1998 SuperStats
Overall Season Review Edition. Compilation by Rory Gordon, Australia

The end-of-season SuperStats have traditionally been presented in one large block in a single issue of Atlas. And, this year, the tradition continues. Traditionally, this is also the time when there is some explanation of the SuperStats. Originally devised as the SuperGrid by the late John Taylor for Autocourse, I missed them when he died and undertook the SuperGrid for myself. Over the following years, the SuperGrid has expanded considerably, and has become the F1 Superstats - most of which are presented here. The SuperStats are based on the idea of looking at a drivers' performance over the entire season, instead of race-by-race or over his/her career. In general, most of the figures below are based on either the total or the average of the each driver's performance for the season in that particular category. Also in general, each table (or set of tables) is preceded by a brief explanatory note. There are some changes from previous years. Of most notice will be that is more information this year than before, especially with the introduction of tables for the Fridays. Three things will not change from previous years. First, in most cases, the tables will be presented in alphabetical order. Not only does this avoid any possible "favouritism", but it also saves a good deal of internal discussion about what set of figures to sort each table on. Second, any driver who did not participate in all the respective sessions (Friday, Saturday Qualifying, Sunday Warm-Up, Sunday Race) will be marked with an asterisk ("*"). Finally, in the past, I have expressed concern at the use of tables showing figures for the teams, engines and tyres as they are based on averages of the drivers' averages, and so could be open to wide interpretation: this proviso applies again this year to all tables concerning teams, engines and tyres. A number of people have shown great interest in these figures and mainly for that reason (and my own curiosity!), despite my personal misgivings in presenting them publicly, they are presented here. The reason that most of the figures in the teams and engines tables are exactly the same is due, of course, to the fact that most of the engines are used by a single team. Although a number of other sources are used for checking purposes, the raw data upon which all figures shown in these tables are based is the official time sheets. Whenever there is any discrepancy, the data on official sheets have been used. Please note the copyright notices at the end of the tables. FRIDAY This table shows each drivers' total time, his average speed (based on the total time and the sum of one lap of each circuit), and his average position. In a forthcoming issue of Atlas, there will be a table showing the drivers' five different average positions - Friday, Qualifying, Warm-up, Race and Race Lap One thing that needs to be noted about the times for the Friday sessions in 1998 is the three anomalies: Brundle at Brazil; and, Alesi and Diniz at Italy. These three drivers set times at those meetings that were well behind the rest of the field. Driver Total KPH Average Time Pos'n ------------- ---------- ------- ------- Alesi 40m29.823s 108.301 10.875 