1994 FIA FORMULA ONE WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP
GRAND PRIX OF BELGIUM, SPA-FRANCORCHAMPS
SUNDAY AUGUST 28, 1994

RESULTS FROM FRIDAY PRACTICE AND PROVISIONAL QUALIFYING
by Robert Heathcote, for SpeedNet, AUTOSPORTS BBS, and
rec.autos.sport.info

Morning Practice Notes:
Renault has their new RS6B V-10 engine for Hill and Coulthard, the
latter seeing Spa for the first time inside a Grand Prix car...Alesi
was happy in the Ferrari 412T1B, but teammate Gerhard Berger spun in the
dry portion of the session and didn't get back out until the rains
came...Hakkinen lost oil pressure and needed and engine change...Blundell
had big trouble with his semi-auto gearbox...Irvine had a spin...Benetton
kept its drivers off the track in the early goings and were surprised by
the rain...both Larrousse cars had 'box trouble...Frentzen spun and
DeCecaris had a bad engine...Minardi has a revised chassis with shorter
sidepods (ignoring safety issues, ala Williams latest revision)...
Philippe Adams crashed right in front of the pits, just to show the
Lotus boys how tough his first Grand Prix session was going.

Afternoon Qualifying Notes:
The rain continued into the qualifying session but subsided towards the
end, allowing a few -- including the impressive Brazilian, Rubens
Barrichello -- to get out on slick tires for a hot lap.  Teammate Irvine
did not go out on slicks...Schumacher tried the slicks but spun while
Verstappen stayed safe on grooved tires...Damon Hill never switched to
slicks: "It was always going to be an iffy one to predict.  When I went
out on a run halfway through the session I got to the top of the hill
and saw the sky clearing, so I figured it might dry and so came in to
wait for a long run just before the end of the session."  Coulthard
wanted to have a go on dry tires but stalled at the end of pit
lane...Alesi was furious after being balked by the slow Peugeot of
Martin Brundle on his sole slick run, while teammate Berger lost and
engine and was left stranded on the circuit, as were Katayama and
Christian Fittipaldi...Peugeot pilots whined of no power...Sauber: no
traction...Martini stumbled on a good setup but had 'box trouble, this
time...Blundell couldn't get a clear lap, or so he complained...
Morbidelli, rumored not to be here a few weeks ago, wishes he wasn't, as
he has the flu...Gachot was another with an engine failure and Belmondo
never got that chance as his Ilmor was starved for fuel.

1994 Pole: Alain Prost (Williams-Renault) 1:47.571
1994 Winner: Damon Hill (Williams-Renault) 1h24m32.124s


by Robert Heathcote, for SpeedNet and AUTOSPORTS BBS (310-641-9627), and
rec.autos.sport.info

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