Sunday December 19th, 1999

Ferrari held its annual Christmas party yesterday, but Eddie Irvine, having left the team after four years, was not there due to illness. "It would have been even better if he could have been here," said Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo, "But we heard this morning that he has the flu."

None the less, Irvine found a different way to say goodbye to the team - the Ulsterman bought a page-big advert in La Gazzetta dello Sport where he thanks the team and bids them farewell.

Michael Schumacher, Rubens Barrichello and Mika Salo all attended the party, where a huge banner greeted the arrivals, saying: "Ferrari World Champion."