1997 Hungarian Grand Prix : 1997 Hungarian Grand Prix: Arrows Misses the Target and Wins
By Jeremy McMullenBy far, the largest ovation on the podium would go to the man that had finished in 2nd place. In the mind of just about everyone assembled around the circuit or watching the race around the globe, Damon Hill had proven the move to Arrows was not an errant shot made by a reigning World Champion. Arrows had been the consummate tail-end team, yet on this day, even though they missed the target, they would win.
There have been many David versus Goliath stories; many stories of the underdog coming through to beat the top dogs. However, the Hungarian Grand Prix on the 10th of August in 1997 would be a race for the ages precisely because it would not follow the usual lines of a David versus Goliath story. More akin to a Shakespearean tragedy, the actual results would be that of defeat, and yet, in defeat there would be victory.
The story of the 1997 Hungarian Grand Prix would actually begin with the previous couple of seasons. Damon Hill would be with Williams and in some very hot water with the team's founder Frank Williams. The 1995 season had been tipped as the season in which Hill would earn the World Championship that would lead to him joining his father amongst the Formula One elite. Instead, the season would turn into a disaster with Hill not only failing to secure the World Championship but Williams would complete the season behind Benetton-Renault in the Constructors' Championship results as well.
Hill, in the minds of everybody in and around Formula One, was Williams' number one driver and he would end the season with just 20 more points than David Coulthard in the second FW17. Had it not been for his contract extending into the 1996 season there were more than enough verifiable rumors that Hill would not have been with Williams for the '96 season.
It appeared Hill had missed his opportunity and the hiring by Williams of highly touted rookie Jacques Villeneuve appeared to support the notion. In spite of facing a strained relationship within the team, Hill would start out the 1996 season storming to the lead of the World Championship. Earning six victories through the first nine races of the season, Hill had a commanding lead until the latter-half of the season when Villeneuve began to mount a challenge of his own.
The season would come down to the final race of the season. Hill would demonstrate the drive and the determination that had once earned him high praise from Williams and Patrick Head. Pressing hard to the checkered flag, Hill would win the race and the World Championship. Finally, Hill achieved what everyone had tipped him to get the season before. Formula One finally had its first father and son World Champions.
Because of his grit and tenacity Hill was a rather popular driver in the paddock and around the world. Despite the popularity, and the fact he was leading the World Championship at the time, Hill would only find out late in 1996 that Williams still would not have him back for the following season. Knowing his time with Williams had come to an end, Hill would have to scramble to find a seat for the following season. Still, many expected the reigning World Champion to sign with a competitive team like McLaren or possibly even Benetton. Talks with McLaren would break down, so that option would be off the table. But surely, being the reigning World Champion there would be other routes Hill could have taken. The one he would take, however, would absolutely floor just about everyone.
Arrows Grand Prix International would be founded in 1977 by Franco Ambrosio, Alan Rees, Jackie Oliver, Dave Wass and Tony Southgate. The team's first season in Formula One would start out rather ominous when its first driver Gunnar Nilsson would die from testicular cancer before he would even slide in behind the wheel of the car. This foreboding start to Arrows Formula One experience would turn into 20 years without a race victory and only a handful of appearances on the podium.
In 1996, the year before Damon Hill would join the team, Tom Walkinshaw would buy the team. Walkinshaw had experienced a great deal of sportscar success including victories in the 24 Hours of Le Mans. However, in 1996, Walkinshaw's two drivers would be Ricardo Rosset and Jos Verstappen. Their FA17 chassis would be powered by an unreliable Hart V8 and the season would result in five double retirements. Verstappen would manage to earn a single point in the Argentine Grand Prix, but would suffer no less than 12 retirements, and this would be out of a possible 16 races. Rosset would manage to do a little better suffering retirements in just half of the total races possible. His best result over the course of the season would be an 8th place earned at the Hungarian Grand Prix.
In the final analysis, it seemed certain Hill was committing suicide joining the team. Arrows wasn't just struggling. That doesn't quite reflect the situation of the team over the previous couple of seasons. Struggling was all too easy for the team. Nonetheless, Hill would join the team for the 1997 season.
Walkinshaw's presence within the team would be an understandable draw for Hill and the Scot would waste no time trying to improve the car and the team. The hiring of Hill would be a big part of that improvement. The other half of that equation was to be Arrows new car, the A18. Hill would win his World Championship while driving the Williams FW18, but the 18 in the chassis identification would be where the similarities began and ended.
While at Williams, Hill would have the luxury of Renault power. At Arrows, everyone would be hoping and praying the Yamaha engine could depart from conventional wisdom and its reputation and run as solidly as the Renault or Ferrari. Arrows would be happy if the engine even ran as good as the Mugen-Honda that powered the Prosts.
Then there was the car itself. It was brand new, and without the facilities and the wealth of the other major teams, there would be greater fragility within the components. Therefore, while the engine was of concern, the car too offered enough worries.
In many respects the worries were less with the fans than likely with Damon and the team. Expectations, having signed with Arrows, were minimal at best. It wasn't as if Hill even had a chance of finishing the season in the top five of the Drivers' Championship.
Worse fears would be confirmed at the very first race of the season. Hill would barely make it into the field for the Australian Grand Prix. Ending up more than 5 seconds slower than Villeneuve's Williams-Renault, Damon would start the race from 20th on the grid, a very unusual spot for a reigning World Champion. But it would get worse. Departing on the parade lap, the throttle in the Arrows would break. Hill's defense of the World Championship would begin with an embarrassing failure to start.
