As the curtain closes on another thrilling season in F3000, for Champ, Nick Heidfeld the door into the ultra competitive world of Formula One opens with a seat at Prost for the year 2000. In a season where the number of low points has been as high as the number of high points German ace Nick Heidfeld came through to secure the title that eluded him last year.

The sore point of the year was the death of Gonzalo Rodriguez towards the end of the season, which came as a complete shock to everyone particularly as the likeable Uruguayan was loved throughout the paddock. To add to this Dane, Jason Watt was involved in a serious motorcycle accident in his homeland while on his way back from a photo shoot. Having now come out of an induced coma he was given the heartbreaking news that he is paralysed and may not be able to race again. A terrible loss that is sure to be felt throughout the sport.

The changes made at the start of the year caused many teams a major headache especially the Sauber affiliated Red Bull Junior team and European Formula team who were battling the threat of relegation for most of the season, the British based squad claiming that vital point that will see them in next years Championship.

Having come from third on the grid to take victory the grit and determination of Heidfeld was clear at Imola, he started as he meant to go on. West Competition team mate, Mario Haberfeld didn’t have such a good debut season in the category with non-qualifications and accidents halting his progress. This was the situation that faced many Formula Three graduates, especially the Champions. Brazilian, Enrique Bernoldi showed the to be the best of the British Formula Three graduates qualifying for the majority of the season and showing race winning pace in some races, ironically he had more success than Formula Three rival Haberfeld in the series. Frenchman, Franck Montagny had a positive year with the DAMS outfit taking several points scoring finishes keeping the trend going as he out paced team mate, David Terrien all season.

The late Gonzalo Rodriguez took his only victory of 1999 at the notoriously difficult Monaco race with a dominant performance after Heidfeld picked up a penalty. Heartache befell Kid Jensen Racing when, running in a possible podium position Nicola Minassian had to retire with gearbox failure. A dream debut season for the team headed by motorsport fan David "kid" Jensen. The team was to enjoy its inaugural victory at its home track of Silverstone later in the year with Minassian at the wheel.

A first win for Brazilian Bruno Junqueira at Hockenheim saw the Petrobras man jump straight into the title battle alongside Rodriguez, Minassian and Heidfeld. After a rare mistake by Heidfeld his rivals were able to take advantage of the situation and close the gap. The Petrobras Junior squad had a marginally successful season with two Brazilian drivers teaming up or the team. Max Wilson had a season to forget with no race wins and plenty of controversy. His one race ban at Spa was the result of some aggressive driving at Hungary when he clashed with Norberto Fontana. Junqueira had his best season in the series and was handed his first taste of Formula One by the Williams team. He is likely to replace Max Wilson as the teams test driver for 2000.

The fourth different driver to take victory was Frenchman Stéphane Sarrazin at the Hungaroring. The highlight of his year was the Brazilian Grand Prix where he got his first taste of a Formula One race, albeit having a horrifying crash that halted his charge. A good year for team mate, Andre Couto who had several positive podium finishes through the year. Hungary saw the crowning of Champion, Nick Heidfeld, his second place finish was enough as challenges from Rodriguez and Junqueira failed.

The final two rounds of the year were won by Jason Watt both were dominant performances. A lights–to-flag win at Spa saw drama after drama with Malaysian debutant, Alex Yoong having a huge crash at Eau Rouge and remarkably sustaining no major injuries. Watt dedicated his Nurburgring victory to Gonzalo Rodriguez who died a week earlier while practising for his second CART race. This secured the Dane second place in the Championship knocking Rodriguez down the third. Supernova had a fairly quiet year compared to the hype of last year with Juan Pablo Montoya taking the title from Heidfeld. A driver change mid-season saw Ricardo Maurício move to Red Bull and David Saelens replaced him as team mate to Watt. Saelens took a third place at Magny-Cours and a positive drive at Spa.

This season saw all twenty-one teams battle it out to stay in the series for next year. Some surprise relegation fighters were seen while for other teams it was inevitable that they would be relegated. The Red Bull Junior outfit never really got into the swing of things throughout the season although they were the only relegated team to actually score some points. British based European Formula Racing were facing the drop if it wasn’t for a last gasp effort that saw Jamie Davies finish sixth at Nurburgring. The other five teams to join Red Bull are Durango, Coloni, Lukoil Arden, GP Racing and Monaco Motorsport. This leaves room for the top two teams in the Italian F3000 Championship to be promoted to the big league.

So, what about the Brits? Well, it’s fair to say that this wasn’t the perfect year. Ulsterman, Kevin McGarrity had a good start to the season with a second place finish at Imola, from then on the season got progressively worse with non-qualifications and accidents as well as several good finishes. This was the same for Justin Wilson, the only British newcomer to the series this year. Mechanical failure has prevented him showing his true colours but by using the races as extra test sessions he has learned a lot more about the cars.

The European Formula team of Oliver Gavin and Jamie Davies has had a bumpy season to say the least. Having had a team re-shuffle the season produced few points scoring opportunities for the pair as they only just scraped into the 2000 Championship. F3000 regular, Dino Morelli made his return to the series at Spa for the Coloni team, he qualified for Spa but failed to make the cut for the Nurburgring race.

Taking four of the ten victories this year "Quick Nick" has shown the sport his potential to be a Formula World Champion of the future, and racing with Prost next year will be vital experience for the amiable German. So, who will replace Nick Heidfeld as the 2000 Champion?

By Samantha Moakes 

Round 10
September 25th, Nürburgring, Luxembourg F3000

The final F3000 race of this century was run under a black cloud, the death of the much-loved Gonzalo Rodriguez, at Laguna Seca came as a huge shock to the paddock and perhaps most of all to the Astromega squad. As their mark of respect to the charismatic "Gonchi" the team transported and race prepared his car ready for the race, which he won last year. The entire grid paid their respects to Gonzalo by observing a minutes silence before the practice, race winner, Jason Watt made his own tribute to his late friend by dedicating his race win to the Uruguayan.

The unpredictable Eifel Mountains seemed to bottle up the worst of the weather leaving the F3000 qualifying and race to be run in overcast conditions a stark contrast to those that met the Formula One field. The importance of this weekend couldn’t have been clearer for many teams, win points or face relegation from the series. This was the case particularly for the Red Bull Junior squad and European Formula Racing, both of which were equal in fourteenth place.

Business as usual for Champion Nick Heidfeld claiming pole with the only time under the 1:30 seconds barrier. Spa winner, Jason Watt took his place alongside Heidfeld after claiming the fastest time in the "even" session. Britain’s Justin Wilson put the sole Astromega fifth on the grid a podium finish would be a fitting tribute to his late team mate. Both European Formula cars qualified Jamie Davies lining up in tenth with Oliver Gavin joining his fellow Brit in thirteenth on the grid. Davies commented, " I’m certainly happier with this position on the grid and I know a good start will bode me very well for Saturday. I think we’ve got a good chance of points here so I’m feeling pretty confident".

The Red Bull Junior team were dealt a heavy blow to their relegation battle when Brazilian pilot, Enrique Bernoldi failed to even set a time during his qualifying group. The former British F3 driver had a heavy impact with the tyre barrier very early in the session, which ended his season prematurely. It wasn’t all bad news for the 20-year-old as he got his first taste of Formula One with the Sauber team; he is now one of the firm favourites for the test driver seat next season.