Barrichello 23m44.294s 184.760 12.500 Coulthard 23m11.281s 189.144 2.500 Diniz 24m25.818s 179.526 18.125 Fisichella 23m28.183s 186.874 7.563 Frentzen 23m26.153s 187.144 6.875 Hakkinen 23m09.366s 189.405 2.125 Herbert 24m22.806s 179.896 11.188 Hill 23m32.785s 186.265 9.250 Irvine 23m22.710s 187.603 5.375 Magnussen 10m17.995s 18.571* Nakano 24m11.126s 181.344 19.563 Panis 23m45.736s 184.573 12.813 Rosset 24m15.647s 180.781 19.625 Salo 23m56.280s 183.218 16.813 Schumacher, M 23m17.315s 188.327 4.125 Schumacher, R 23m33.671s 186.149 9.375 Takagi 23m52.226s 183.737 15.688 Trulli 23m47.586s 184.334 13.563 Tuero 24m14.383s 180.938 20.188 Verstappen 13m42.115s 15.667* Villeneuve 23m25.870s 187.181 7.438 Wurz 23m36.919s 185.722 10.500 This table shows basically the same information as above, except that it is based on, and is sorted by, the drivers' average time over the full season. Since Magnussen and Verstappen did not participate in all of the Friday sessions, they are NOT shown in this table. Pos Driver Average Split To Gap To Time Previous Fastest --- ------------- --------- --------- --------- 1 Hakkinen 1m26.835s 2 Coulthard 1m26.955s 0m00.120s 0m00.120s 3 Schumacher, M 1m27.332s 0m00.377s 0m00.497s 4 Irvine 1m27.669s 0m00.337s 0m00.834s 5 Villeneuve 1m27.867s 0m00.198s 0m01.032s 6 Frentzen 1m27.885s 0m00.018s 0m01.049s 7 Fisichella 1m28.011s 0m00.127s 0m01.176s 8 Hill 1m28.299s 0m00.288s 0m01.464s 9 Schumacher, R 1m28.354s 0m00.055s 0m01.519s 10 Wurz 1m28.557s 0m00.203s 0m01.722s 11 Barrichello 1m29.018s 0m00.461s 0m02.183s 12 Panis 1m29.108s 0m00.551s 0m02.273s 13 Trulli 1m29.224s 0m00.116s 0m02.389s 14 Takagi 1m29.514s 0m00.290s 0m02.679s 15 Salo 1m29.767s 0m00.253s 0m02.932s 16 Nakano 1m30.695s 0m00.928s 0m03.860s 17 Tuero 1m30.899s 0m00.204s 0m04.064s 18 Rosset 1m30.978s 0m00.079s 0m04.143s 19 Herbert 1m31.425s 0m00.447s 0m04.590s 20 Diniz 1m31.614s 0m00.188s 0m04.778s 21 Alesi 2m31.864s 1m00.250s 1m05.029s The following three tables provide some information about the respective time and position performances of the teams, the engines and the tyres. Team Total Average Total Average Time Time Pos'n Pos'n -------- ---------- --------- ------ ------- Arrows 48m22.098s 1m30.691s 34.938 17.469 Benetton 47m05.102s 1m28.284s 18.063 9.031 Ferrari 46m40.025s 1m27.501s 9.500 4.750 Jordan 47m06.456s 1m28.327s 18.625 9.313 McLaren 46m20.647s 1m26.895s 4.625 2.313 Minardi 48m25.509s 1m30.797s 39.750 19.875 Prost 47m33.322s 1m29.166s 26.375 13.188 Sauber 64m52.629s 2m01.645s 22.063 11.031 Stewart 47m44.404s 1m29.550s 46.738 15.579 Tyrrell 48m07.873s 1m30.246s 35.313 17.656 Williams 46m52.023s 1m27.876s 14.313 7.156 Engine Total Average Total Average Time Time Pos'n Pos'n ----------- ------------ --------- ------- ------- Ferrari 0h46m40.025s 1m27.501s 9.500 4.750 Ford 2h24m17.786s 1m30.105s 121.801 17.400 Mecachrome 0h46m52.023s 1m27.876s 14.313 7.156 Mercedes 0h46m20.647s 1m26.895s 4.625 2.313 Mugen/Honda 0h47m06.456s 1m28.327s 18.625 9.313 Petronas 1h04m52.629s 2m01.645s 22.063 11.031 Peugeot 0h47m33.322s 1m29.166s 26.375 13.188 Playlife 0h47m05.102s 1m28.284s 18.063 9.031 Yamaha 0h48m22.098s 1m30.691s 34.938 17.469 Tyre Total Average Total Average Time Time Pos'n Pos'n ----------- ------------ --------- ------- ------- Bridgestone 