and there were loads of retirements today but it wasn´t possible. About the accident, the tyre blew at a high speed and the subsequent accident wasn´t very bad, it could´ve been much worse if it happened at the Lesmo

The start



Me passing Frentzen after a mistake



Huge group fighting for points



Frentzen miscalculate and I spin out



Beretta does it as well, in a more spectacular fashion



Senna crashes



And Hakkinen sees his first GP win evaporate near the end



Then I´m out shortly afterwards at the same point



CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS - After 12 races

DRIVERS CHAMPIONSHIP

1. Michael Schumacher -- 82 pts
2. Damon Hill -- 50 pts
3. Ayrton Senna -- 48 pts
4. Jean Alesi -- 26 pts
=. Rubens Barrichello -- 26 pts
6. Chris Dagnall -- 25 pts
7. Mika Hakkinen -- 18 pts
8. Gerhard Berger -- 11 pts
9. Mark Blundell -- 6 pts
10. Eddie Irvine -- 5 pts
=. Olivier Panis -- 5 pts
12. JJ Lehto -- 4 pts
13. Martin Brundle -- 3 pts
14. Heinz Harald Frentzen -- 2 pts
15. Karl Wendlinger -- 1 pt

CONSTRUCTORS CHAMPIONSHIP

1. Williams-Renault -- 98 pts
2. Benetton-Ford -- 86 pts
3. Ferrari - 37 pts
4. Jordan-Hart -- 31 pts
5. Lotus-Mugen-Honda -- 25 pts
6. McLaren-Peugeot -- 21 pts
7. Tyrrell-Yamaha - 6 pts
8. Ligier-Renault - 5 pts
9. Sauber-Mercedes - 3 pts

[Aerond]

1994 - ROUND 13 - PORTUGAL

Friday evening, Senna calls the worldwide press for an announcement. Many members of the press bet he will sign for Ferrari for the 1995 and 1996 F1 seasons...

Ayrton Senna:

[...] I´m here to announce my retirement at the end of this season. Formula One is the thing I love the most, is more than a passion. It´s my life. But everything must come to an end and I want to form a family and take care of the foundation. I´ve earned enough money and now there´s a new generation of drivers who will become great champions in the near future. There´s an endless list of people I want to thank for their support over the years [...]

So, the whole paddock was about Senna´s announcement and many people forgot that the title could be decided at Estoril. The qualifying went well, although the new chicane meant a whole new setup approach for this track.

1. Senna -- 1.20.357
2. Schumacher -- 1.20.831
3. Hill -- 1.20.996
4. Barrichello -- 1.21.285
5. Alesi -- 1.21.801
6. Hakkinen -- 1.21.849
---
9. Irvine -- 1.22.088
10. Dagnall -- 1.22.121
11. Brundle -- 1.22.162
---
19. Zanardi -- 1.22.848
---
DNQ. Ratzenberger -- 1.25.545
DNQ. Gachot -- 1.26.048

Race

Lap 1 --> I get passed by Wendlinger and Brundle at the start, but I quickly repass the Sauber. At the last corner I step a bit on the grass and spin, dropping to 19th.
Lap 2 --> I pass both Ligiers and Martini. Brundle is out. 15th
Lap 3 --> I pass Lehto. 14th
Lap 4 --> I pass Alboreto and Wendlinger. 12th. Blundell is 3.3 ahead.
Lap 7 --> I pass Blundell and Frentzen. 10th.
Lap 9 --> I pass Katayama. 9th. The engine is working great at the straight, allowing me not to take many risks.
Lap 10 --> I pass Irvine. 8th. Hakkinen is 4.9 ahead.
Lap 14 --> I pass Hakkinen for 7th. Berger is 2.4 ahead.
Lap 15 --> Alesi is out. 6th
Lap 17 --> I pass Berger. 5th. Barrichello is 15.8 ahead.
Lap 22 --> I do my first pit-stop, falling to 11th.
Lap 23 --> I pass Lehto. Blundell its. 9th. Irvine is 3.7 ahead.
Lap 25 --> I pass Irvine but I make a mistake shortly afterwards, so I´m stuck behind the Jordan por an extra lap
Lap 26 --> I pass Irvine (now for good). Katayama pits. 7th. Hakkinen is 17.1 ahead.
Lap 28 --> Berger pits. 6th. Hakkinen is 12.1
Lap 31 --> Hakkinen pits. 5th. Barrichello is 15.9 ahead.
Lap 33 --> Barrichello is out of the race! I get 4th, but Schumacher is 45 secs ahead.
Lap 35 --> Berger is 26.6 secs behind.
Lap 40 --> The Austrian is now 30.9 behind.
Lap 45 --> Hakkinen passes the Ferrari and is 34.4 secs behind.
Lap 46 --> I do my 2nd pit. I´m still 4th.
Lap 47 --> Hakkinen pits. Katayama is now 5th, 14.2 secs behind. It seems I just have to take care of taking the car to the end.
Lap 52 --> I suffer a Water leak... so I´m out of the race and miss a couple of important points... To add insult to injury; I try to take the car to the pits but it stalls at the chicane... Herbert crashes with me and Martini also gets involved, both retiring too.