A lightning start by Watt saw him take the lead as Heidfeld got too much wheel spin off the line leaving him in second. A good start by Davies saw the Brit leapfrog several cars at the first corner as Justin Wilson and Bruno Junqueira share a friendly touch that would cause both drivers some problems as the race wore on. An eventful first lap saw Wilson collide with Alex Yoong sending the Malaysian into another terrifying spin into retirement. This set off a chain reaction as Wilson, Junqueira and Gollin all visited the pits for repairs.

The top three began to pull out a gap over Soheil Ayari and the rest of the field with the smallest of margins separating Watt and Heidfeld. The German was attacking Watt like there was no tomorrow he got his nose into every opportunity he could but Watt casually through the pressure back into Heidfeld’s face. This was the story throughout the 45 laps of the Nurburgring. Max Wilson was having a pretty lonely first race back after his race ban running in a distant third to Watt and Heidfeld.

There were heated battles up and down the field in particular Belgian, David Saelens fighting furiously to keep the flying Davies behind him. On the prowl for points Davies was wanting more than one to ensure the future of European Formula Racing in F3000. As well as the relegation battle second place in the Championship was still up for grabs and it looked increasingly likely that Watt would just pip the late Rodriguez to the position. A trio of drivers, Stéphane Sarrazin, Bruno Junqueira and Nicolas Minassian were in the hunt but all fell leaving the way clear from Watt. Sarrazin and Minassian both span themselves out of contention, Sarrazin managing to get the car going and rejoin at the back of the pack.

Andrej Pavicevic was having the race of his life making a real fight with Jeffery van Hooydonk and Ricardo Maurício further down the field, a miscalculation at the chicane by Maurício made it easier for Pavicevic as the Brazilian ran wide over the dirt. Paolo Ruberti kept the crowd entertained with a spin; the Italian was able to continue.

The Red Bull Junior team’s nightmare weekend came to an abrupt end when Ricardo Maurício hit the barriers with force at the same place in which team mate, Enrique Bernoldi wrote off his car in qualifying. The diminutive Brazilian emerged from the wreck obviously disgusted with himself for clipping the kerb and losing control just three laps from home. This secured the team’s fate as relegation candidates.

A last gasp effort from Heidfeld to distract Watt backfired on the German as he braked a touch too late into the Veedol chicane and he never regained the momentum for one more try. So, the last F3000 winner this century was Jason Watt taking his second consecutive victory from Heidfeld and the consistent Max Wilson in third. Frenchman, Soheil Ayari finished probably his last F3000 race in fourth with Saelens just beating Jamie Davies to the line for fifth.

That one point was good enough for the European Formula team to enjoy another season in the category finishing twelfth in the Championship out of twenty-one teams. Davies commented after the race, "I had a flying start, was quick on the lights and had good traction. After passing three cars on the first corner, someone dropped off and I was sitting behind Saelens. I held my position there; I didn’t want any incidents to throw away the vital point. It was nice to finish in the points and good for the team that we’ve qualified for 2000".

Team Boss, Paul Stoddart was pleased with that the team qualified, "The champagne will flow tonight and then we’ll think about next year and a fight for a top three position".

Once again F3000 has proved a worthy junior formulae to F1 with an exciting and action packed finale to a breath taking Championship. With Heidfeld at Prost F1 next season who will succeed him as champion? With a crop of young talent a waiting the vacation of the top seats a fierce title battle is most certainly on the cards for the year 2000.

By Samantha Moakes 

Round 9
August 28th, Spa, Belgium F3000

Deep in the Ardennes the unrelenting and often frightful circuit they call Spa-Francorchamps tests even the bravest of men and their machines. This four-mile circuit is home of perhaps the most overwhelming corner in motor racing, Eau Rouge, and together with its long straights and mixture of corners the circuit is arguably the best in Europe.

The penultimate round of this years F3000 Championship couldn’t have been more action packed and dramatic than it was with the first six laps claiming no less than eight victims the majority in breathtaking style. Malaysian debutant Alex Yoong was the unfortunate victim of a huge shunt at Eau Rouge that resulted in a six-lap safety car period while the paramedics extricated him from his wrecked Monaco Sport machine. Danish pilot Jason Watt was the first man to come through the chaos and take the first victory of the season for him and SuperNova.

Qualifying for the race proved a success for the five British drivers present that weekend. Ultsterman Dino Morelli made his F3000 return, deputising for the Petrobras bound Marcelo Battistuzzi, for the Coloni team. The remaining four Britons all qualified, with European Formula Racing’s Oliver Gavin heading the attack in twelfth position. Gavin commented, " We made significant adjustments after Hungary and it’s paid off today. My car was extremely driveable and responding well, particularly in the mid point of the corners when I first went out in the wet. I’m looking forward to racing and feel confident about the passing potential at Spa". Both European Formula cars headed the times sheets at one point in their respective sessions making what was sure to be a positive race for the team.

SuperNova clinched their first pole of the season with Jason Watt at the wheel while Fabrice Walfisch proved that his pole in Hungary was no fluke by taking the fastest time in the odd session and joining the Dane on the front row. New Prost Grand Prix signing, Nick Heidfeld could only manage a time good enough for tenth spot on the grid a lowly start by his standards. With Bruno Junqueira, Gonzalo Rodriguez and Stéphane Sarrazin all starting higher than the German, and with second place still up for grabs, Heidfeld was handed a front row ticket for the fight.

During the formation lap the challenging undulations of Spa claimed their first of many victims, Frenchman Laurent Delahaye. His GP Racing entry retired to the side of the track as the cars lined up on the grid. More drama ensued as Walfisch stalled his Draco on the front row causing all kinds of mayhem behind as cars tried to avoid him. He eventually restarted his car and joined at the back of the pack. Even more surprising was the site of twenty-six F3000 cars all making it around the tight La Source hairpin without making any contact, this didn’t last for long as by the end of the first lap both Kevin McGarrity and Stéphane Sarrazin were out.

A great start by Jason Watt gave him an instant lead over Nicola Minassian and Soheil Ayari in the chasing pack. This group was soon broken up when Junqueira and Ayari finished their race in the gravel. Ayari continued for several more corners before grinding to a halt in the gravel. All this moved Heidfeld into fifth place from tenth and Ricardo Maurício into a season best sixth place for the Red Bull Junior team. Franck Montagny and Gonzalo Rodriguez were having a good, clean scrap for third until they touched sending Montagny into the pit straight barriers and Rodriguez spinning down the order. Predictably Montagny retired and Rodriguez was able to continue.

More drama ensued in the early laps of the race when while battling with Justin Wilson, Malaysian Alex Yoong was involved in a horrendous accident almost reminiscent of that which befell BAR Formula One driver Ricardo Zonta just an hour before. A rather brave but ambitious move by Wilson didn’t pay off leaving both drivers out of the race, thankfully with no major injuries. A safety car period followed bunching the up the field.