It wouldn't get any better through the first part of the season. Hill would fail to start or would fail to finish five of the first six races of the season. Though Hill was without a World Championship point, he was winning the battle for the sympathy title. This would only grow when he managed to fight and gnaw his way through the British Grand Prix. British hopes for Damon would be quite low, but thanks to retirements and Hill's persistence, the title defense would finally begin with one solitary point.
The 6th at Silverstone seemed likely to be the only highlight of the season for Hill; the assurance of his big mistake secure. But there was still one race on the calendar that offered at least a chance of the sun breaking through the clouds, and that was the Hungarian Grand Prix.
Hill had always performed well at the Hungaroring. He had scored his first Formula One victory at the circuit back in 1993 and would stand on the podium in each of the next three years following. The Hungaroring offered another advantage to Hill and Arrows. Arrows' tire supplier for the 1997 season would be Bridgestone. It would be the tire-maker's first year in Formula One and there would be noticeable differences in performances between it and Goodyear. At just about every circuit on the calendar, Goodyear's experience would prove too strong. However, at the circuits with higher ambient temperatures, the Bridgestone tire performed much better. The Hungaroring was usually one of the hottest of the season and offered Hill and Arrows that glimmer of sunshine. Sure enough, the heat would become Hill's friend.
The season would begin with Hill barely making it into the field for the Australian Grand Prix. Over the course of the season the car would improve. However, at no time would Hill start a race from any higher than 9th on the grid. Therefore, it would come as absolute shock when Hill's name was found on the second row of the grid for the Hungarian Grand Prix. It appeared as though there was a mistake. Sure the heat and the Bridgestone tires would help, but by that much?
Sure enough, Hill would bring his A18 around and would line it up in the 3rd position on the grid prior to the start of the race. People were awake; it was not a dream. However, the real dream was about to begin.
The excitement and the tension would be thick prior to the start of the race. Hill's fans would be out in force around the globe. Starting from the second row of the grid, a podium result was not out of the realm of possibility if everything went right. The lights would go out and Hill would streak off the line ahead of Villeneuve and right behind Schumacher into the first turn. This, in itself, was a remarkable sight, but the truly remarkable was yet to come.
Hill doggedly pursued Schumacher. It would be absolutely mesmerizing and beyond belief the Arrows could keep pace with the Ferrari, even make it appear as though the German was holding the reigning World Champion up. In all actuality, that is exactly what was happening. Then, at the very beginning of the 11th lap of the race what was deemed next to impossible would happen. Damon would sling-shot to the inside of Michael heading into the first turn and would sweep into the lead to a chorus of raucous cheers at the circuit, all over England and throughout the globe.
But that would be just the beginning. Enjoying the benefits of the Bridgestone tires, the Arrows A18 pulled off the impossible by disappearing into the distance. The race would be 77 laps in entirely and throughout the last 40 laps Hill would be out in front and pulling out a margin that, under normal conditions, would be unassailable.
With each passing lap, the miracle became more and more possible, the emotions welled up. Hill was proving he had not shot errantly into the darkness. He was proving his abilities away from having the best car on the grid. On this day, the best car and driver combination was proving to be Damon Hill and the lowly Arrows A18.
The emotions and the cheers were rising. The nerves within Arrows were being run ragged. The laps continued to flash by. Soon there were just 20 laps, then 10. The checkered flag and that elusive victory were practically in sight. Hill was on his way to victory. But it wasn't by the skin of his teeth. The A18 was dominant. No other car still in the race, not even the Williams of his former teammate Villeneuve could gain any time on the Yamaha-powered Arrows. It was too good to be true, yet, there it was for all the world to see.
But then, with three laps remaining in the race, there would be an instant where the Arrows seemed to balk and would not accelerate up to speed. By the end of the lap it would become apparent there was a problem with the car. Listening to the pitch of the engine it would become obvious the car would not change gear. The hydraulics that were preventing the gearbox from changing gear would also lead to fuel pick-up problems and, with just two seconds remaining in the race, the Arrows would almost come to a stop. Hill would fight with the car and would get it to make it through the lap to begin what would be the final lap of the race.
Prior to the start of the final lap of the race, Hill's lead had come down from 14 seconds to 8. By the time he reached the end of the straight and turned into the first turn, the lead would be just about 4 seconds and Villeneuve would be clearly in the background closing up. British fans and champions of Hill could not believe their eyes, could not believe the cold-hearted truth of what was happening.
Villeneuve would sweep by Hill taking to the grass as Damon wrestled to get the car to pick up fuel and carry on. The lead was lost, but now the podium was in jeopardy. Villeneuve would sweep around the long, final right-hander and would streak across to a surprise victory. Almost immediately after crossing the finish line Hill would be forgotten about, but not to the Formula One fans at the track and watching around the world. Limping across the line, Hill would be greeted with emphatically-waving fans, horns and even more points of sympathy. He had secured 2nd place for the Arrows team, their best result since another 2nd place all the way back in 1985 with Thierry Boutsen at the wheel. It was perhaps the best performance of his life and vindication of his talents as a racer.
Villeneuve would arrive in parc ferme the winner of the Hungarian Grand Prix and he would be greeted with cheers and great adulation. However, when Damon Hill arrived as the runner-up it would appear as if there had been some confusion and that Hill had actually won. Damon would emerge as if victorious. He would realize what had been taken from him but that would be overcome by the sheer joy of the moment. Grabbing Villeneuve, the two former teammates would embrace with the Canadian fully aware of the performance the reigning World Champion had put together.
On the podium it would be as if there were two winners. In fact, the jubilation of both Hill and Villeneuve, and for Villeneuve toward Hill's performance, would make for a fantastic and certainly memorable sight. Perhaps never before in the history of Formula One had there been a driver that had the lead slip through their hands and yet come out the winner in the end, but that is exactly what happened on that day in 1997. The Arrows had missed the target and somehow managed to win.