Results




Fastest lap; Ayrton Senna -- 1.22.441
DOTR; Michael Schumacher -- Yet another intelligent strategy to beat the Williams and winning his first world championship!!!
ROTR; Johnny Herbert -- Toured around much slower than Panis only to miserably crash with Dagnall´s stalled car.

Chris Dagnall said:

First I wat to congratulate Michael Schumacher for his World Championship win. He´s a truth champion and it´s very well deserved. I´m sure it won´t be the last, the guy is extremely fast. My race ended with an hydraulics problem. I´m suffering more reliability issues now that during the first half of the season. There´s not much resources available now but the atmosphere is still very good within the team and we´ll face the end of the season in a good mood. We´ve missed today a superb chance to score as Barrichello and Alesi couldn´t make it, but of course there´s good days and bad days and that´s it!

Pics

Senna easily takes the lead


Spinning at first lap


A couple of good passing moves before retiring





CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS - After 12 races

DRIVERS CHAMPIONSHIP

1. Michael Schumacher -- 92 pts
2. Damon Hill -- 54 pts
=. Ayrton Senna -- 54 pts
4. Jean Alesi -- 26 pts
=. Rubens Barrichello -- 26 pts
6. Chris Dagnall -- 25 pts
7. Mika Hakkinen -- 20 pts
8. Gerhard Berger -- 14 pts
9. Mark Blundell -- 7 pts
10. Eddie Irvine -- 5 pts
=. Olivier Panis -- 5 pts
12. JJ Lehto -- 4 pts
13. Martin Brundle -- 3 pts
14. Heinz Harald Frentzen -- 2 pts
15. Karl Wendlinger -- 1 pt

CONSTRUCTORS CHAMPIONSHIP

1. Williams-Renault -- 108 pts
2. Benetton-Ford -- 96 pts
3. Ferrari - 40 pts
4. Jordan-Hart -- 31 pts
5. Lotus-Mugen-Honda -- 25 pts
6. McLaren-Peugeot -- 23 pts
7. Tyrrell-Yamaha - 7 pts
8. Ligier-Renault - 5 pts
9. Sauber-Mercedes - 3 pts

[MigelNansell]

I'd just like to ask Chris Dagnall about rumors about him Joining Williams in 1995 to replace Senna?

[Aerond]

I'd just like to ask Chris Dagnall about rumors about him Joining Williams in 1995 to replace Senna?

Chris Dagnall: I haven´t yet thought about 1995. I still have a year left with Lotus and it will be hard to break the ties I have with them, plus I´m very happy at the moment. We were talking about winning again in 1994 and we´ve made it and next year the car should be even better. Of course it would be great to drive for Frank but he should talk to Peter Collins first.

[FullMetalJack]

It has come to our attention that Pacific are going for the driver lineup of Giovanni Lavaggi and Jean Denis Deletraz, does this mean your potential move to Pacific is out of the question?

[Aerond]

1994 - ROUND 14 - EUROPEAN GRAND PRIX

"Grand Prix Racing Mag Rumours"

*** Rubens Barrichello, Jean Alesi, Chris Dagnall and test driver David Coulthard being considered by Williams as a replacement for Ayrton Senna.
*** Benetton is trying out Indycar driver Paul Tracy with sights to sign him as Schumacher´s team mate for 1995.
*** McLaren will get rid of Martin Brundle given his poor performance with the McLaren MP4-9
*** Sauber could find a new engine deal securing World Champion Ford ZETEC engine under the new 3000cc 1995 engine regulations.
*** Lotus boss Peter Collins seeking out to sell his team.
*** Minardi looking to improve their engine situation by dealing with Mugen-Honda if Lotus deal falls appart.