At the restart Rodriguez got the better of Maurício taking the Brazilian in the first of his sensation slipstream moves into Les Combes while Jason Watt sped off once again. Already a gap had become apparent between the first and second groups of cars with Oliver Gavin in the thick of the action battling with five people for seventh spot. The next victim of "Rodriguez shuffle" was Heidfeld, in a perfectly executed move that started at Radillon and finished at Les Combes. The very next lap the Uruguayan put the same move on Minassian having got an impressive run through Eau Rouge, it was clear that Rodriguez wants the second place in the Championship, and wants it bad.

Local hero David Saelens has clearly been taking lessons from Rodriguez, having been battling with Ricardo Maurício for several laps the Belgian pulled off a carbon copy move on the Brazilian to move into fifth place. Andre Couto then caught Maurício and the pair were entangled in perhaps the most entertaining battle of the race. The Brazilian was gifted the last points position when Couto slide out of the Bus Stop and lost some ground. Marc Goosens was next to take a trip at Stavelot and rejoined in fifteenth place only to pull off at the Bus Stop to retire.

Jason Watt fought hard to fend off the attentions of Rodriguez and richly deserved his lights-to-flag victory. One thing is for sure; you can’t accuse Rodriguez of not trying, he put enormous amounts of pressure on Watt but the Dane seemed to just soak it up. Nicola Minassian came home in third place ahead of Heidfeld, Saelens and Maurício in his best finish this year.

Oliver Gavin was the first Brit home in ninth position followed by Dino Morelli in the thick of a six-car train across the line. " I had a good start, managing to hold onto my position and avoid any trouble on the track. After the safety car went in, I had a lot of traction after two laps or so, but on the penultimate lap, I lost time after a rear wheel collision with Morelli", says Gavin. Jamie Davies bought his European Formula car home in eleventh position, he commented, " Moving up to 11^th from 19^th position on the grid isn’t too bad a result but I’m always out for points so it’s disappointing not to bring some home".

With nearly four weeks before the last round of the Championship at the Nurburgring the threat of relegation is very much a possibility for many teams, the competition for points will be fierce and the emotions will run high.

By Samantha Moakes 

Round 8
August 14th, Budapest, Hungary F3000

The winning ways of Frenchman Stéphane Sarrazin were very much over shadowed in Hungary by the second placed Nick Heidfeld, the 1999 F3000 Champion. He brushed aside the disappointment of Hockenheim and dealt with the mounting pressure well to deliver the goods to his team. Many seem to forget that Sarrazin actually won the race to claim the second spot in the table from non-finisher Bruno Junqueira, who had a disastrous weekend.

Qualifying produced some unexpected results as Frenchman Fabrice Walfisch set a blinding lap to take his first F3000 pole. Initially last round winner Junqueira joined him on the front row but later checks revealed his two best times were set under waved yellow flags, this relegated the Brazilian to eighteenth on the grid, subsequently Walfisch was joined by his former French Formula Three adversary Stéphane Sarrazin. Championship leader Nick Heidfeld started in third alongside title contender Gonzalo Rodriguez.

European Formula Racing had mixed fortunes in qualifying with only Britain’s Jamie Davies qualifying for the race. He later commented: " I’m so relieved to be racing. I was concerned about getting back to the pits to get more time in the car after my spin. Having to run back wasted over half of the 45-minute session but my thanks go to the team for their great efforts in getting me back out in Olly’s car so quickly. The back of the grid is far from ideal but points have been scored from such positions in the past few races!"

The second car of Oliver Gavin just missed out by one tenth of a second, he explained: " Having not driven at Hungary before, I found myself having the learn the track and, suffering from what I felt was a nervous car, I found it incredibly hard to find a clear track that would enable me to set a time that would get me in the race".

The Hungaroring is notoriously very difficult to pass on, the fact that the track is only used once a year means that the dust build up is much greater than at say… Jerez. A text book getaway by Walfisch saw him lead into Turn One from a fast starting Heidfeld followed by a slower Sarrazin. A bad start by Rodriguez saw him slip down the order but you have to give the guy credit for sticking to the inside line through Turn One and holding on to fifth place.

The field took several laps to sort itself out and amazingly everyone got around without any incidents. Rodriguez began to pull away from sixth placed Marc Goosens, as the Uruguayan became very big in the mirrors of Andre Couto. The Astromega pilot soon lost out when he spun into the gravel, zero points for the Belgian outfit. Of course this all played into the hands of Heidfeld and with Junqueira battling for position at the tail end of the pack the German only had to hang on to second place to clinch the title.

Everything was going according to plan for the Draco team with Walfisch easing away from Heidfeld, until the Frenchman went too deep into the back chicane allowing for several corners of close, wheel to wheel F3000 racing. Heidfeld saw an opportunity to go through but lost out as both Sarrazin and Walfisch came back at him leaving the German in third by the end of the lap. The drama begun when Sarrazin took the lead from Walfisch, the Draco driver let his compatriot through on the pit straight after picking up a problem. Walfisch’s race was well and truly over when he spun while avoiding the racing line, he rejoined at the back of the pack only to eventually retire in the pits.

The Gauloises Formula team were down to one car when Andre Couto retired with mechanical problems. This promoted Marc Goosens into third his highest position of the year. Bruno Junqueira started a train of retirements when he left the circuit presumably from a spin. Jeffrey van Hooydonk ran too fast into the back chicane resulting in his retirement. Norberto Fontana and Max Wilson were embroiled in their own private battle, only for it to end in tears when they clashed. The stewards later handed Wilson a one-race ban for his part in the incident believing that he was more to blame.

Sarrazin was having a hard job pulling away from the pursuing Heidfeld in the closing stages of the race, the German making a few looks up the inside before wisely deciding to stick with second place, that’s the way it stayed as they crossed the finish line. Marc Goosens took the flag in third taking the Lukoil Arden team’s first points of the season.

The celebrations ended prematurely when the stewards disqualified the Belgian as one of the shock absorbers was found to be irregular. This was good news for Franck Montagny as he was lifted into third for the DAMS outfit, fellow Frenchman Soheil Ayari pursued him with Minassian a Watt following. Britain’s Justin Wilson was the sole Astromega to finish more than twenty seconds ahead of the Red Bull Junior duo of Enrique Bernoldi and Ricardo Maurício, who had his best race of the season to date.

Jamie Davies finished in thirteenth position a very credible race for the Briton seen as he started at the back of the grid. He explained: "My car was pretty good today. The changes made since qualifying made it much more driveable but you don’t really want to be starting from the back in Hungary! The track is narrow and the straights short which makes passing an absolute nightmare. I was caught behind Battistuzzi for a long while, when I finally managed to pass him, a run of yellow flags meant I had to back off".

So, it’s mission accomplished for Nick Heidfeld as he takes the Championship two rounds early much to the delight of his team. As the Frenchmen blitzed the point’s positions in Hungary it’s a German who takes home the best prize of all.

By Samantha Moakes 

Round 7
1st August Hockenheim F3000

A rare mistake by Nick Heidfeld saw the German’s Championship lead cut to just 23 points after the German faltered on home territory. With the title in sight the West Competition driver went out guns blazing to clinch it but a huge spin put paid to his charge. The deserving victor was Brazilian hotshot Bruno Junqueira who was the first of the two Brazilians to samba onto the podium.