4h45m31.082s 1m29.255s 170.488 13.114 Goodyear 4h13m39.006s 1m35.119s 99.813 9.981 SATURDAY/QUALIFYING Here are the SuperGrid figures for 1998. Driver Total Average Time Pos'n ------------- ---------- ------- Alesi 23m26.661s 10.500 Barrichello 23m37.590s 13.188 Coulthard 23m01.998s 3.125 Diniz 23m48.426s 16.688 Fisichella 23m16.699s 7.063 Frentzen 23m17.655s 7.438 Hakkinen 22m55.451s 1.688 Herbert 23m30.670s 11.750 Hill 23m22.567s 8.938 Irvine 23m14.504s 5.438 Magnussen 10m05.897s 18.714* Nakano 24m02.583s 19.938 Panis 23m41.369s 14.938 Rosset 22m25.076s 20.867* Salo 23m42.321s 15.125 Schumacher, M 23m03.114s 3.063 Schumacher, R 23m21.446s 8.750 Takagi 23m48.866s 17.438 Trulli 23m39.596s 13.875 Tuero 24m05.057s 20.188 Verstappen 13m46.277s 16.556* Villeneuve 23m15.313s 6.688 Wurz 23m22.695s 8.750 Team Total Average Pos'n Pos'n -------- ------ ------- Arrows 31.813 15.906 Benetton 15.813 7.906 Ferrari 8.500 4.250 Jordan 17.688 8.844 McLaren 4.813 2.406 Minardi 40.125 20.063 Prost 28.813 14.406 Sauber 22.250 11.125 Stewart 48.457 16.152 Tyrrell 38.304 19.152 Williams 14.125 7.063 Engine Total Average Pos'n Pos'n ----------- ------- ------- Ferrari 8.500 4.250 Ford 126.887 18.127 Mecachrome 14.125 7.063 Mercedes 4.813 2.406 Mugen/Honda 17.688 8.844 Petronas 22.250 11.125 Peugeot 28.813 14.406 Playlife 15.813 7.906 Yamaha 31.813 15.906 Tyre Total Average Pos'n Pos'n ----------- ------- ------- Bridgestone 169.832 13.064 Goodyear 100.867 10.087 Perhaps more meaningful and useful - and certainly more true to the original intent - here is The SuperGrid for 1998, sorted by the drivers' average official grid times. Please note that the percentages in this table are based on Hakkinen's time, and NOT on the average of the actual pole times. Pos Driver Average Average Split To Gap To Time KPH Previous "Pole" --- ------------- -------- ------- --------- --------- ------- 1 Hakkinen 1m25.966s 191.321 100.00% 2 Coulthard 1m26.375s 190.415 0m00.409s 0m00.409s 100.48% 3 Schumacher, M 1m26.445s 190.261 0m00.070s 0m00.479s 100.56% 4 Irvine 1m27.156s 188.707 0m00.712s 0m01.191s 101.39% 5 Villeneuve 1m27.207s 188.598 0m00.051s 0m01.241s 101.44% 6 Fisichella 1m27.294s 188.411 0m00.087s 0m01.328s 101.54% 7 Frentzen 1m27.353s 188.282 0m00.060s 0m01.388s 101.61% 8 Schumacher, R 1m27.590s 187.772 0m00.237s 0m01.625s 101.89% 9 Hill 1m27.660s 187.622 0m00.070s 0m01.695s 101.97% 10 Wurz 1m27.668s 187.605 0m00.008s 0m01.703s 101.98% 11 Alesi 1m27.916s 187.076 0m00.248s 0m01.951s 102.27% 12 Herbert 1m28.167s 186.545 0m00.498s 0m02.201s 102.56% 13 Barrichello 1m28.599s 185.634 0m00.433s 0m02.634s 103.06% 14 Trulli 1m28.725s 185.372 0m00.125s 0m02.759s 103.21% 15 Panis 1m28.836s 185.140 0m00.111s 0m02.870s 103.34% 16 Salo 1m28.895s 185.016 0m00.060s 0m02.929s 103.41% 17 Diniz 1m29.277s 184.226 0m00.382s 0m03.311s 103.85% 18 Takagi 1m29.304s 184.169 0m00.027s 0m03.338s 103.88% 19 Nakano 1m30.161s 182.418 0m00.857s 0m04.196s 104.88% 20 Tuero 1m30.316s 182.105 0m00.155s 0m04.350s 105.06% ---107%--- 1m31.983s 0m03.088s 0m06.018s 107.00% DNQ Magnussen 1m26.557s* DNQ Rosset 1m29.672s* DNQ Verstappen 1m31.809s* Team Total Average Time Time -------- ---------- --------- Arrows 47m30.747s 1m29.086s Benetton 46m39.394s 1m27.481s Ferrari 46m17.618s 1m26.801s