Qualifying

Average qualifying. Failed to record a good time on Friday after visiting the gravel during my best lap.

1. Senna -- 1.22.747
2. Schumacher -- 1.23.107
3. Hakkinen -- 1.23.590
4. Hill -- 1.23.753
5. Irvine -- 1.23.826
6. Barrichello -- 1.23.875
---
13. Alesi -- 1.24.600
14. Dagnall -- 1.24.639
15. Brundle -- 1.24.642
---
20. Zanardi -- 1.25.074
---
DNQ. Ratzenberger -- 1.27.718
DNQ. Gachot -- 1.28.615

Race

Lap 1 --> I did an horrendous start. Falling to 19th after failing to secure a place on the inside. Then managed to get through Zanardi and Wendlinger before the end of the lap.
Lap 2 --> passed Herbert, but touched Alboreto´s Minardi at the straight and damaged my front wing, falling to 25th.
Lap 4 --> Beretta is out. 24th. Bernard is 9.6 ahead.
Lap 6 --> Bernard is 0.6 ahead
Lap 7 --> I pass Bernard, and I´m approaching David Brabham but I fail to keep the car on the asphalt at the corner before the back straight and spin out of the race...

Race results




Fastest lap --> Damon Hill; 1.25.402
DOTR --> Ukyo Katayama; Secured his first points ever with a good qualifying and safe race.
ROTR --> Chris Dagnall; Seemed as nervous as a first day rookie.

Only managed to take 2 pics

Senna and Schumacher fighting for the lead at the 1st corner



Clashing with Alboreto´s Minardi here

Chris Dagnall:

A weekend to forget. Now getting the 4th place is harder, but we can still make it

CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS - After 14 races

DRIVERS CHAMPIONSHIP

1. Michael Schumacher -- 92 pts
2. Damon Hill -- 64 pts
3. Ayrton Senna -- 54 pts
4. Rubens Barrichello -- 30 pts
5. Jean Alesi -- 26 pts
6. Chris Dagnall -- 25 pts
7. Mika Hakkinen -- 20 pts
=. Gerhard Berger -- 20 pts
9. Mark Blundell -- 7 pts
10. Martin Brundle -- 6 pts
11. Eddie Irvine -- 5 pts
=. Olivier Panis -- 5 pts
13. JJ Lehto -- 4 pts
14. Heinz Harald Frentzen -- 2 pts
=. Karl Wendlinger -- 2 pts
=. Ukyo Katayama -- 2 pts

CONSTRUCTORS CHAMPIONSHIP

1. Williams-Renault -- 118 pts
2. Benetton-Ford -- 96 pts
3. Ferrari - 46 pts
4. Jordan-Hart -- 35 pts
5. McLaren-Peugeot -- 26 pts
6. Lotus-Mugen-Honda -- 25 pts
7. Tyrrell-Yamaha - 9 pts
8. Ligier-Renault - 5 pts
9. Sauber-Mercedes - 4 pts

[shinji]

One year since the first post, congrats are definitely in order Aerond!

[Aerond]

1994 - ROUND 15 - JAPAN

Qualifying

Good session; the Lotus moved well around Suzuka, which has become over the years one of my favourite tracks.

1. Senna -- 1.36.365
2. Schumacher -- 1.36.567
3. Hill -- 1.36.910
4. Hakkinen -- 1.37.166
5. Alesi -- 1.37.479
6. Barrichello -- 1.37.596
---
9. Irvine -- 1.37.913
10. Dagnall -- 1.37.960
11. Wendlinger -- 1.38.269
---
20. Zanardi -- 1.38.952
---
DNQ. Bernard -- 1.41.823
DNQ. Gachot -- 1.43.066