Qualifying saw an all Petrobras front row; this incidentally was the first time since 1993 that a team had dominated the front row of an F3000 grid. Max Wilson was the only driver to break the two-minute barrier; his team mate came within one hundredth of a second. The worst qualifying session of the season befell Heidfeld as he only managed a lap good enough for fifth on the grid.

There were mixed fortunes for the Brits in Germany, three of the four qualified for the race the non-qualifier being Oliver Gavin, he explained: “Unfortunately, I suffered from oversteer throughout. I pitted twice, once as we had planned, but I felt I had to come in again close to the end as I couldn’t see any chance of setting a faster time without some adjustment. I then I ran out of fuel on the last lap which affected my last two laps when my times looked to be quickening”.

Jamie Davies’ session a more successful, he commented: “I’m glad to be through and looking ahead to Saturday but it’s not an easy job when you’re on ninth row of the grid. Nevertheless, I’ve done well at Hockenheim before and there are worse circuits for passing. The team are working on the understeer I had today so I hope to have that sorted for the race”.

It is difficult to find the right set up for Hockenheim, with its long straights and few chicanes many drivers opted for the more downforce, even though it compromised straight-line speed it generally made the cars easier to handle. However, several drivers elected to use ultra low downforce, namely Nick Heidfeld and Franck Montagny, to increase straight-line speed. With this in mind the drivers took to the grid.

The race was reduced to thirty laps as a result of Enrique Bernoldi stalling his Red Bull Junior, subsequently he was sent to the back of the grid. Wilson got a great start leaving the field eating his dust as they entered the first of the long straights. Junqueira was caught off guard during the start exiting the first corner in a disastrous sixth place. Mario Haberfeld created havoc when he caught and broke the rear wing of Davies’ European Racing car and flew off into the gravel at the Ostkurve. “Haberfeld caused serious damage to my rear wing when he practically catapulted off the track from behind me. This unfortunately slowed me considerably on the straights” Davies explained. Kevin McGarrity was the next Briton the fall victim of the chicanes; he and several others went off at the Ayrton Senna Kurve, the Ulsterman continued as Nicola Minassian retired.

Bruno Junqueira began his charge through the field taking Jason Watt for fifth place as Stéphane Sarrazin simultaneously took Montagny for third. A charging Heidfeld was hunting down Max Wilson until his fate was decided at the Ostkurve when he ran wide and spun into retirement. This promoted Sarrazin into second and Junqueira into third having just made a move on Montagny. After a bad start Gonzalo Rodriguez had sliced his way through into fourth place and even more impressively Brazilian Bernoldi had made his way from dead last into the top ten by lap four. His next victims were quickly displaced as the Brazilian moved his way into the points. Just think what he could have done if he hadn’t have stalled on the formation lap.

Junqueira finally passed Sarrazin in a clean move as the pair made their way into the Stadium section. The Brazilian chased after his team mate for several more laps before taking the lead with a beautifully controlled move around the outside of Wilson. From then on he never looked back, except to congratulate his friend as they crossed the finish line. Wilson tried with all his heart to retake the lead but nothing was going to spoil Junqueira’s error free run to his first F3000 victory.

The field lost three more cars in a huge collision that saw Enge, Leinders and Couto finish their race in the gravel. Andre Couto locked his wheels as the trio entered one of the chicanes; Leinders also locked up as he tried to pass the innocent Enge who was then collected by the pair. The Czech had every right to be angry with Leinders, as the Belgian should have known the move wasn’t really on.

Britain’s Jamie Davies was entangled in a furious fight to keep his sixth place and one Championship point, Oliver Martini eventually passing the Brit as Davies did well to hold onto a virtually rear wingless car. The Supernova duo of Saelens and Watt then took the Briton before beginning their scrap for points.

Double delight for the Petrobras Junior team as they dominate the first two steps of the podium. Stéphane Sarrazin joined the two Brazilians on the podium with title contender Gonzalo Rodriguez scoring to close the gap to Heidfeld. The drive of the day came from Enrique Bernoldi making up twenty-one places to take the Red Bull Junior team’s first points of the season. Franck Montagny was the last point’s scorer taking a point for sixth place ahead of the Supernova cars and Davies in ninth.

A dominant performance from the Brazilian guys have shown that their countrymen can beat France, it may not be the World Cup final but as Heidfeld slips up it could still be a Brazilian second and maybe even Champion in 1999.

By Samantha Moakes

Round 6
25th July A1-Ring F3000

German wunderkind Nick Heidfeld took one step further to becoming the most successful F3000 driver in history after his convincing lights-to-flag victory the A1-Ring in Austria. The picturesque scenery of the Styrian Mountains saw the most horrendous downpour on Thursday leaving the F3000 guys virtually swimming their way around the track. The "odd" session was postponed 24 hours due to the worsening conditions but the "even" sessions was allowed to continue much to the dismay of the drivers.

The "even" qualifying times were surprisingly allowed to stand which meant that significant title fighter Gonzalo Rodriguez and later Bruno Junqueira didn’t make it onto the grid. Initially Junqueira qualified in tenth place but complications meant he was disqualified from the race. This elevated Stéphane Sarrazin onto the grid. German Wolf Henzler had a stunning session to post the fastest time. It wasn’t such a good day for the Brit pack as both Kevin McGarrity and Jamie Davies from the waterlogged session didn’t make the grid. Davies commented: " It was a very frustrating session for me. The car was too stiff when I first went out so I came in immediately to make adjustments and when I got back out I had no dry line, the conditions had worsened and didn’t improve".

On Friday the sun was shining and not a raindrop was in sight. Nick Heidfeld returned to his dominant form taking pole position almost a staggering twenty-three seconds quicker than the time of Wolf Henzler. Frenchman Franck Montagny completed an all-French second row taking the second fastest time in the "odd" session. Yorkshireman Justin Wilson was the only Briton to qualify taking eleventh fastest. European Racing pilot Oliver Gavin had an unlucky qualifying posting fourteenth quickest time and looking likely to be in the race as a result of Polo Villaamil’s car being under weight. However, the stewards’ let him race on appeal leaving European Racing to lodge a complaint. Gavin commented: "The car was capable of qualifying but we came in too early on lap eight when we thought we had a fuel problem and this affected the remainder of the session".

The race got underway on time with perhaps the "odd" session gaining an advantage due to qualifying in the dry conditions. Heidfeld got away cleanly and quickly leaving the field for dead as they entered Castrol Kurve. The near 90-degree corner was the scene of the first accident involving six cars. Jason Watt and Montagny shared a loving moment causing the DAMS driver to spin and block the track. Brazilian former British F3 rivals, Ricardo Maurício and Mario Haberfeld, collided also causing mayhem as cars dived into the gravel in avoidance of the pair. Both rejoined at the tail of the field, as did Montagny. The Gauloises Formula pair of Stéphane Sarrazin and Andre Couto both benefited from the first corner carnage as they moved up from the last row into the top ten both the end of the first lap.

