1998 F1 Season
16 races · McLaren MP4/13
The 1998 season marked McLaren's return to the summit thanks to Adrian Newey's genius. The MP4/13, with its tight aerodynamic concept adapted to the new narrower-car, grooved-tyre rules, was the car to beat from the first race.
Mika Häkkinen and David Coulthard locked out the front row for most of the year, but Michael Schumacher fought back with an ever-improving Ferrari, forcing an epic duel that ran all the way to Japan. The rivalry had memorable moments, like the Spa crash in the rain when Schumacher, leading, rammed the back of the lapped Coulthard.
Häkkinen was more consistent down the stretch and sealed his first world championship at Suzuka, launching the duel with Schumacher that would define the turn of the century.
Drivers' Champion
Mika Häkkinen
McLaren MP4/13
Constructors' Champion
McLaren
16 races
Ver en españolKey moment
"Häkkinen breaks down in tears in the pit after a puncture at Silverstone, then comes back to win the title."
The 1998 grid, car by car
The 11 teams that raced in 1998, ordered by how good we rate the car. It is our own judgement, not an official figure: what it is worth is that the same yardstick is applied to every season since 1988, so you can compare eras.
| # | Team | Our rating | Drivers |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | McLaren | 98 | Mika Häkkinen · David Coulthard |
| 2 | Ferrari | 96 | Michael Schumacher · Eddie Irvine |
| 3 | Williams | 88 | Jacques Villeneuve · Heinz-Harald Frentzen |
| 4 | Benetton | 86 | Alexander Wurz · Giancarlo Fisichella |
| 5 | Jordan | 84 | Damon Hill · Ralf Schumacher |
| 6 | Sauber | 82 | Jean Alesi · Johnny Herbert |
| 7 | Prost | 81 | Olivier Panis · Jarno Trulli |
| 8 | Stewart | 79 | Rubens Barrichello · Jan Magnussen |
| 9 | Arrows | 78 | Mika Salo · Pedro Diniz |
| 10 | Tyrrell | 74 | Toranosuke Takagi · Riccardo Rosset |
| 11 | Minardi | 72 | Shinji Nakano · Esteban Tuero |
How 1998 actually ended
The official final standings, from Australian Grand Prix to Japanese Grand Prix. This is the real result, not the simulation above.
| Driver | Points | Wins | Podiums | Poles |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Mika HäkkinenMcLaren | 100 | 8 | 11 | 9 |
| 2Michael SchumacherFerrari | 86 | 6 | 11 | 3 |
| 3David CoulthardMcLaren | 56 | 1 | 9 | 3 |
| 4Eddie IrvineFerrari | 47 | 0 | 8 | 0 |
| 5Jacques VilleneuveWilliams | 21 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 6Damon HillJordan | 20 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 7Heinz-Harald FrentzenWilliams | 17 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 8Alexander WurzBenetton | 17 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
It came down to 14 points: Häkkinen and Schumacher finished closer than a fourth place is worth. 4 different drivers won that year, and the final Grand Prix went to Mika Häkkinen.
Official FIA standings via Jolpica (formerly Ergast).
What if 1998 had been raced 100 times?
We took the real 1998 grid (every car with its performance and reliability, every driver with his rating) and re-ran the full 16-race championship 100 times.
| Driver | Avg. finish | Titles |
|---|---|---|
| Mika Häkkinenreal championMcLaren | P1.4 | 65% |
| Michael SchumacherFerrari | P1.8 | 34% |
| David CoulthardMcLaren | P2.9 | 1% |
| Eddie IrvineFerrari | P4 | 0% |
| Jacques VilleneuveWilliams | P5.2 | 0% |
| Heinz-Harald FrentzenWilliams | P6.9 | 0% |
Mika Häkkinen takes the title 65% of the time: one in every 3 simulated championships goes to somebody else, almost always Michael Schumacher. It was not a dominated year, it was a won one.
Tags
What if Senna, Hamilton or Alonso had driven the 1998 championship-winning car?
Hypotheses from 1998
Hypotheses from other seasons
Drivers of 1998
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