Grand Prix of Monaco

Qualifying order:

Finishing order:

Play-by-play:

Häkkinen holds pole for McLaren. With Ben Dover out, Eileen is driving for Mediocrity again. The two Ferraris compose the second row.

The field gets away cleanly through Sainte Devote, with Häkkinen taking the lead. The Finnish fan club is ecstatic! On the following straights, the two Ferraris slipstream past Eileen into 2^nd and 3^rd, with Coulthard’s McLaren up to fourth early. Championship leader A.J. Foyt, who started in ninth, slipstreams up to seventh, the BMW engine more than a match for the two-year-old Cosworths.

Häkkinen leads into the Casino corner, but Schumacher drops back. Dover recovers up to third, and she and Coulthard go side-by-side with Unser for second. As they fly into Mirabeau, it’s a five-car fight for the lead!

Unser nips into the lead at Mirabeau. Eileen tries to get past him on the inside, but overcooks it; Häkkinen and Coulthard also drop past him on the inside. Unser and Häkkinen touch in the next corner, but as the cars accelerate up to speed through Portier, the two Ferraris are running a gear higher and Schumacher leaps into the lead. Unser swings past at the chicane, but they’re opening up a big lead.

Further back, Foyt and Max Crash touch at Mirabeau. Dick Plunger drops back to ninth, and Foyt is up to sixth at Portier. Eileen, leading Mediocrity, makes a derisive remark about mistaking the PowerBran cars for debris, but they both hit the exit to pass Foyt and close the gap on the leaders. By the chicane, they’ve both passed Coulthard and are looming large in her mirrors. Max Crash passes her at Tabac, amazing up to fourth after only half a lap!

Schumacher and Unser put on a great show for the fans, trading the lead at every corner but careful to give each other plenty of room. The real battle is now for third, and Max Crash puts a great move on Mika Häkkinen at the Swimming Pool. Eileen Dover and David Coulthard jump to 3^rd and 4^th at the entry to Bascasse, but Crash and Häkkinen appear to have a better line. Häkkinen misses the shift and the other three accelerate away, catching up to Schumacher as he slows for the pits.

LAP 1:

Max Crash flies out of the pits, screaming past Dover and Coulthard at Ste. Devote. He catches Unser at the Casino, taking the lead for the second straight race, but Unser retakes it in the next corner. Schumacher, after a slow pit stop to repair some suspension, rejoins in 5^th, and can only watch as Foyt slipstreams past, waving as he goes by. Crash falters, and David Coulthard takes up the challenge, trying to pass Unser and Mirabeau. He holds it through Loews and Portier – we have a new leader at the halfway mark! The field strings out behind, with Unser settling into second, Crash third, Dover fourth, and Schumacher fifth after passing Foyt at Portier.

But by Tabac, Unser is fading and Crash runs second with Eileen Dover in third. Foyt drops further back, surrendering sixth to Häkkinen and seventh to Plunger before spinning at Bascasse and falling completely out of contention. No points for the leader this race.

LAP 2:

When the lead cars pit, Schumacher jumps to 2^nd, and he flies past Coulthard at the Casino, an absolutely astounding – and car-consuming – pass. On the McLaren radio, Coulthard asks, “What was that red streak?” Häkkinen replies, “I’m getting all too used to that red streak.” Max Crash, who dropped to 5^th on the pit stops, passes Unser and Dover at the Casino. At the front, though, Coulthard retakes the lead at Mirabeau, and Crash begins challenging Schumacher as well. Häkkinen screams into Loews in 4^th place, and it looks very good for McLaren today.

Coulthard pulls wall away out of Portier, and Max Crash passes Schumacher to take up the challenge. By Tabac, Crash has caught Coulthard to battle for the lead. The fading Schumacher has lost another place to Eileen Dover, and Häkkinen and Unser look secure in the points with a large gap back to seventh place.

Max Crash goes for the lead, slipping ahead of Coulthard. It looks like he’ll win the race after being so brutally robbed by car failure at Austria… but with victory in his grasp, he spins on the exit! Coulthard is set for McLaren’s first victory! But just as the pit crew begins to celebrate, word comes that Häkkinen has spun out at the Swimming Pool. As Coulthard takes the checkered flag for McLaren’s first win, Eileen Dover slips into a well-deserved second place after a steady drive.

Max Crash accelerates up to speed but the two Ferraris fly past him, with Mario Unser Jr. taking third and Schumacher fourth, leaving the two teammates tied for the championship lead. The two spun cars get back up to speed, with Crash finishing fifth and Mika Häkkinen sixth. The total of nine cars finishing is the most finishes to date this season, and the first time nobody’s race ended early.