An awful start by Wolf Henzler meant that Soheil Ayari latched onto the tail of Heidfeld in an attempt to catch the German. Things went from bad to worse for Henzler as he ran wide at the Remus Kurve losing more places. Marc Goosens and Bas Leinders were the next victims of this low grip circuit as they both spun into retirement. Enrique Bernoldi and Tomas Enge were providing the mid-field entertainment in the early stages of the race, the Brazilian showing his South American flare by making a determined move on Enge, his good fortune deserted him several corners later as he crept back to the pits into retirement. This left the Red Bull Junior team’s hope on the shoulders of Ricardo Maurício, who had qualified for his first race with the team. Fellow countryman Mario Haberfeld whose luckless season continued with another non-finish followed Bernoldi into the pits.

Heidfeld continued to pull away from Ayari albeit by a small margin. Silverstone victor Minassian pursued Ayari both working together to close the gap to Heidfeld. Justin Wilson capitalised on others’ misfortunes and moved into sixth place ahead of Enge and a flying Sarrazin. The circuit claimed it’s next prey when Enge spun out of seventh in spectacular fashion, his exhibited great car control as he rejoined the field.

Stéphane Sarrazin got the better of Justin Wilson making the Briton the filling in a Gauloises sandwich. Wilson battled hard to keep Couto behind him only to spin after contact with Fabrizio Gollin, who would consequently retired.

Ricardo Maurício’s fight back saw the diminutive Brazilian overtake Cyrille Sauvage for fourteenth position and immediately pull away from the chasing pack to reel in his next target Tomas Enge. The target on the back of Wilson’s Astromega seems to grow each lap, this time it was the turn of Max Wilson to hit the "bullseye". The "Wilson feud" continues to rage the pair colliding once again. Max Wilson came off worst eventually spinning out of the race at the next corner due to collision damage.

Franck Montagny and Ricardo Maurício were embroiled in a classic mid-field battle, the Brazilian taking the initial advantage only to spin several laps later. He saw all his hard work disappear as cars flew by. Justin Wilson joined namesake Max in retirement after he spun his Astromega while fighting with the Gauloises duo.

At the head of the field Heidfeld put in fastest lap after fastest lap to extend his lead over Ayari. The podium positions stayed the same as they crossed the line with Heidfeld taking a fourth victory to equal the record set by Montoya last season. Soheil Ayari took his Oreca car to its best finish of the year in second followed by another exceptional performance by Minassian and the KJR team. Team mate Andrea Piccini finished in fifth to take his first points of the season as he followed home Super Nova pilot Jason Watt.

A busy week is ahead of the F3000 guys with the second of the back to back races commencing this weekend in Germany. Hockenheim is the home track of current Championship leader Heidfeld and with the extra incentive of becoming the most successful F3000 pilot in history the pressure on him to deliver the goods is high. We are in for some fireworks at Hockenheim.

By Samantha Moakes

Round 5
10th July Silverstone F3000

Frenchman Nicola Minassian proved that it is possible for a new team to take victory in its first season in a category after taking a sensational lights to flag victory at the Kid Jensen Racing teams home circuit. His was followed home closely by Brazilian Bruno Junqueira, who took his first ever podium in the category. Championship leader Nick Heidfeld took the flag in third doing enough to consolidate his lead.

Racing mad, David “Kid” Jensen, set up his Kid Jensen Racing team last year to compete in the ever-popular Formula Opel Euroseries. He decided to move his team into F3000 before the season opener at Imola. This was a big step for the team, but any doubts aired were quickly dispelled as both cars qualified. The team’s qualification record is reminiscent of a veteran team in the series implicating just how determined they are to succeed.

The weekend started well for the team, Minassian taking their first pole position of any kind by some considerable margin from Junqueira who was the fastest in the odd section of qualifying. KJR team mate Andrea Piccini claimed the eighth slot on the grid while all four British drivers were able to fight it out in front of their home crowd as they all qualified for the race. Best of the Brits was Jamie Davies in tenth place. He commented: “I’m fairly happy with my position on the grid, I’m confident the set-up should come together well and am I’m looking forward to racing”.

A great start from Minassian gifted him the lead into Copse ahead of a storming Soheil Ayari in second and Junqueira in third. Heidfeld lost a place to slot in, in front Norberto Fontana. At the tail of the grid Jeffrey Van Hooydonk crept off the line at snail pace to hold up Jason Watt and a quick starting Gonzalo Rodriguez from sixteenth. Norman Simon stalled on the grid and eventually got away from the pitlane on the next lap. All four Brits go away reasonably well Oliver Gavin perhaps making the better start to move up a large number of places.

Enrique Bernoldi proved that knowing the circuit inside out doesn’t always mean having an advantage as he took a spin on the second lap, he was able to continue. Kevin McGarrity pitted several laps into the race, having made contact on the track he had to have his nose changed which effectively putting him out of contention for points.

Minassian was beginning to pull out a gap over fellow Frenchman Ayari who was having his best race of the season. Junqueira was closing in on the Oreca pilot as the field began to stretch out. Ayari then responds to the Brazilian’s pressure by putting in the fastest lap of the race so far and increasing the gap. Britain’s Justin Wilson spun his Astromega exiting Stowe corner; he made his way into the pits under the watchful eye of Jonathon Palmer but his race was over. The team treated the remaining laps as an extended test session for Wilson, getting, as much experience in the car as possible was vital for team and driver.

As the lead three crossed the pit straight Junqueira was right alongside Ayari on the run to Copse. Ayari found the gravel as he ran wide losing precious seconds as he rejoined the track albeit in third. Having forced the mistake Junqueira was now able to pile on the pressure and catch the flying Minassian. Ayari had lost all momentum by now and was coming under attack by Nick Heidfeld who was closing the gap quite quickly. A textbook pass on the start/finish straight by Heidfeld saw him take third place from the Frenchman.

Further down the order the Jamie Davies was having a hard time trying to pass Fabrice Walfisch for eleventh place. Jason Watt led a train of cars pursuing the Brit, Gavin in the middle of the group battling with Bas Leinders and Gonzalo Rodriguez. The Uruguayan took Leinders in a brave move at Brooklands, just timing it to perfection as Leinders made an error. Several seconds adrift of this battle were Mario Haberfeld and Tomas Enge fighting for seventeenth position, shades of the Magny-Cours race in which both drivers were battling each other until Haberfeld clipped Enge and they both spun.

Junqueira’s pursuit of Minassian was taking a positive turn as the Brazilian was closing in on the KJR driver at a rate of a second per lap. Fellow Brazilian Max Wilson was having a terrible race. To cap off his day he spun his Petrobras liveried car at Club resulting in retirement once again.

As electrical gremlins appeared Jamie Davies had to back off in the closing stages of the race. This resulted in Jason Watt and David Terrien gaining two places as the Briton held on to finish the race. Davies said: “At around lap 27, the car filled with smoke due to an electrical problem and I had to drop back and, although I did my best to hold my position, this hampered me for the rest of the race”.

Junqueira came within a second of Minassian on the last lap but settled for second on the day not wanting to jeopardise his first podium finish. So, Minassian took the victory from Junqueira with third placed Nick Heidfeld enjoying another points finish, although probably not where he would have wanted to finish. Soheil Ayari held on to take fourth pursued by Franck Montagny and Norberto Fontana.

