1997 Japanese Grand Prix
613th World Championship race, 13th World Championship Japanese Grand Prix, 11th World Championship race at Suzuka
Fact File
| Date: | Sunday, 12 October 1997 |
|---|---|
| Winner: |  Michael Schumacher  Ferrari |
| Pole position: |  Jacques Villeneuve  Williams-Renault |
| Fastest lap: | Heinz-Harald Frentzen Williams-Renault |
| Circuit: | Suzuka, 53 laps |
| Round: | 16 of 17 |
Race Result
| Pos | Driver | Constructor | Laps | Time | Points | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | +1 | Michael Schumacher | Ferrari | 53 | 1hr 29m 48.446s | 10 |
| 2 | +4 | Heinz-Harald Frentzen | Williams-Renault | 53 | +1.378s | 6 |
| 3 | Eddie Irvine | Ferrari | 53 | +26.384s | 4 | |
| 4 |  Mika Hakkinen | McLaren-Mercedes | 53 | +27.129s | 3 | |
| DQ | Jacques Villeneuve | Williams-Renault | 53 | +39.776s | ||
| 5 | +2 |  Jean Alesi | Benetton-Renault | 53 | +40.403s | 2 |
| 6 | +2 | Johnny Herbert | Sauber-Petronas | 53 | +41.630s | 1 |
| 7 | +2 | Giancarlo Fisichella | Jordan-Peugeot | 53 | +56.825s | |
| 8 | -3 |  Gerhard Berger | Benetton-Renault | 53 | +1m 00.429s | |
| 9 | +4 | Ralf Schumacher | Jordan-Peugeot | 53 | +1m 22.036s | |
| 10 | +1 | David Coulthard | McLaren-Mercedes | 52 | DNF | |
| 11 | +6 | Damon Hill | Arrows-Yamaha | 52 | +1 lap | |
| 12 | +4 |  Pedro Diniz | Arrows-Yamaha | 52 | +1 lap | |
| 13 | +8 |  Jos Verstappen | Tyrrell-Ford Cosworth | 52 | +1 lap | |
| R | Tarso Marques | Minardi-Hart | 46 | DNF | ||
| R | Mika Salo | Tyrrell-Ford Cosworth | 46 | DNF | ||
| R | Olivier Panis | Prost-Mugen-Honda | 36 | DNF | ||
| R |  Shinji Nakano | Prost-Mugen-Honda | 22 | DNF | ||
| R | Ukyo Katayama | Minardi-Hart | 8 | DNF | ||
| R | Rubens Barrichello | Stewart-Ford Cosworth | 6 | DNF | ||
| R |  Jan Magnussen | Stewart-Ford Cosworth | 3 | DNF | ||
| Did not start | ||||||
| Gianni Morbidelli | Sauber-Petronas | |||||
- Jacques Villeneuve was disqualified post-race for ignoring a yellow flag in practice, having initially raced under appeal.
Starting Grid
- Highlight: race winner
- Highlight: second place
- Highlight: third place
| Pos | Driver | Constructor | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jacques Villeneuve | Williams-Renault | 1:36.071 |
| 2 | Michael Schumacher | Ferrari | 1:36.133 |
| 3 | Eddie Irvine | Ferrari | 1:36.466 |
| 4 | Mika Hakkinen | McLaren-Mercedes | 1:36.469 |
| 5 | Gerhard Berger | Benetton-Renault | 1:36.561 |
| 6 | Heinz-Harald Frentzen | Williams-Renault | 1:36.628 |
| 7 | Jean Alesi | Benetton-Renault | 1:36.682 |
| 8 | Johnny Herbert | Sauber-Petronas | 1:36.906 |
| 9 | Giancarlo Fisichella | Jordan-Peugeot | 1:36.917 |
| 10 | Olivier Panis | Prost-Mugen-Honda | 1:37.073 |
| 11 | David Coulthard | McLaren-Mercedes | 1:37.095 |
| 12 | Rubens Barrichello | Stewart-Ford Cosworth | 1:37.343 |
| 13 | Ralf Schumacher | Jordan-Peugeot | 1:37.443 |
| 14 | Jan Magnussen | Stewart-Ford Cosworth | 1:37.480 |
| 15 | Shinji Nakano | Prost-Mugen-Honda | 1:37.588 |
| 16 | Pedro Diniz | Arrows-Yamaha | 1:37.853 |
| 17 | Damon Hill | Arrows-Yamaha | 1:38.022 |