Jordan 46m44.013s 1m27.625s McLaren 45m57.449s 1m26.170s Minardi 48m07.640s 1m30.239s Prost 47m20.965s 1m28.780s Sauber 46m57.331s 1m28.042s Stewart 47m29.764s 1m28.988s Tyrrell 46m13.942s 1m29.488s Williams 46m32.968s 1m27.280s Engine Total Average Time Time ----------- ------------ --------- Ferrari 0h46s17.618s 1m26.801s Ford 2h21s51.346s 1m29.488s Mecachrome 0h46s32.968s 1m27.280s Mercedes 0h45s57.449s 1m26.170s Mugen/Honda 0h46s44.013s 1m27.625s Petronas 0h46s57.331s 1m28.042s Peugeot 0h47s20.965s 1m28.780s Playlife 0h46s39.394s 1m27.481s Yamaha 0h47s30.747s 1m29.086s Tyre Total Average Time Time ----------- ------------ --------- Bridgestone 4h43m05.959s 1m28.498s Goodyear 3h52m45.872s 1m27.847s As is well-known, in today's F1 any driver who is unable to set a time in qualifying that is 107% of the time set by the eventual pole winner does not qualify for that particular race. This table shows the average of the percentage that each driver was from pole. Unlike The SuperGrid table above, these figures are based on the actual pole times - hence, since no one driver won pole at every race, no driver has an average of 100% or less. Following are similar tables for the teams and the engines - there is no table for the tyres as this was found to be even more open to misinterpretation than I previously thought possible. Driver Average %'age ------------- ------- Alesi 102.494 Barrichello 103.258 Coulthard 100.679 Diniz 104.057 Fisichella 101.750 Frentzen 101.826 Hakkinen 100.204 Herbert 102.772 Hill 102.206 Irvine 101.591 Magnussen 104.930* Nakano 105.062 Panis 103.540 Rosset 105.832* Salo 103.615 Schumacher, M 100.749 Schumacher, R 102.118 Takagi 104.109 Trulli 103.403 Tuero 105.249 Verstappen 103.866* Villeneuve 101.674 Wurz 102.167 Team Average %'age -------- ------- Arrows 103.836 Benetton 101.959 Ferrari 101.170 Jordan 102.162 McLaren 100.441 Minardi 105.155 Prost 103.472 Sauber 102.633 Stewart 104.018 Tyrrell 104.971 Williams 101.750 Engine Average %'age ----------- ------- Ferrari 101.170 Ford 104.615 Mecachrome 101.750 Mercedes 100.441 Mugen/Honda 102.162 Petronas 102.633 Peugeot 103.472 Playlife 101.959 Yamaha 103.836 SUNDAY WARM-UP And so onto race day, and the Warm-Up. Please note that Herbert's time is NOT an error. Driver Total Average Time Pos'n ------------- ---------- ------- Alesi 24m39.898s 10.563 Barrichello 24m45.674s 12.188 Coulthard 24m10.910s 2.500 Diniz 25m03.348s 17.375 Fisichella 24m29.537s 7.188 Frentzen 24m37.281s 8.938 Hakkinen 24m08.335s 1.875 Herbert 32m15.392s 12.875 Hill 24m42.243s 11.313 Irvine 24m32.859s 6.063 Nakano 25m04.098s 17.938 Panis 25m00.376s 13.688 Salo 24m47.938s 12.375 Schumacher, M 24m19.006s 3.375 Schumacher, R 24m39.094s 10.063 Takagi 24m59.584s 15.375 Trulli 24m52.434s 13.625 Tuero 25m16.449s 18.875 Villeneuve 24m39.388s 9.375 Wurz 24m38.286s 9.625 Magnussen 10m42.173s 16.429* Rosset 17m31.693s 20.909* Verstappen 14m21.959s 16.667* Again, perhaps a more informative way to look at those times is to look at their average times and to base the table on those figures. Pos Driver Average Average Split To Gap To Time KPH Previous Fastest --- ------------- --------- ------- --------- --------- 1 Hakkinen 1m30.521s 181.693 2 Coulthard 1m30.682s 181.371 0m00.161s 0m00.161s 