Britain’s Oliver Gavin drove a strong race to finish in fourteenth position having started from twenty-first on the grid. After the race he said: “I enjoyed the race today. The car wasn’t bad but I did suffer from oversteer as the car became looser on the rear as fuel burned. Nevertheless I passed 6 cars, making up 7 places in total when Max spun off”.

Having taken victory for KJR Nicola Minassian has leapfrogged into joint third in the Championship with Bruno Junqueira. The nextstop on the F3000 calendar is the A1-Ring in Austria. Nick Heidfeld will want to get back to his winning ways instantly if he is to take hold of the title race.

By Samantha Moakes

 Round 4
26^th June Magny-Cours F3000 

Nick Heidfeld battled with the elements to claim his third victory of the season in sensational style. The German is now on a collision course with the history books as he bids to become the most successful F3000 driver in history, a feat which current Champ Car runner Juan Pablo Montoya accomplished on his way to the 1998 Championship. Perhaps he was aided somewhat by the misfortune that befell his rivals, but in atrocious conditions he did well to keep the West car on the track in the early stages of the race.

Qualifying threw out a few surprises almost as many as the race day did. Brazilian Bruno Junqueira recorded his first F3000 pole position of his career just 0.264 seconds ahead of Championship leader Nick Heidfeld. Fellow Brazilian Enrique Bernoldi enjoyed his best ever qualifying position lining up tenth alongside Soheil Ayari. Team Astromega had nothing short of a nightmarish weekend in France both cars only just managing to qualify Gonzalo Rodriguez in seventeenth and Justin Wilson twenty-sixth and last on the grid.

David Sears’ new signing at SuperNova David Saelens qualified for his first F3000 race showing that he could cause a few upsets. SuperNova refugee Ricardo Maurício has replaced the out of sorts Marcus Friesacher at the Red Bull Junior team teaming up with his former British F3 adversary Enrique Bernoldi.

As a result of the dire conditions the race was started under the Safety Car. At the restart Jason Watt tried unsuccessfully to overtake Heidfeld but as they approached the Adelaide Hairpin Watt outbreaked himself and accidentally hit Junqueira. Both retired after the incident, Junqueira managing to creep back to the pits while Watt was stranded in the gravel. All this bad luck left Heidfeld running away with the lead with Tomas Enge and Marc Goosens in pursuit of the German. Stéphane Sarrazin gained several places during the first lap mayhem reacting well to the set-up of his own car after having to qualify in team mate Andre Couto’s car.

Gonzalo Rodriguez continued his torrid weekend by spinning his Astromega at Adelaide. He rejoined in twenty-third place. Justin Wilson was having a better race moving up from last on the grid to twentieth by lap three. The tricky conditions made for cautious but action packed racing Mario Haberfeld mirroring this notion with a spectacular spin into the gravel. Credit where credit is due and it is definitely due here as the Brazilian held the car superbly to rejoin the race.

Briton Kevin McGarrity, the only other Brit. to qualify wasn’t, like virtually the whole field, fairing too well in the conditions. He had dropped back to eighteenth place but had a jaunt into the gravel as the track began to dry. As every driver started the race on wet weather tyres the drying track and wear of the tyres came into play causing numerous spins.

Enrique Bernoldi took to the gravel momentarily as did third placed Marc Goosens. The Lukoil Arden car rejoined in fifth losing places to Max Wilson and Jeffrey van Hooydonk as a result. Several laps later and Bernoldi found himself cutting the grass again this time rejoining in fourteenth place. Nicolas Minassian took a spin, as did Goosens for a second time indicating that the tyres were definitely not suited to the drying track. McGarrity met the gravel again and was force to retire after twenty-four laps of Magny-Cours.

Justin Wilson was the first to pit for slicks as was Minassian leading a whole train of cars into the pits. Lap twenty-eight saw Tomas Enge pit for slicks sparking off a war of tactics between West Competition and WRT. Heidfeld came in a lap later handing the lead to van Hooydonk. Max Wilson made his stop, as did Sarrazin granting Heidfeld another place to move him into second twenty-one seconds behind van Hooydonk. Normal service was resumed several laps later as Hooydonk pitted and Heidfeld and Enge reclaimed their pre-pitstop positions.

The love/hate relationship between Max and Justin Wilson continued at Magny-Cours as Max spun spectacularly as Justin passed him. Lap thirty-three saw Max Wilson creep into the pits and into retirement. This promoted David Saelens and David Terrien into the points. Fabrice Walfisch also spun into retirement on the same lap the drying track catching quite a few drivers out. None more so than Stéphane Sarrazin who span into the gravel and lost numerous places and vital points positions for the Championship.

Mario Haberfeld’s race came to an abrupt end after a clash with second placed Tomas Enge. As the Czech was lapping Haberfeld they touched and both span. Enge continued keeping his second place but retirement beckoned the British F3 Champion once again. The "Belgian Battle" continued to produce some spectacular wheel to wheel racing David Saelens eventually coming off best as he overtook van Hooydonk in a brave move into the Grande Courbe. This put the Belgian into third and staring a possible podium finish in the face.

The closing laps of the race created some fierce battles for position. Argentinean Norberto Fontana tried a brave manoeuvre on Franck Montagny at Lycée but it backfired as he span into retirement. Gonzalo Rodriguez completed a disastrous weekend by spinning a few laps from the finish.

Nick Heidfeld took the chequered flag twelve seconds ahead of Tomas Enge and David Saelens in a well-deserved third place. Jeffrey van Hooydonk completed a brilliant weekend for the Witmeur KTR team finishing fourth and collecting three priceless points for the Championship. Stéphane Sarrazin came home in fifth ahead of the second Witmeur KTR of Bas Leinders claiming a single point for the team to state their intention of staying in the series next season.

Germany’s Nick Heidfeld has really made his intentions clear after this victory. Halfway to becoming the most successful F3000 driver ever, Heidfeld’s priority is the Championship, and taking the crown from his old adversary Montoya is his main aim. Recent testing at Silverstone has shown definite pace for the British based team who knows, a home victory may be on the cards.

By Samantha Moakes

 Round 3
29^th May Catalunya F3000

While the attention surrounds the Formula One World Championship at Barcelona this weekend, the F3000 guys prepare to do battle on one of the most abrasive circuits of the season. Uruguayan Gonzalo Rodriguez conveys a slender lead into Round Three and will be expecting to capitalise on the opportunity to get a strangle hold on the Championship.

Following his disappointing performance at Monaco Nick Heidfeld was looking to get his Championship challenge back on track, claiming his second pole position was the perfect way to kick start his weekend. Mario Haberfeld was on hand to add more fuel to Championship battle as he managed to qualify for his first F3000 race of the season in a very respectable eighth place. Controversy emanated from qualifying when Rodriguez was promoted to the front row after Bruno Junqueira lost his fastest times for obtaining marshal help. Astromega’s impressive season continued with Justin Wilson lining up fifth consistently outclassing the congregation of newcomers and showing why he now has a Benetton endowed car.

