Wednesday October 20th, 1999

Johnny Herbert, Eddie Irvine's teammate next year at Jaguar, said on Tuesday that he fear for Eddie Irvine's state of mind should the Ferrari appeal be lost, and warned the Irishman to expect the worse.

"I had a very similar problem with my barge board on my Sauber in the French Grand Prix in 1996," said Herbert. "We didn't appeal because it was something that was difficult to fight against. We had broken the rules and we had to accept our punishment. It was never an option to appeal."

Herbert, however, was disqualified from 11th position, unlike Irvine who was first. Furthermore, the infringement by Sauber was far greater as the deflector panels on Herbert's car were 150mm too high, compared to the 10mm shortage on Irvine's car.

"What worries me, is that it could have an effect on Eddie next year," said Herbert. "If he loses the appeal he could be left to wonder if he will ever have another chance to win the championship. It might reduce his mental strength, but it will also be a shame for me because I want to team up and compete against a world champion."