3 Schumacher, M 1m31.188s 180.364 0m00.506s 0m00.667s 4 Fisichella 1m31.846s 179.072 0m00.658s 0m01.325s 5 Irvine 1m32.054s 178.668 0m00.208s 0m01.533s 6 Frentzen 1m32.330s 178.133 0m00.276s 0m01.809s 7 Wurz 1m32.393s 178.012 0m00.063s 0m01.872s 8 Schumacher, R 1m32.443s 177.915 0m00.050s 0m01.922s 9 Villeneuve 1m32.462s 177.880 0m00.018s 0m01.941s 10 Alesi 1m32.494s 177.818 0m00.032s 0m01.973s 11 Hill 1m32.640s 177.537 0m00.147s 0m02.119s 12 Barrichello 1m32.855s 177.127 0m00.361s 0m02.334s 13 Salo 1m32.996s 176.857 0m00.142s 0m02.475s 14 Trulli 1m33.277s 176.325 0m00.281s 0m02.756s 15 Takagi 1m33.724s 175.484 0m00.447s 0m03.203s 16 Panis 1m33.774s 175.391 0m00.050s 0m03.253s 17 Diniz 1m33.959s 175.045 0m00.186s 0m03.438s 18 Nakano 1m34.006s 174.957 0m00.047s 0m03.485s 19 Tuero 1m34.778s 173.532 0m00.772s 0m04.257s 20 Herbert 2m00.962s 135.969 0m26.184s 0m30.441s DNQ Magnussen 1m31.739s* DNQ Rosset 1m35.608s* DNQ Verstappen 1m35.773s* These tables show some warm-up information for the teams, engines and tyres. Team Total Average Average Time Time Pos'n -------- ---------- --------- ------- Arrows 49m51.286s 1m33.478s 14.875 Benetton 49m07.823s 1m32.119s 8.406 Ferrari 48m51.865s 1m31.621s 4.719 Jordan 49m21.337s 1m32.542s 10.688 McLaren 48m19.245s 1m30.601s 2.188 Minardi 50m20.547s 1m34.392s 18.406 Prost 49m52.810s 1m33.525s 13.656 Sauber 56m55.290s 1m46.728s 11.719 Stewart 49m49.806s 1m33.456s 15.094 Tyrrell 42m31.277s 1m34.666s 18.142 Williams 49m16.669s 1m32.396s 9.156 Engine Total Average Average Time Time Pos'n ----------- ------------ --------- ------- Ferrari 0h48m51.865s 1m31.621s 4.719 Ford 2h22m41.630s 1m34.069s 16.911 Mecachrome 0h49m16.669s 1m32.396s 9.156 Mercedes 0h48m19.245s 1m30.601s 2.188 Mugen/Honda 0h49m21.337s 1m32.542s 10.688 Petronas 0h56m55.290s 1m46.728s 11.719 Peugeot 0h49m52.810s 1m33.525s 13.656 Playlife 0h49m07.823s 1m32.119s 8.406 Yamaha 0h49m51.286s 1m33.478s 14.875 Tyre Total Average Average Time Time Pos'n ----------- ------------ --------- ------- Bridgestone 4h57m21.517s 1m32.969s 12.334 Goodyear 4h06m56.438s 1m35.591s 10.885 THE SUPER-RACE Finally, to the SuperRace. Trying to assemble a table that places all the drivers in some sort of order has been easy - trying to decide on what figures to sort the table has led to premature baldness. This table starts by showing each driver's average finishing position. For the purposes of the SuperRace, all drivers who are deemed to have officially started in a race are allocated a position for that race in the order they appear on the appropriate timing sheet, even if they are officially listed as "Not Classified". Only in the case of races like this year's GP of Belgium - which accounts for a large number of the asterisks in this table - are no figures recorded for that driver for that race. The "Average Time" shows the average of the official time that the driver raced during the season. If you were a cynic, you might say that working for less than 24 hours in the whole period from March through to November, would seem like an easy job. I suppose that depends on what you call "work", doesn't it? Aside from that, the total time that each driver spent racing does make for some interesting reading. The "Laps" figures simply show the total number