Briton Oliver Gavin was omitted from the race after only managing fifteenth fastest in his group, leaving Jamie Davies to fly the British flag at Edenbridge European. SuperNova driver Jason Watt had his worst qualifying session this year only managing 20^th place on the grid out qualified by rookie teammate Ricardo Maurício by half a second. The problem came like with many other teams with the set up. Presumptions were made for qualifying subsequently the teams haven’t got enough time to set the car up exactly. All part of the new FIA rules for 1999.

A text book start by Heidfeld saw him pull out a gap over Rodriguez almost immediately while a storming start from Justin Wilson saw him advance to third demoting Max Wilson and Soheil Ayari in the process. Ayari had an intolerable start, which left him bundled out at by traffic.

As with every race the run into the first corner is vital and determines the winners and losers of the race. But even more important is how adept a driver can get off the line or in the case of Paolo Ruberti how many times he can get hit by traffic as he stalls on the grid. Unfortunately the first corner nightmare came to haunt both DAMS drivers, unrelated midfield incidents thwarted Montagny and Terrien and they were force to retire. A three-car pile up followed forcing out the safety car for several laps while the dispersed cars were dealt with.

The race commenced on lap seven but for Mario Haberfeld it was over as soon as it had begun when, through no fault of his own he span into retirement. Soheil Ayari made a rather ambitious overtaking move down the inside of Haberfeld that didn’t pay off leaving the Brazilian to rue what could have been a potential podium finish. The odd half of the West team seemed to have no problems at all increasing the gap to Rodriguez every opportunity he was presented with. A battle erupted when Max Wilson made a passing move on Justin Wilson leaving the Briton in fifth place again. This battle would dominate the race and breed the most entertainment through all 44 laps.

Lap nine claimed another victim. Jason Watt was forced into the pits but never re-emerged after gremlins from an earlier incident supervened. With Ricardo Maurício out on the first lap it’s safe to say that SuperNova will not have sweet dreams of Barcelona. A stark contrast was the situation in which Astromega had put itself in; both cars in the points just showed how competitive the team was. By lap 18 both Wilsons were embraced in a impassioned battle for third place prior to Justin’s passing effort which backfired permitting Enrique Bernoldi to move ahead of the Yorkshireman and settle excessive amounts of pressure onto Max Wilson.

Sarrazin and Couto set the ball rolling in midfield, both overtaking Davies demoting the Briton to ninth position. The Edenbridge driver made a move on the Prost cars but lost ground to the duo who were enchanted in their own private battle.

Brazilian Bernoldi was looming large in the mirrors of compatriot Wilson that allowed Justin Wilson to gain time and latch onto the pair. As the three-way third place battle continued Fontana edged closer to the trio putting pressure on Wilson to intercept with the battle of the Brazilians. Justice was done on lap 36 when Wilson finally got by the Brazilian for fourth leaving Bernoldi to kick himself for leaving the door so widely open. You could say that luck was definitely not on Bernoldi’s side in Barcelona. This can be justified by Fontana’s explosive charge down the inside of Bernoldi leaving the Red Bull Junior driver with nowhere to go but into the gravel. A rather ambitious way to dislodge the fifth placed man which resulted in Fontana slipping back down the field and out of the points elevating both Prost pilots into the top six.

As the leaders accelerated into the distance the third place altercation came to an abrupt end when Max Wilson pulled off a move that appeared from the "Fontana school of motoring". As with Fontana the move recoiled and both drivers went off the Brazilian forced to retire while the Briton was able to continue. Subsequently Max Wilson was excluded from the results for causing an "avoidable accident".

Nick Heidfeld proudly held the German flag aloft once more as he crossed the line for his second win of the year. He made the victory look elementary jumping out of the car as if he had only run a few yards. Uruguayan Rodriguez took the flag in second place followed by Macau based driver Andre Couto, not a bad days work considering he had an injured hand. Both Prost Junior cars finished in the points, as did both Astromega cars, Justin Wilson claiming the last point.

McLaren complete a F1 weekend whitewash at Barcelona.Heidfeld has reclaimed the Championship lead from Gonzalo Rodriguez who is just two points behind after his well-driven race. With a four-week gap until the Mangy-Cours race extensive testing schedules are planned to deliberate and answer the question that is on many lips, can anyone stop Heidfeld?

By Samantha Moakes

Round 2
15^th May Monaco F3000

Who ever said Monaco had lost it’s appeal and prestige on it’s only race weekend of the year? It certainly wasn’t me. Every corner and bump on the winding streets of this principality holds some kind of history. The F3000 cars may have changed over the years, but Monaco still remains the same tight and tough circuit it has been since it was first used during the Second World War.

Germany’s Nick Heidfeld is aiming for a hat trick of wins in the principality and to remain the only F3000 driver to win the Monaco round of the Championship. With this in mind he put his McLaren run car on pole position, just 1.53 hundredths ahead of Uruguayan Gonzalo Rodriguez in his Benetton endowed Astromega. Perhaps the most notable performance in qualifying came from local boy Nicolas Minassian putting his Kid Jensen Racing car third on the grid. Supernova pilot Jason Watt endeavouring to start his title challenge joined him.

There were some distinguished absentees on the grid, that of podium finisher McGarrity the most surprising. Having found the money to complete the season, he couldn’t find the form he had at Imola and only managed fifteenth fastest in his group. Brazilian Mario Haberfeld couldn’t get his West qualified for a second consecutive race mirroring the situation of fellow former British F3 racer Andrej Pavicevic. Spaniard Polo Villaamil had his two best times disallowed for obtaining help from a marshal to start his car permitting Ricardo Maurício to keep his 100% qualifying record. Macau based driver Andre Couto failed to take his place on the grid due to a scooter accident the night before leaving him hospitalised and the Prost Junior team with a driver less.

The drama began as soon as the cars left the grid for the formation lap. Bas Leinders’ Witmeur KTR had to be towed back to the pits with mechanical failure. There was confusion as to where the drivers would line up when they returned to the grid. With Couto absent, Martini lined up in his place, which shuffled the grid up one place.

The mayhem didn’t stop there. As the lights went green Soheil Ayari stalled his Oreca on the grid, miraculously avoiding any contact as the field sped by. Andrea Piccini and Brian Smith didn’t make it past the start line as they tangled with each other. Paolo Ruberti nudged Jamie Davies into the first corner, sending the Briton spinning into the escape road, holding up Justin Wilson in the process. First lap carnage resulted in the employment of the safety car for two laps so the marshals could clear up the debris.

As the green flag was shown Heidfeld made the perfect getaway pulling out a gap over Rodriguez almost immediately. Nicolas Minassian was able to break free from Watt, who had a battle on his hands trying to keep Oliver Martini behind him. Jamie Davies was flying after his earlier spin, setting fastest laps by the dozen in an aim to score European Edenbridge their first points of the season. Teammate Gavin was doing a splendid job in seventh fending of any advances made by Sarrazin.

Justin Wilson’s hopes of another point’s finish were dashed when he hit the wall going into the very tight Lowes hairpin. The unfortunate Brazilian Ricardo Maurício was collected by Wilson subsequently they both retired. Enrique Bernoldi then lost control of the sole remaining Red Bull Junior car while exiting the tunnel; he was able to continue after a brief visit to the pits.

