Background
Heading into the eleventh round of the season, Ferrari driver Michael Schumacher was leading the Drivers' Championship with 53 points; ahead of Williams driver Jacques Villeneuve on 43 points, and the two Benetton drivers, Jean Alesi and Gerhard Berger , on 22 and 20 points respectively. The Constructors' Championship was closer at the front, with Ferrari on 71 points leading Williams on 62 points.
Practice and qualifying
Hill, as defending world champion, until then had experienced a bad year in the backmarker Arrows-Yamaha car and was 17th in the overall championship standings. But arriving in Hungary, he set the fifth fastest time on Friday practice after just a single flying lap, after sitting for 55 minutes in the garage while his mechanics tore the gearbox off the car, looking for an electronic sensor problem. Later, Hill qualified in 3rd place behind Villeneuve, with Schumacher claiming pole position. Hill...
Race
The slow pace of the German driver permitted several drivers to close on him. Mika Häkkinen, one of the drivers chasing Schumacher, retired on lap 12, meanwhile the Ferrari driver would soon pit for the first of three times in the race. The slow Schumacher permitted Hill to open a reasonable gap to the others behind and never was contested for the lead, specially after a slow pit stop for Jacques Villeneuve. On lap 74, with three laps left, the hydraulic pump failed on Hill's car, causing it to become stuck in third gear and have an intermittent throttle. As a result, Hill started losing time and was overtaken by Villeneuve part-way through the final lap. Villeneuve won the race with Hill finishing second, and Johnny Herbert took the third place on the podium. Eddie Irvine, who had passed Nakano for the final point, lost it on the last lap to the Japanese driver when his car broke down. Johnny Herbert scored his only podium of the season, while Shinji Nakano equalled his career-best finish of 6th. Gianni Morbidelli returned for Sauber in place of Norberto Fontana after missing three races through injury. Hill's second position also marked the best ever result for Yamaha engines in Formula One.
Race Result
| Pos | No | Driver | Constructor | Time | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5 | Michael Schumacher | Ferrari | 1:14.672 | |
| 2 | 3 | Jacques Villeneuve | Williams-Renault | 1:14.859 | + 0.187 |
| 3 | 1 | Damon Hill | Arrows-Yamaha | 1:15.044 | + 0.372 |
| 4 | 9 | Mika Häkkinen | McLaren-Mercedes | 1:15.140 | + 0.468 |
| 5 | 6 | Eddie Irvine | Ferrari | 1:15.424 | + 0.752 |
| 6 | 4 | Heinz-Harald Frentzen | Williams-Renault | 1:15.520 | + 0.848 |
| 7 | 8 | Gerhard Berger | Benetton-Renault | 1:15.699 | + 1.027 |
| 8 | 10 | David Coulthard | McLaren-Mercedes | 1:15.705 | + 1.033 |
| 9 | 7 | Jean Alesi | Benetton-Renault | 1:15.905 | + 1.233 |
| 10 | 16 | Johnny Herbert | Sauber-Petronas | 1:16.138 | + 1.466 |
Championship Standings After This Race
The Paddock Breakdown
Barry · Gary · KatGary — 33 · Three Fantasy F1 leagues
Hold on to your hats! The air here at Hungaroring is thick with the scent of burning rubber and shattered dreams – Villeneuve just snatched victory from Damon Hill's grasp on the very last curve! That Williams-Renault, a beast boasting 670 horsepower, exploited a weakness in the Arrows' hydraulic system, a catastrophic failure that cost Hill the championship lead. Remember, the Arrows' Yamaha engine, a 750cc V10, was struggling to keep pace with the increasingly dominant Renault technology. This wasn't just a race; it was a brutal, decisive moment in the history of Formula One.
Hold on. The air crackles. The tension…it's a palpable thing here at Hungaroring. Villeneuve! He's snatched it! Damon Hill, for the majority of this brutal, beautiful contest, had been the master, a titan of control. But hydraulic failure—a catastrophic betrayal—allowed the young Canadian to seize the crown. This, my friends, is the very definition of a shattering moment, a statistical anomaly in the grand scheme of things.
Kat — 30 · Technical journalist
The air crackled, thick with the scent of burning rubber and the silent scream of a championship hanging in the balance! Hill, a ghost of the dominance he once possessed, wrestled with the Arrows, desperately clinging to a lead that felt like sand slipping through his fingers. Villeneuve, a predator sensing weakness, stalked the Englishman, the Williams a snarling beast hungry for victory. Then, a shudder, a groan, and the unthinkable – hydraulics gone, a catastrophic loss of control, and suddenly, the gap closed, swallowed by the Hungarian asphalt. This was it, wasn't it? The closest the Arrows team ever came to a Grand Prix miracle.
The rain, a venomous serpent, coiled around Hungaroring today. Damon Hill, drenched and furious, spat rainwater onto the track – a tangible manifestation of his simmering frustration. You could practically taste the championship pressure radiating off him, a palpable weight amplified by the slick asphalt. Villeneuve, cool and calculating, simply *moved*. That pass, executed with brutal precision, wasn't just a maneuver; it was a statement. A declaration that the young Canadian wasn't merely a contender – he was hungry. The Arrows team, once a force, now haunted by mechanical demons, watched helplessly as their driver's dream fractured. A brutal reminder that in this arena, victory demands more than speed; it requires flawless execution.