of laps that each driver completed for the season. The "Average KPH" is worked out from the distance completed at each race and the total racing time. Driver Average Average Total Race Laps Average Pos'n Time Time KPH ------------- ------- ------------ ------------- ---- -------- Alesi 9.250 1h22m01.090s 21h52m17.443s 859 203.619 Barrichello 14.067 1h01m13.301s 15h18m19.520s 609 196.008* Coulthard 6.500 1h20m08.032s 21h22m08.505s 837 203.397 Diniz 15.875 0h47m46.912s 12h44m30.589s 478 170.714 Fisichella 8.688 1h20m56.476s 21h35m03.621s 845 199.462 Frentzen 9.500 1h16m32.091s 20h24m33.452s 788 205.502 Hakkinen 4.750 1h19m09.026s 21h06m24.420s 856 190.121 Herbert 13.438 1h07m16.173s 17h56m18.760s 720 200.908 Hill 10.188 1h23m00.944s 22h08m15.107s 878 203.739 Irvine 6.125 1h24m53.319s 22h38m13.101s 893 202.048 Magnussen 15.286 0h54m17.258s 6h20m00.809s 257 176.376* Nakano 13.688 1h17m17.030s 20h36m32.477s 774 186.993 Panis 13.533 1h16m47.533s 19h11m52.991s 746 198.330* Rosset 14.400 1h11m11.678s 11h51m56.780s 472 185.280* Salo 15.800 0h51m51.478s 12h57m52.165s 506 189.958* Schumacher, M 4.688 1h25m58.790s 22h55m40.645s 921 195.685 Schumacher, R 12.250 1h05m51.685s 17h33m46.961s 672 190.773 Takagi 14.938 1h04m32.875s 17h12m46.001s 658 189.527 Trulli 14.125 1h04m52.752s 17h18m04.026s 646 200.911 Tuero 15.375 1h01m45.985s 16h28m15.752s 613 194.038 Verstappen 14.667 1h05m30.824s 9h49m37.420s 389 203.040* Villeneuve 7.438 1h29m08.636s 23h46m18.182s 939 198.426 Wurz 9.563 1h19m34.543s 21h13m12.686s 848 201.251 Team Average Average Total Pos'n Time Time -------- ------- ------------ ------------- Arrows 15.838 0h49m49.195s 25h42m22.754s Benetton 9.125 1h20m15.510s 42h48m16.307s Ferrari 5.406 1h25m26.055s 45h33m53.746s Jordan 11.219 1h14m26.315s 39h42m02.068s McLaren 5.625 1h19m38.529s 42h28m32.925s Minardi 14.531 1h09m31.507s 37h04m48.229s Prost 13.829 1h10m50.142s 36h29m57.017s Sauber 11.344 1h14m38.631s 39h48m36.203s Stewart 14.673 1h00m20.461s 31h27m57.749s Tyrrell 14.669 1h07m52.277s 29h04m42.781s Williams 8.469 1h22m50.364s 44h10m51.634s Engine Average Total Race Average Race Pos'n Time Time ----------- ------- ------------- ------------ Ferrari 5.406 45h33m53.746s 1h25m26.055s Ford 14.631 97h37m28.759s 1h05m06.993s Mecachrome 8.469 44h10m51.634s 1h22m50.364s Mercedes 5.625 42h28m32.925s 1h19m38.529s Mugen/Honda 11.219 39h42m02.068s 1h14m26.315s Petronas 11.344 39h48m36.203s 1h14m38.631s Peugeot 13.829 36h29m57.017s 1h10m50.142s Playlife 9.125 42h48m16.307s 1h20m15.510s Yamaha 15.838 25h42m22.754s 0h49m49.195s Tyre Average Total Race Average Race Pos'n Time Time ----------- ------- -------------- ------------ Bridgestone 12.455 216h01m54.981s 1h07m47.011s Goodyear 10.221 198h20m06.432s 2h39m53.003s The "Laps % Season" shows what percentage of the total laps in the season each driver completed, while "Kilometres Raced" is based on the laps completed and the lap distance. Please note that the race distance does not simply equate to the number of laps multiplied by the lap distance: in many cases, the start line and the finish line are in two different places, eg Silverstone. Driver Laps % Kilometres Season Raced ------------- -------- ---------- Alesi 84.631 4,151.509 Barrichello 60.000 2,852.911 Coulthard 82.463 4,048.639 