Race

Lap 1 --> It seems that the Lotus 109 goes backwards sometimes as by the first corner I´m 14th. However, Morbidelli tries not to collide with Martini and by doing it so touches my wheels and he flights out of the track, taking Martini with him as well. The Lotus seems fine and I overtake Herbert, Irvine and Wendlinger by the end of the 1st lap
Lap 2 --> I pass Katayama and Brundle
Lap 3 --> I pass the second Tyrrell, Hill has a problem and pits. 7th
Lap 5 --> I pass Barrichello. 6th
Lap 6 --> I pass Alesi. 5th. Hakkinen is 3.3 ahead
Lap 10 --> Hakkinen is 2.4 ahead
Lap 13 --> I pass Hakkinen for 4th. Berger is 11.4 ahead.
Lap 18 --> Berger pits. So he´s going for a 2 stop strategy against my one stop strategy. I move up to 3rd.
Lap 23 --> Hakkinen pits, so now Barrichello is 10.8 behind in 4th. Schumacher and Senna are so far up ahead that´s pointless to worry about them
Lap 25 --> Berger moves up to 4th and is 10.8 behind.
Lap 28 --> Berger retires. I pit and emerge 5th behind Barrichello and Alesi.
Lap 29 --> Barrichello pits. 4th
Lap 30 --> Alesi pits. 3rd. Hakkinen is 4.0 behind.
Lap 32 --> Senna retires. 2nd. Hakkinen is 2.3 behind now.
Lap 34 --> Hakkinen passes me for 2nd. But he has to pit soon. I recover the 2nd place a lap later.
Lap 35 --> Schumacher is out!!! I move up 1st!!
Lap 36 --> Hakkinen pits. Barrichello is 2nd, 10.8 behind.
Lap 40 --> Barrichello is 9.7
Lap 42 --> Hill is now 2nd and he´s 5.4 ahead after a minor mistake.
Lap 43 --> I run too wide at the first Degner and I´m out of the race!!!

Results




Fastest lap; Michael Schumacher -- 1.37.809
DOTR; Damon Hill -- Passed the whole field after an early pit for a great win, which secures his 2nd place in the championship.
ROTR; Olivier Beretta -- Rammed Alboreto´s car, ran way slower than Comas and then left quietly.

Pics

The start



Morbidelli flying



Passing Irvine



Then Alessi



Then Hakkinen



Beretta crashing



Senna´s car expiring, a familiar sight this season



Fighting with Hakkinen later



Heavy accident

Chris Dagnall said:

I´m embarrased. I´m so sorry because the mistake was so childish. I knew Damon was coming quite fast from behind but I should secured a podium finish even then, but I entered the first Degner too fast and that was it. It´s not the best way to go into Australia but it´s not the end of the world either. Adelaide produces good races and we´ll try to have fun and to keep our current position in the drivers championship

CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS - After 15 races

DRIVERS CHAMPIONSHIP

1. Michael Schumacher -- 92 pts
2. Damon Hill -- 74 pts
3. Ayrton Senna -- 54 pts
4. Rubens Barrichello -- 36 pts
5. Jean Alesi -- 26 pts
6. Chris Dagnall -- 25 pts
7. Mika Hakkinen -- 24 pts
8. Gerhard Berger -- 20 pts
9. Mark Blundell -- 8 pts
10. JJ Lehto -- 7 pts
=. Eddie Irvine -- 7 pts
12. Martin Brundle -- 6 pts
13. Olivier Panis -- 5 pts
14. Heinz Harald Frentzen -- 2 pts
=. Karl Wendlinger -- 2 pts
=. Ukyo Katayama -- 2 pts

CONSTRUCTORS CHAMPIONSHIP

1. Williams-Renault -- 128 pts
2. Benetton-Ford -- 99 pts
3. Ferrari - 46 pts
4. Jordan-Hart -- 43 pts
5. McLaren-Peugeot -- 30 pts
6. Lotus-Mugen-Honda -- 25 pts
7. Tyrrell-Yamaha - 10 pts
8. Ligier-Renault - 5 pts
9. Sauber-Mercedes - 4 pts

[Aerond]

One year since the first post, congrats are definitely in order Aerond!

Wow! Happy birthday to me!

[Jack O Melley]

congrats, this is an epic story. I'm really enjoying reading it

[TomWazzleshaw]

Mr Dagnall, as we all know should you qualify for the Australian Grand Prix it would be your 175th race start. Now, admittingly you don't have that many years left in your career as you are as old as Ayrton Senna who as we all know is retiring at the end of the season. The rumours that you might go to Williams next season are growing by the day. Are you going to Williams next season and if you do will we see a sort of "last hurrah" and see a repeat of some of the drives from your time at McLaren or do you see a good 3-4 seasons ahead of you?