A dramatic twist to the tale was apparent on lap 24 when race leader Heidfeld received a Stop Go penalty. Speculation arose as to why the penalty was given the reason is still unknown but the most likely reason is a jump-start. To add insult to injury the German stalled in the pits eventually rejoining in eleventh place over a minute behind new leader Gonzalo Rodriguez and second placed Minassian. In only their second year of racing, Kid Jensen Racing have retained a 100% qualifying record and clearly have the potential to win in F3000.

Boris de Richebourg invited Heidfeld into tenth place when he hit the barriers and retired leaving nineteen of the 26 starters left. Stephane Sarrazin added spice to the battle with Gavin when he out braked himself into the new chicane just missing Gavin as he re-entered the track ahead of the Edenbridge driver having acquired track position. As result Sarrazin received a Stop Go penalty for his actions which effectively ended his race and promoting Gavin back into the points.

As Minassian was chasing an ever-increasing gap between him and Rodriguez, Jason Watt and Oliver Martini managed to free themselves of Max Wilson and commence their fight for third. Paolo Ruberti’s race ended on lap 39 when he pitted for a new nose but mechanical problems ensued forcing the Italian to retire.

Mid race gremlins started to appear as Oliver Martini retired several laps later closely followed by Frenchman Soheil Ayari. All this played into the hands of Wilson and Gavin, they moved up further into the points. Nicolas Minassain suffered heartbreak when he was the unfortunate victim of gearbox failure in the closing laps of the race. So close yet so far from Kid Jensen Racing’s first F3000 victory. The second Petrobras of Bruno Junqueira moved into the point’s kick starting the teams title challenge with points finishes for both cars.

Having finished second to Heidfeld last year, Gonzalo Rodriguez was able to put that behind him and cross the line almost forty seconds ahead of second placed Jason Watt, who put his nightmare of street circuits to rest quite convincingly. Max Wilson crossed the line to take the last step of the podium and Oliver Gavin finished in fourth for European Edenbridge followed by Norberto Fontana and Bruno Junqueira. Nick Heidfeld came home in seventh place ending what should have been his third Monaco victory in succession.

The lack of overtaking certainly didn’t over shadow the amount of action seen in Monaco. Without a doubt more overtaking will be seen in the next round at Barcelona. Nick Heidfeld will be out for revenge over the Uruguayan who carries a slender lead into the next round.

By Samantha Moakes

Round 1
1^st May Imola F3000

After a close season of nearly eight months F3000 is back with new cars and a whole new set of rules. With 42 drivers taking part in the championship qualifying is going to play a major part in deciding the destination of this year’s crown.

This year’s car has taken the Formula One car look and will be every bit as competitive. Every car used will be identical, as opposed to last season, so series regulars will have to get used to the changes.

Having created massive interest in the category, the FIA had to change the rules, much to the annoyance of paddock regulars. The grid will consist of no more than 26 cars, 13 from each qualifying group, leaving competition in qualifying as fierce as it is in the race.

On Thursdays qualifying day, first blood went to Brazilian, Max Wilson. Having competed in F3000 for three years, he claimed his first pole position with his new team, Petrobras. The second slot saw Briton Kevin McGarrity in his best ever position in his F3000 career. As expected, all the title contenders qualified comfortably, the lowest placed of these being Soheil Ayari. Qualifying also threw up some surprises. No one had predicted that a McLaren run car wouldn’t make the cut, but their driver, Mario Haberfeld, was one of three reigning F3 Champions who failed to qualify for the race, proving that this year’s championship will be as competitive as ever.

Saturday was a day of great significance to the motorsport world. Five years ago to the very day, Formula One lost, perhaps the greatest driver ever to set foot in a race car. A great sense of loss stills pervades the air of Imola, but as the drivers line up on the grid, it is almost forgotten.

Paolo Ruberti got his F3000 account off to a flying start, overtaking at least two rows of cars before the lights had gone off! Kevin McGarrity powered past Max Wilson to lead into the Tamburello, as the Gauloises Formula car of Andre Couto spun out. The first lap of the Championship couldn’t have been more action packed. Norberto Fontana was in the thick of things right from the start, bundling Junqueira off in spectacular style before colliding with Jason Watt, causing both the Supernova and the sole Fortec into retirement and almost leading to a boxing match as Fontana remonstrated with the Supernova pilot. Norman Simon and Wolf Henzler clashed at the Tamburello, both retiring and leaving 20 of the 26 starters to complete the first lap.

McGarrity’s dream getaway was thwarted on lap three when Max Wilson caught and passed him for the lead, leaving the Briton to fend off the challenge of Heidfeld. As the Petrobras of Wilson sped off into the distance, the battle for second was hotting up. With the risk of rubbishing his tyres weighing heavily on Heidfeld’s mind, it was vital that he got out of McGarrity’s slipstream in order to get his title challenge off to a good start. This happened on lap ten, an exact replica of the move Wilson took on the Nordic driver several laps before.

On the very same lap fourth placed Ruberti lost control of his Durango, spinning himself down to eighth place and allowing Andrea Piccini into the points, until Sarrazin crept by on lap 16. Gonzalo Rodriguez then spun out of the top six when he lost control of his Astromega and he rejoined in seventh place.

The heat was turned up in the mid-section of the race as Franck Montagny, the victim of an earlier spin, pulled off a sensational pass on fellow newcomer Ricardo Maurício for 12^th place. In front of this battle was Soheil Ayari dramatically losing control of his Oreca, which resulted in a high speed crash, probably the most dangerous of the race weekend, luckily he escaped serious injury.

The battle at the front was heating up as Heidfeld caught up to within half a second of Wilson.The final crunch came on lap 21. Heidfeld made a diving pass down the inside of Wilson, a collision ensued and the Brazilian’s race came to an abrupt end leaving Heidfeld to continue with a substantial gap over McGarrity. As a result of this Rodriguez moved his Astromega back into the points.

Heidfeld’s advantage over McGarrity steadily increased lap by lap, both pulling away from third placed Walfisch and the rest of the field. The podium looked certain at this stage, leaving the final three points positions up for grabs. Piccini looked like taking Kid Jensen Racing’s first F3000 points until he lost all his gears on lap 30 forcing the Italian to retire. This allowed Justin Wilson to take the second Astromega into the top six, concluding what was a superb weekend for the Belgian outfit.

The positions stayed the same until the chequered flag, Heidfeld taking the win 21 seconds ahead of Kevin McGarrity and the much improved Fabrice Walfisch in third. Stephane Sarrazin crossed the line in fourth ahead of the Astromega duo of Rodriguez and Wilson. The award for the best debutant goes to Justin Wilson for putting in a consistent race. He used his knowledge and experience of driving in the Formula Palmer Audi series last year to good use giving him an advantage over other F3000 newcomers from F3. The handling of the Formula Palmer Audi car and F3000 car is very similar and Wilson was able to adapt more quickly to the new cars.

Next stop is Monaco. The big players will be hoping that the cruel streets of the principality won’t halt their charge. Having taken the Championship lead in fine style, nothing less than a win will do for the ambitious Heidfeld.

By Samantha Moakes