Diniz 47.094 2,164.633 Fisichella 83.251 4,009.168 Frentzen 77.635 3,890.670 Hakkinen 84.335 4,012.834 Herbert 70.936 3,310.283 Hill 86.502 4,209.432 Irvine 87.980 4,279.166 Magnussen 25.320 1,117.088 Nakano 76.256 3,630.383 Panis 73.498 3,515.544 Rosset 46.502 2,198.496 Salo 49.852 2,384.112 Schumacher, M 90.739 4,312.832 Schumacher, R 66.207 3,278.731 Takagi 64.828 3,102.969 Trulli 63.645 3,190.660 Tuero 60.394 3,031.767 Verstappen 38.325 1,866.577 Villeneuve 92.512 4,423.781 Wurz 83.547 3,976.661 The next few tables show the total laps and total kilometres completed by the drivers for each team, engine and tyre. Team Total Total Laps Kilometres -------- ----- ---------- Arrows 984 4,548.745 Benetton 1,693 7,985.829 Ferrari 1,814 8,591.998 Jordan 1,550 7,488.163 McLaren 1,693 8,061.473 Minardi 1,387 6,662.150 Prost 1,392 6,706.204 Sauber 1,579 7,461.792 Stewart 1,255 5,836.576 Tyrrell 1,130 5,301.465 Williams 1,727 8,314.451 Engine Total Total Laps Kilometres ----------- ----- ---------- Ferrari 1,814 8,591.998 Ford 3,772 17,800.191 Mecachrome 1,727 8,314.451 Mercedes 1,693 8,061.473 Mugen/Honda 1,550 7,488.163 Petronas 1,579 7,461.792 Peugeot 1,392 6,706.204 Playlife 1,693 7,985.829 Yamaha 984 4548.745 Tyre Total Total Laps Kilometres ----------- ----- ---------- Bridgestone 8,404 39,800.977 Goodyear 7,800 37,157.869 There's a racing truism that goes something along the lines of "It doesn't matter how many laps in a race you lead, so long as you lead the last lap." This table simply shows those drivers who led one lap or more in the F1 1998 season. This table is sorted because, however it is sorted (except alphabetically), the order remains the same. Similar tables for the teams-engines and tyres follow. Driver Laps Kilometres Led Led ------------- ----- ---------- Hakkinen 576 2,709.135 Schumacher, M 268 1,252.333 Coulthard 120 597.307 Hill 26 181.168 Fisichella 24 106.104 Irvine 1 4.250 Team-Engine Laps Kilometres Led Led ------------------ ---- ---------- McLaren-Mercedes 696 3,306.442 Ferrari 269 1,256.583 Jordan-Mugen/Honda 26 181.168 Benetton-Playlife 24 106.104 Tyre Laps Kilometres Led Led ----------- ---- ---------- Bridgestone 720 3,412.546 Goodyear 295 1,437.751 To complete the information directly from the races, there is the fastest race lap data. Quite a few drivers either failed to start a race or failed to complete a single lap in a race this season as will be seen from the asterisks in this table which shows information for fastest race laps - obviously if you fail to complete a single lap in a race, you haven't set a fastest lap time for that race. Driver Average Average Pos'n Time ------------- ------- ---------- Alesi 8.933 1m30.929s* Barrichello 14.846 1m28.707s* Coulthard 2.938 1m29.391s Diniz 16.563 1m35.696s Fisichella 7.438 1m30.305s Frentzen 7.688 1m30.274s Hakkinen 2.000 1m26.947s* Herbert 12.000 1m28.608s* Hill 8.313 1m30.259s Irvine 5.813 1m29.833s Magnussen 16.333 1m27.596s* Nakano 17.563 1m33.225s Panis 11.714 1m29.608s* Rosset 18.500 1m28.550s* Salo 16.071 1m30.656s* Schumacher, M 2.750 1m28.926s Schumacher, R 9.615 1m31.786s* Takagi 15.846 1m30.926s* Trulli 14.067 1m32.832s* Tuero 17.933 1m34.176s Verstappen 16.889 1m35.684s* Villeneuve 6.063 1m30.106s Wurz 8.200 1m27.860s* Miscellaneous