[Aerond]

Mr Dagnall, as we all know should you qualify for the Australian Grand Prix it would be your 175th race start. Now, admittingly you don't have that many years left in your career as you are as old as Ayrton Senna who as we all know is retiring at the end of the season. The rumours that you might go to Williams next season are growing by the day. Are you going to Williams next season and if you do will we see a sort of "last hurrah" and see a repeat of some of the drives from your time at McLaren or do you see a good 3-4 seasons ahead of you?

I understand Ayrton´s position, but he´s won 4 Championships and I´ve won just once!! So you can expect me to be running after 1995 for sure... How long? I don´t have an idea ... I´ll retire whenever I´m tired and as long as there´s interest out there for my services. I can´t really answer your question at the moment and you shall wait until the end of the season. Not because I don´t want to tell you everything but because I don´t know what I´m doing next year. If Lotus solves its problems then I´ll definitely be driving a Lotus next season, as you all know my contract expires at the end of the 1995 season. If not... we´ll see what happens.

[Ferrim]

I understand Ayrton´s position, but he´s won 4 Championships and I´ve won just once!!

Now that's interesting because I was in the belief that he had won just twice (1988 and 1990). I had forgotten about his 1985 and 1987 successes with Lotus!

[Aerond]

1994 - ROUND 16 - AUSTRALIA

Qualifying

I simply can´t get around Adelaide (at least since I changed the track version!!). The car was a dog and my performance ver far from remarkable. I think it´s only the 2nd time this season to be passed by Zanardi?

1. Senna -- 1.15.867
2. Schumacher -- 1.16.073
3. Hakkinen -- 1.16.493
4. Hill -- 1.16.665
5. Barrichello -- 1.16.785
6. Irvine -- 1.16.787
---
21. Zanardi -- 1.18.056
---
23. Beretta -- 1.18.530
24. Dagnall -- 1.19.079
25. Brabham -- 1.19.217
---
DNQ. Ratzenberger -- 1.20.148
DNQ. Gachot -- 1.20.833

Race

Lap 1 --> I do a good start moving up to 17th. Then I pass Herbert for 16th.
Lap 2 --> Alesi spins. Panis is 1.5 ahead
Lap 3 --> I´m passed by Herbert, the car is hopelessly slow.
Lap 5 --> I get passed by Blundell, Lehto and Alboreto in an interesting fight at the end of the Brabham straight, then Comas touches me entering the last corner and it´s the end of the season...

Race results




Fastest lap: Ayrton Senna -- 1.16.542
DOTR: Ayrton Senna -- Ends his F1 career in style with a hat trick.
ROTR: Lehto; crashed after fighting at the rear of the midfield in what might have been his last F1 race.




The Comas incident

Chris Dagnall said:

I don´t know why he (Comas) did that. He had no chance to pass me there. Some scientists say that the size of the human brain can vary up to a 25%; Comas is definitely on the lower side of those numbers.

F1 1994 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP STANDINGS --- FINAL RESULTS

Drivers Championship

1. Michael Schumacher -- 98 pts
2. Damon Hill -- 74 pts
3. Ayrton Senna -- 64 pts
4. Rubens Barrichello -- 36 pts
5. Mika Hakkinen -- 28 pts
6. Jean Alesi -- 26 pts
7. Chris Dagnall -- 25 pts
8. Gerhard Berger -- 20 pts
9. Mark Blundell -- 8 pts
10. JJ Lehto -- 7 pts
=. Eddie Irvine -- 7 pts
12. Martin Brundle -- 6 pts
=. Olivier Panis -- 6 pts
14. Heinz Harald Frentzen -- 5 pts
15. Karl Wendlinger -- 2 pts
=. Ukyo Katayama -- 2 pts
17. Johnny Herbert -- 1 pt

Constructors Championship

1. Williams-Renault -- 138 pts
2. Benetton-Ford -- 105 pts
3. Ferrari - 46 pts
4. Jordan-Hart -- 43 pts
5. McLaren-Peugeot -- 34 pts
6. Lotus-Mugen-Honda -- 25 pts
7. Tyrrell-Yamaha - 10 pts
8. Ligier-Renault - 8 pts
9. Sauber-Mercedes - 7 pts

[Aerond]

25 November, 1994

Grand Prix International Mag

***BREAKING NEWS***

Lotus to withdraw??

