At Italian GP, Hakkinen spins and Frentzen wins

Piero Valsecchi

Tuesday, Sept. 14, 1999 | 10:30 a.m.

MONZA, Italy - Mika Hakkinen lost control of his car and spun off the course, clearing the way for Heinz-Harald Frentzen to capture the Italian Grand Prix on Sunday.

"Winning at Monza is the biggest success of my F-1 career, it's a dream coming true," Frentzen said.

Hakkinen still leads the Formula One driver standings, with three races left. The Finnish driver is tied at 60 points with Ferrari's Eddie Irvine, who earned one point from a sixth-place finish.

Before the race, drunken auto racing fans brawled and fans without tickets clashed with security, leaving 95 people injured. Most were treated for bruises and only two needed to be hospitalized, medical officials at the track said.

Frentzen, in a Jordan, won for the second time this season, following his victory in the French Grand Prix. He moved into third place in the standings, with 50 points.

Before a crowd of 110,000, the German took the lead in the 30th lap, when Hakkinen lost control at the first curve. The McLaren Mercedes driver made the same mistake at Imola in May.

Hakkinen was leading Frentzen by eight seconds when he drove into the grass and was unable to restart his car. He walked past stewards trying to console him and tossed his racing gloves.

"I could not believe it, when I saw Mika spinning off while leading with a huge advantage," Frentzen said.

Hakkinen, who started from the pole, was seeking his fifth victory this season. He said he chose the wrong gear at the curve and lost rear traction.

"A day like this is a nightmare for a driver," Hakkinen said. "I had a big lead, and I was driving comfortably. ... I went out with a stalled engine. I made a mistake."

Ralf Schumacher, the younger brother of sidelined Ferrari star Michael, finished second in a Winfield Williams, 3.27 seconds behind Frentzen.

Former CART champion Alex Zanardi achieved his best result of the season, placing seventh in a Winfield Williams.