Mika Hakkinen admits he faces a huge task to become only the second man in history to win the drivers' crown three years on the trot. The Finn fell a massive 24 points adrift in the title chase after finishing second to pacesetter Michael Schumacher in yesterday's San Marino Grand Prix at Imola.
Hakkinen looked on course to win for the first time this season after controlling the 62-lap battle for the first 44 laps before being overhauled by his own problems and a typical Schumacher charge. The season may have 14 races left but McLaren driver Hakkinen knows he heads into the British Grand Prix on Sunday week needing plenty of wins if he is to overhaul the German. "It is a hell of a gap to make up and the only way I am going to do it is by winning races and staying in front of Michael", said Hakkinen, who eventually lost by just over a second.
"I am happy to score points, but I should have won the race. After my first stop I hit something on the track and destroyed the floor of the car. Just before my second stop I was going flat out and the car just stopped. It was as though someone in the crowd had pushed a switch to turn off the engine. I thought the game was over, but the engine came alive again and continued. I lost a lot of time and that cost us the race, but in the end I was just lucky to finish", Hakkinen added.
Schumacher's 38th career victory made him the first Ferrari driver to win three races in succession from the start of the season and equalled the team's best opening since 1976. The 31-year-old is also one short of matching his own best start to a season of four wins he set when taking the first of his world titles with Benetton in 1994.
"I'm on a roll", said Schumacher, now 21 points ahead of team-mate Rubens Barrichello who finished fourth after being overtaken by David Coulthard in the other McLaren during a pit-stop. We have a good lead in the Championship but it will be a tight fight and we have to keep pushing hard", Schumacher added.
Coulthard's hopes of challenging were hit at the start when he just missed out on overtaking Schumacher and instead found himself stuck behind Barrichello who was struggling with a seat-belt problem. "My pace in the final laps showed I could have fought with Mika and Michael if I'd have got past Rubens but you cannot overtake here", said Coulthard, who finished over 51 seconds adrift.
Jacques Villeneuve was fifth for British American Racing with Sauber's Mika Salo sixth while Jaguar Racing duo Eddie Irvine and Johnny Herbert were seventh and 10 respectively. Jenson Button was forced into retirement for the second time in his three-race career by a blown engine in his Williams BMW, this time after just five laps. "It's a shame I didn't finish, but now I can look forward to racing at the British Grand Prix", he said. "It is going to be a great weekend competing in my home race for the first time".
