Race Report
1996 Pole: Michael Schumacher (Ferrari) 1m 17.129s
The Starting Grid
| Michael Schumacher | Ferrari | 1m 14.672s |
| Jacques Villeneuve | Williams-Renault | 1m 14.859s |
| Damon Hill | TWR Arrows-Yamaha | 1m 15.044s |
| Mika Hakkinen | McLaren-Mercedes | 1m 15.140s |
| Eddie Irvine | Ferrari | 1m 15.424s |
| Heinz-Harald Frentzen | Williams-Renault | 1m 15.520s |
| Gerhard Berger | Benetton-Renault | 1m 15.699s |
| David Coulthard | McLaren-Mercedes | 1m 15.705s |
| Jean Alesi | Benetton-Renault | 1m 15.905s |
| Rubens Barrichello | Stewart-Ford | 1m 16.138s |
| Johnny Herbert | Sauber-Petronas | 1m 16.138s |
| Jarno Trulli | Prost-Mugen | 1m 16.297s |
| Gianni Fisichella | Jordan-Peugeot | 1m 16.300s |
| Ralf Schumacher | Jordan-Peugeot | 1m 16.686s |
| Gianni Morbidelli | Sauber-Petronas | 1m 16.766s |
| Shinji Nakano | Prost-Mugen | 1m 16.784s |
| Jan Magnussen | Stewart-Ford | 1m 16.858s |
| Jos Verstappen | Tyrrell-Ford | 1m 17.095s |
| Pedro Diniz | TWR Arrows-Yamaha | 1m 17.118s |
| Ukyo Katayama | Minardi-Hart | 1m 17.232s |
| Mika Salo | Tyrrell-Ford | 1m 17.482s |
| Tarso Marques | Minardi-Hart | 1m 18.020s |
1996 Winner: Jacques Villeneuve (Williams) 1h 46m 21.134s
The Result
| Jacques Villeneuve | Williams-Renault | 1h 45m 47.149s |
| Damon Hill | TWR Arrows-Yamaha | 1h 45m 56.228s |
| Johnny Herbert | Sauber-Petronas | 1h 46m 07.594s |
| Michael Schumacher | Ferrari | 1h 46m 17.650s |
| Ralf Schumacher | Jordan-Peugeot | 1h 46m 17.864s |
| Shinji Nakano | Prost-Mugen | 1h 46m 28.661s |
| Jarno Trulli | Prost-Mugen | 1h 47m 02.701s |
| Gerhard Berger | Benetton-Renault | 1h 47m 03.558s |
| Eddie Irvine | Ferrari | 76 laps - spun off |
| Ukyo Katayama | Minardi-Hart | 1 lap down |
| Jean Alesi | Benetton-Renault | 1 lap down |
| Tarso Marques | Minardi-Hart | 2 laps down |
| Mika Salo | Tyrrell-Ford | 2 laps down |
| David Coulthard | McLaren-Mercedes | 65 laps - electrics |
| Jos Verstappen | Tyrrell-Ford | 61 laps - |
| Pedro Diniz | TWR Arrows-Yamaha | 53 laps - |
| Gianni Fisichella | Jordan-Peugeot | 42 laps - |
| Heinz-Harald Frentzen | Williams-Renault | 29 laps - refuelling valve failure |
| Rubens Barrichello | Stewart-Ford | 29 laps - |
| Mika Hakkinen | McLaren-Mercedes | 12 laps - |
| Gianni Morbidelli | Sauber-Petronas | 8 laps - engine |
| Jan Magnussen | Stewart-Ford | 5 laps - |
Fastest Lap
1997 : Heinz-Harald Frentzen (Williams) 1m 18.372s
Lap Record: Nigel Mansell (Williams) 1m 18.308s (1992)
Analysis :
In a stunning performance the reigning World Champion put the Bridgestone shod machine on the second row of the grid and after 10 laps, into the lead of the race. For the next 64 laps, Hill simply drove into the distance, but with just 3 laps to go everything started to fall apart. A hydraulic problem started to make the engine cut out, then with the teams first ever vicory in sight, the gearbox jammed in neutral ...
It takes talent, the right equipment and lots of luck to win a World Championship, and right now Jacques Villeneuve is getting all the breaks. A month after winning at Silverstone thanks to an exploding Mercedes engine, he was in the right place to capitalize on the faultering TWR-Arrows of Damon Hill.
Villeneuve had to take to the grass on the last lap to pass the weaving Hill, who somehow managed to find second gear and crawled over the line for a podium finish.
Even Villeneuve agreed that Hill deserved to win, a point that no-one would argue.
Photo credits : AP / F1Picturenet / Allsport