British Grand Prix

Position:	Driver:	Team:	Time:
1.	M Hakkinen	Mclaren	1min 23.271secs
2.	M Schumacher	Ferrari	1min 23.720secs
3.	J.Villeneuve	Williams	1min 24.102secs
4.	D Coulthard	Mclaren	1min 24.310secs
5.	E Irvine	Ferrari	1min 24.436secs
6.	HH Frentzen	Williams	1min 24.442secs
7.	D Hill	Jordan	1min 24.542secs
8.	J Alesi	Sauber	1min 25.081secs
9.	J.Herbert	Sauber	1min 25.084secs
10.	G Fisichella	Benetton	1min 25.654secs
11.	A Wurz	Benetton	1min 25.760secs
12.	P.Diniz	Arrows	1min 26.376secs
13.	M Salo	Arrows	1min 26.487secs
14.	J Trulli	Prost	1min 26.808secs
15.	J. Verstappen	Stewart	1min 26.948secs
16.	R Barrichello	Stewart	1min 26.990secs
17.	T Takagi	Minardi	1min 27.061secs
18.	E Tuero	Tyrrell	1min 28.051secs
19.	S.Nakano	Minardi	1min 28.123secs
20.	R Rosset	Tyrrell	1min 28.608secs
**21.	R Schumacher	Jordan	1min 25.461secs
**22.	O.Panis	Prost	1min 26.847secs

** Ralf Schumacher (Jordan) and Olivier Panis (Prost) demoted to 21st and 22nd places for failing technical regulations during qualifying.

It hadn't rained for an hour or two so the race got underway on a drying track but with the threat of rain to come.

Mika Hakkinen in the McLaren made a good start away from the grid into the lead followed by the Ferrari of Michael Schumacher and the second McLaren of David Coulthard. Schumacher's Ferrari team-mate got away slowly and soon found himself back in tenth place. However Jean Alesi got everything right at the start to gain fourth spot.

After 4 laps David Coulthard made a superb move to pass Michael Schumacher which left the top six on lap 5 - Hakkinen, Coulthard, M. Schumacher, Alesi, Villeneuve, Frentzen. By lap 8 Ralf Schumacher in the Jordan who had been forced to start from the back of the grid because of a technical infringement in qualifying (had used Damon Hill's spare car after spinning out in his own during qualifying ane was found in scrutineering not to be able to get his knees past the steering wheel when getting out) was already up into 12th spot and would go on to claim Jordan's first Championship point of 1998 finishing sixth. His team-mate Damon Hill however spun out on lap 14.

The order on lap 17 was Hakkinen 4 seconds ahead of Coulthard 6 seconds ahead of M. Schumacher, Alesi, Irvine,Villeneuve. Frentzen was by now out of the race and the Stewart cars who had gambled by starting the race on dry weather tyres lost out when the rain which had started lighty some laps earlier was by now getting heavier and into the pits they came for full wets.

After the first round of pitstops Coulthard and Schumacher had the early advantage by staying on intermediate tyres while Hakkinen struggled a little at first with full wets. however, this turned round somewhat when the rain got even heavier.

By lap 30, half race distance, the order was Hakkinen 1 sec ahead of Coulthard 10 secs ahead of M.Schumacher, Irvine, Alesi, R.Schumacher. Ralf Schumacher came into the pits on lap 35 and very nearly gave Patrick Head of the William's team a wake-up call atarting to cross the pitlane as the Jordan went by.

Just over two-thirds distance and Mika Hakkinen takes the first of two excursions off the track through the gravel, over the grass and back onto the tarmac. The only damage his car was to his front wing but and was very lucky to find the track again both times and stay in the race. On lap 44 torrential rain, sppinning cars and a track that more resembled a river than a roadway brought out the safety car. This of course caused the field to bunch up and Mika Hakkinen's 40 second lead over Michael schumacher was reduced to virtually nothing. Hakkinen as leader was of course the first car behind the safety car but Fisichella's Benetton, a lap adrift was postioned in front of Schumacher. Next came the other Benetton again a lap behind with the other Ferrari of Eddie Irvine behind that.

Jean Todt of Ferrari was seen to go over to Dave Richards of Benetton just to check that the Benetton drivers would get out of the way of the Ferraris nice and quickly at the restart. The rain stopped and after a few laps away went the safety car and the race was underway again. Michael Schumacher raced past the Benetton as they sped along the start/finish straight aware that he was not aloud to actually pass a car after the restart until they were over the start/finish line.

On lap 52 with the sun now coming out and following Hakkinen's second off track trip which allowed Schumacher to take the lead, the order was M. Schumacher, Hakkinen, Irvine, Alesi, Fisichella, Wurz. With five laps to go Schumacher had pulled out a 14 second lead over Hakkinen who was now being pressured by Irvine although after a lap or two Irvine began dropping back a little. Only the top three Schumacher, Hakkinen and Irvine were on the same lap. With just a few laps to go came the news that Michael Schumacher had been handed a 10 second penalty apparently for overtaking Wurz too early at the restart after the safety car.Each lap went by without Schumacher coming in to the pits for the penalty although his crew were out and ready.

in a very confusing and rather bizarre end to the race Schumacher brought his Ferrari into the pits at the end of the last lap effectively crossing the finishing line in the pits. He stopped in his pit, waited for the 10 seconds and then drove out again. No-one seemed quite sure whether this meant he had won the race, whether it counted as he had crossed the finishing line before stopping for the penalty or what? However he was declared the winner of the race, took the podium and awaited the outcome of an appeal by the McLaren team! The appeal was not upheld and the result stood.

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