Stewart Grand Prix: Difference between revisions

After [[Ford]] acquired [[Cosworth]] in July [[1998]], they risked designing and building a brand-new engine for 1999. It paid off. The SF3 was quick out of the box, however embarrassingly for Stewart both cars over-heated on the grid of the first race, the Australian Grand Prix, after qualifying competitively. This put Herbert out instantly and made Barrichello start from the pit lane. Barrichello drove a blinding race and was unfortunate not to win, as all the cars who were ahead of him on the grid failed to finish the race. Had he not started from the pit lane and unluckily gained a stop-go penalty he could have had more than 5th place. The car was consistently competitive throughout the season, however the engine initially proved fragile as both cars blew their engines at the Brazilian race which meant the engine was rarely run at full power. Stewart's competiveness was affirmed by running first in Brazil for a long spell of the race and qualifying on pole for the French Grand Prix with Barrichello. [[Johnny Herbert]] pulled off a victory at the rain soaked [[European Grand Prix]] at the new [[NurburgringNürburgring]], with Barrichello third, a result most observers indicated that Stewart deserved given their strength over the season. Johnny Herbert also became unwittingly influential in the championship at the next and penultimate race, the Malaysian Grand Prix. Running 3rd behind the [[Ferrari]]s of [[Michael Schumacher]] and [[Eddie Irvine]] a mistake in the closing laps allowed [[Mika HakkinenHäkkinen]] to slip past and claim the final poduim position which gave the championship contender vital points. The Ferraris were disqualified for car irregularities and the win allowed HakkinenHäkkinen to gain his second championship. The Stewarts as a result finished 2nd and 3rd in the race. However Ferrari won an appeal and the initial result was reinstated. HakkinenHäkkinen however went on to win the championship and Stewart came 4th in the Constructors Championship beating illustrious teams such as [[WilliamsF1|Williams]] and [[Benetton Formula|Benetton]]. Stewart's last race was the Japanese Grand Prix of 1999.