70o Gran Premio Campari d'Italia - 1999
The two-horse battle for the 1999 World Championship was blown wide open today and if Hakkinen didn't took the crown then people would point to Monza as the place where he losted it. It was also the place where he lost his image of 'Ice-Man' as millions of people saw him break down and cry his heart out in the full glare of the TV cameras. The Finn started the race from his now customary pole position and pulled out a lead of 6s over the field. When given the 'push' board by his pit crew Hakkinen pushed to the limit and then over it. The spin at the first corner gave the race to Heinz-Harald Frentzen. Hakkinen's error was a simple one, he simply selected first gear instead of second as he entered the chicane but in terms of cost it was massive blow. Not only did it cost the team and himself ten world championship points it allowed that famous motormouth - Eddie Irvine - to gleefully point out after the race, it is the 2nd time this year that the Finn has crashed when put under pressure.
"Everything had been going well and I was building up a big, big lead and I was pushing quite hard," explained Hakkinen. "I thought something tricky was going on behind me. I went to the chicane on the limit, selected the first gear - which we only normally use for the start - locked the rear tyres, started to spin and I was in deep, deep trouble. I am extremely disappointed. This is the worst nightmare I could have had today."
Heinz-Harald Frentzen drove a superb race - made no errors and was richly rewarded with his 2nd win of the season and the 3rd of his career. The victory lifted the German to 3rd place in the driver's championship battle and just ten points behind Mika Hakkinen and Eddie Irvine with just 3 rounds remaining. "I couldn't believe it when I saw Mika in the sand because he was seven seconds ahead of me," said the delighted Frentzen. "The start was dramatic. I had too much wheel spin and lost a place or two but got them back again and then set my sights on Mika but couldn't keep with him. After the pit stop I nursed the car and just made sure I brought my baby home."
Statistics
Summary| Entrants | Qualified | Started | Classified |
| 22 | 22 | 22 | 22 |