Information Along the way, I gather odds-and-ends of data which, at the start of the season, seem as though they will fit in somewhere ... and then don't. And then there are other bits of information I assemble from various bits-and-pieces which don't belong anywhere either. So here they are. The average distance of a single lap in 1998 was 4.935 kilometres. Totalled, 1 lap of each circuit was 78.962 kilometres. In a way, either of those figures could be taken as the SuperGrid lap. The average of the pole times was 1m27.790s, which makes the average 107% time 1m31.795s. For the SuperRace, there were 1,015 laps (an average of 63.438 laps per race), over a distance of 4,849.167 kilometres. The average race was over a distance of 303.073 kilometres. In all, 16,204 racing laps were completed at a distance of 76,958.846 kilometres in a total racing time of 414h22m01.413s, with each driver averaging 1h11m48.627s at each race. Races I thought it might be interesting to compare some figures from the races about the races themselves, rather about the drivers. The figures in this table were compiled on either averages or totals for that particular race. I think that will do as explanation for most of them. However, to avoid any confusion, the "Avg. Laps" figures are the average of the laps completed by each driver in that race, where a driver actually started that race - even if he failed to complete a single lap. The "Total Laps" is the total of the racing laps completed by the drivers in that particular race: not surprisingly, with a low number of laps anyway, and with the crashes, the GP of Belgium had very few laps completed. Race Avg. Grid Avg. Race Total Race Avg. Total Avg. Best Time Time Time Laps Laps Lap ---------- --------- ------------ ------------- ---- ----- --------- Australia 1m32.884s 0h51m56.051s 19h02m33.131s 32 713 1m35.331s Brazil 1m19.173s 1h12m07.598s 26h26m47.158s 52 1,148 1m21.399s Argentina 1m28.306s 1h30m35.215s 33h12m54.721s 59 1,289 1m30.219s San Marino 1m28.516s 1h04m13.162s 23h32m49.558s 41 902 1m31.639s Spain 1m23.089s 1h21m30.373s 28h31m37.824s 55 1,159 1m26.362s Monaco 1m22.349s 1h21m42.989s 28h36m02.770s 56 1,177 1m25.076s Canada 1m20.001s 1h01m22.896s 22h30m23.706s 40 888 1m22.092s France 1m16.823s 1h25m26.545s 31h19m43.985s 64 1,401 1m19.975s Britain 1m25.826s 1h18m38.063s 28h49m57.380s 44 959 1m39.031s Austria 1m32.178s 0h59m18.430s 21h44m45.453s 45 997 1m17.150s Germany 1m44.197s 1h12m58.416s 25h32m26.745s 40 840 1m47.642s Hungary 1m19.445s 1h28m52.620s 31h06m25.027s 63 1,330 1m21.910s Belgium 1m51.824s 1h02m43.932s 18h49m10.779s 26 467 2m09.703s Italy 1m27.133s 0h59m48.313s 21h55m42.890s 40 876 1m27.423s Luxembourg 1m20.386s 1h20m40.393s 29h34m48.636s 57 1,250 1m22.671s Japan 1m39.508s 1h07m25.317s 23h35m51.650s 38 808 1m43.204s The raw data are copyright © 1998 Fédération de l'Automobile (8 place de la Concorde, Paris 75008 France). These compilations are copyright © 1998 Rory Gordon. Reproduction in any form of these compilations is forbidden without the express permission of the compiler. The data are subject to revision. The compiler will not be held responsible for any errors or omissions. For any comments, please contact the compiler. Rory Gordon Send comments to: gordon@atlasf1.com