| 18 | Ukyo Katayama | Minardi-Hart | 1:38.983 |
| 19 | Tarso Marques | Minardi-Hart | 1:39.678 |
| 20 | Jos Verstappen | Tyrrell-Ford Cosworth | 1:40.259 |
| 21 | Mika Salo | Tyrrell-Ford Cosworth | 1:40.529 |
Qualifying Result
| Pos | Driver | Constructor | Time | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jacques Villeneuve | Williams-Renault | 1:36.071 | |
| 2 | Michael Schumacher | Ferrari | 1:36.133 | 0.062 |
| 3 | Eddie Irvine | Ferrari | 1:36.466 | 0.395 |
| 4 | Mika Hakkinen | McLaren-Mercedes | 1:36.469 | 0.398 |
| 5 | Gerhard Berger | Benetton-Renault | 1:36.561 | 0.490 |
| 6 | Heinz-Harald Frentzen | Williams-Renault | 1:36.628 | 0.557 |
| 7 | Jean Alesi | Benetton-Renault | 1:36.682 | 0.611 |
| 8 | Johnny Herbert | Sauber-Petronas | 1:36.906 | 0.835 |
| 9 | Giancarlo Fisichella | Jordan-Peugeot | 1:36.917 | 0.846 |
| 10 | Olivier Panis | Prost-Mugen-Honda | 1:37.073 | 1.002 |
| 11 | David Coulthard | McLaren-Mercedes | 1:37.095 | 1.024 |
| 12 | Rubens Barrichello | Stewart-Ford Cosworth | 1:37.343 | 1.272 |
| 13 | Ralf Schumacher | Jordan-Peugeot | 1:37.443 | 1.372 |
| 14 | Jan Magnussen | Stewart-Ford Cosworth | 1:37.480 | 1.409 |
| 15 | Shinji Nakano | Prost-Mugen-Honda | 1:37.588 | 1.517 |
| 16 | Pedro Diniz | Arrows-Yamaha | 1:37.853 | 1.782 |
| 17 | Damon Hill | Arrows-Yamaha | 1:38.022 | 1.951 |
| 18 | Gianni Morbidelli | Sauber-Petronas | 1:38.556 | 2.485 |
| 19 | Ukyo Katayama | Minardi-Hart | 1:38.983 | 2.912 |
| 20 | Tarso Marques | Minardi-Hart | 1:39.678 | 3.607 |
| 21 | Jos Verstappen | Tyrrell-Ford Cosworth | 1:40.259 | 4.188 |
| 22 | Mika Salo | Tyrrell-Ford Cosworth | 1:40.529 | 4.458 |
Championship Standings
How the championship standings stood post-race.
- Highlight: driver/constructor confirmed as world champion for 1997
Driver
| Pos | Driver | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Michael Schumacher | 78 |
| 2 | Jacques Villeneuve | 77 |
| 3 | Heinz-Harald Frentzen | 41 |
| 4 | Jean Alesi | 36 |
| 5 | David Coulthard | 30 |
| 6 | Gerhard Berger | 24 |
| 7 | Eddie Irvine | 22 |
| 8 | Giancarlo Fisichella | 20 |
| 9 | Mika Hakkinen | 17 |
| 10 | Olivier Panis | 16 |
| 11 | Johnny Herbert | 15 |
| 12 | Ralf Schumacher | 13 |
| 13 | Damon Hill | 7 |
| 14 | Rubens Barrichello | 6 |
| 15 | Alexander Wurz | 4 |
| 16 | Jarno Trulli | 3 |
| 17 | Mika Salo | 2 |
| = | Pedro Diniz | 2 |
| 19 | Shinji Nakano | 2 |
| 20 | Nicola Larini | 1 |
Statistics & Milestones
- Milestone race start
- Driver: 100th for Michael Schumacher
- World Champion
- Constructor: 9th World Championship for Williams NEW RECORD
- Wins
- Driver: 27th for Michael Schumacher
- Constructor: 113th for Ferrari
- Podiums
- Driver: 54th for Michael Schumacher, 8th for Heinz-Harald Frentzen, 7th for Eddie Irvine
- Constructor: 399th & 400th for Ferrari, 241st for Williams
- Poles
- Driver: 12th for Jacques Villeneuve
- Constructor: 107th for Williams
- Fastest laps
- Driver: 5th for Heinz-Harald Frentzen
- Constructor: 109th for Williams
- Front row starts
- Driver: 34th for Michael Schumacher, 21st for Jacques Villeneuve
- Points finishes
- Driver: 25th for Johnny Herbert