Hill signs 2-year deal with Jordan; Benetton confirm line up; Frentzen fastest at A-1 Ring
© 1997 ATLAS F1

Friday September 19, 1997

The Benson & Hedges Jordan team announced today that 1996 World Champion Damon Hill would be driving for the team (who will use Mugen Honda engines) for 1998 and 1999.

At the press conference, Jordan revealed that the deal had been made 10 days ago, shortly after the Italian Grand Prix where Damon joined Eddie Jordan, Technical Director Gary Anderson and the B&H management on a private flight back from Monza. This predates announcements by Sauber, Prost, and Arrows indicating that Jordan was Hill's first choice rather than his last chance.

"Naturally I a delighted to have signed Damon, " said Eddie. "This gives us a blend of youth and experience, with Ralf and Damon making a very exciting line up for next season. We tried to get Damon last year but didn't, so we signed two young drivers and invested the money in the technical side. Now, one year on, we are able to sign Damon and hopefully that will help us become a winning team."

Damon said "I believe that the very strong Mugen Honda package, plus the technical facilities now in place at Jordan, means that I can win more races and go for my second World Championship. I am very positive about this deal. I did not sign for Jordan last year because I was not sure about the team's abilities, but this year they have joined the upper echelons of Formula One teams and they have an impressive package."


Benetton confirm line up

Benetton have confirmed that Giancarlo Fisichella and test-driver Alexander Wurz will race for them in 1998.

Wurz said "This is like a dream for me. I have known about this deal for some time and I wanted to tell the world, but until today I have not been able to mention it"

This will probably mean that Gerhard Berger will retire when his contract with Benetton expires at the end of the season.


Frentzen fastest at A-1 Ring

Summary


The Williams duo seemed to be unbeatable today. Frentzen topped the times today followed by Villeneuve. Barrichello clocked an excellent third.

Notes


The Times


  1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.

Frentzen (Williams-Renault) G
Villeneuve (Williams-Renault) G
Barrichello (Stewart-Ford) B
Fisichella (Jordan-Peugeot) G
Hakkinen (McLaren-Mercedes) G
Coulthard (McLaren-Mercedes) G
M. Schumacher (Ferrari) G
Berger (Benetton-Renault) G
Diniz (Arrows-Yamaha) B
Irvine (Ferrari) G
Hill (Arrows-Yamaha) B
Herbert (Sauber-Petronas) G
Alesi (Benetton-Renault) G
Trulli (Prost-Mugen) B
Morbidelli (Sauber-Petronas) G
R. Schumacher (Jordan-Peugeot) G
Nakano (Prost-Mugen) B
Magnussen (Stewart-Ford) B
Katayama (Minardi-Hart) B
Salo (Tyrrell-Ford) G
Verstappen (Tyrrell-Ford) G
Marques (Minardi-Hart) B

107% rule

B: Bridgestone G: Goodyear

1m 11.527s
1m 11.638s
1m 11.798s
1m 11.899s
1m 11.902s
1m 11.907s
1m 12.265s
1m 12.283s
1m 12.519s
1m 12.548s
1m 12.614s
1m 12.751s
1m 12.820s
1m 12.935s
1m 12.966s
1m 13.041s
1m 13.280s
1m 13.286s
1m 13.348s
1m 14.079s
1m 14.188s
1m 14.739s

1m 16.534s

The Quotes



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