Lotus boss Peter Collins has admitted his team is in serious trouble, despite having won one race during the 1994 F1 Season. The team apparently has debts over $14 Million, although both drivers have been paid their full salaries. When asked about their perspectives into the 1995 season with the heavy rule changes, Collins said "The Lotus 112 is under development, but we´ll need extra backers to put a competitive package". Hitachi has already confirmed its departure from F1 and the team doesn´t have a title sponsor for the 1995 season yet. Mugen representatives have been spotted keeping conversations at the Minardi and Ligier motorhomes during the last two races of the last season, and a lack of engine deal could be a final straw for the team, although after the good results of 1994 there´s a list of potential investors willing to save the Norfolk based outfit.

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Williams confirms 1995 line-up

Rothmans Williams Renault chief technical director Patrick Head has confirmed the driver line up to bring back the drivers championship to Williams. The first driver will be Damon Hill, after Senna´s retirement, and it will be another Brazilian, Rubens Barrichello, who will fill the 4 times world champion place inside the Grive squad. Damon Hill completed a good season, finishing 2nd in the championship ahead of his team-mate, and Rubens Barrichello completed an oustanding 1994 season beating both Ferraris, Chris Dagnall and Mika Hakkinen for the 4th place in the championship and bringing the Jordan team the 4th place in the constructors championship, the best the team has achieved after its 6th place in their debut season in 1991. The french driver Julles Boullion will be the test driver.

[Ferrim]

Dagnall to Jordan?

If Lotus goes bust, then PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE give the Mugen Honda engine to Minardi!! And make it as powerful as if it was running in the back of the Ligier.

[Phoenix]

Better still...

Take Dagnall to Ferrari after Berger decides to retire following Ayrton's decision

[Aerond]

4 January 1995

Pacific buys over Lotus assets

After weeks of negotiations, Peter Collins failed to secure a future for the Lotus Formula One team. The administrators named by the Tax Office, opened a bid in order to sell the assets of the team. Pacific team owner, Keith Wiggins, has subsequently bough over one of the most valuable things of the Lotus team, the one year contract the Norfolk team had with the British 1991 Formula One World Champion, Chris Dagnall, as well as some contracts on other staff. Wiggins went on to outbid Jordan Grand Prix boss Eddie Jordan, and Chris Dagnall itself, who wanted to buy his own contract in order to be free to choose a team himself (presumably McLaren, in needs of a number one driver after a fruitless 1994, and Ferrari, not very happy with Gerhard Berger). In the end, Mr. Wiggins bought the contract for $8.4 Million, 5.5 of which will go to the driver in terms of salary. This is what Wiggins told the press afterwards;

"This is a great step for Pacific in order to establish ourselves as a serious Formula One outfit. Having secured the services of a World Champion like Chris Dagnall will mean a major leap for the team in terms of performance and we hope to give him a competitive car next season to secure our first points finishes in the championship"

It´s believed that Wiggins movement is a big gamble in order to bring some serious sponsorship into the Pacific team. The outfit struggled in 1994 with a terrible car and they´re moving into Ford ED powerplants for next season. Chris Dagnall was not available for comment after losing the bid, but he´s expected to come to the Pacific headquarters in the next few days to mould his seat.

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Larrousse confirms sponsor and driver line-up for 1995

Gerhard Larrousse has confirmed that Tourtel has renewed for one year as the main sponsor for the Larrousse F1 team. The french team was believed to be into serious money trouble after a bad 1994, but their commercial relationships with the beer giant have gone through for another season. It´s been confirmed that the car won´t be green, but a combination of Red and White in Kronenburg colours, which will be the brand Tourtel will be promoting. As the driver line up, Larrousse will have to trust unexperienced drivers in order to obtain the necessary sponsorship, signing the GT star Christophe Bouchut as their first driver, and the former F3000 swiss Jean-Denis Deletraz

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Mugen-Honda twin deal

Representatives of Mugen have announced in a press note that they´re expanding into a two team operation for the 1995 season. Therefore, it´s not a surprise that both Ligier and Minardi will enjoy Mugen engines during 1995. It´s believed that Ligier will be able to retain the announced line up of Olivier Panis and Martin Brundle, but Minardi has parted ways with Pierluigi Martini in order to acommodate Aguri Suzuki, who will be lining up with rookie Luca Badoer.

[shinji]

What is Dagnall doing?