It was as if Eddie Irvine had won the race judging from the sea of microphones put in front of him as he returned to the pits after the crash with Giancarlo Fisichella which put them both out of certain points finishes in the McLaren-dominated Spanish Grand Prix at Barcelona yesterday.

Irvine had rocketed off the line to go from sixth on the grid to third by the second corner, passing Fisichella's Benetton in a charging move around the outside. As Hakkinen led the McLaren charge into the distance, Irvine retained a tremendous third place until the first pit stops when his team leader Michael Schumacher went through. The next lap Fisichella drew alongside Irvine entering the braking area for the first corner. The Irishman explained what happened next: "I was on the inside and he came alongside. He jumped on the brakes and turned right. I wasn't going to disappear." The pair touched and careered into the gravel trap. The fiery Italian then leapt from his stricken car and began to admonish the Ferrari star. Irvine explained: "This is the usual driver stuff. It's always the other guy's fault. To be honest Giancarlo was being a bit juvenile". It was another bad day for Jordan. Damon Hill started eighth and was in that position at two-thirds distance when he had a coming together with Frentzen's Williams.

"He (Frentzen) was coming out of the pits - a lap behind - and he starts racing me. It's ridiculous. He pushed me off the track and I'm sure all that gravel and stuff I collected caused the engine problem. I've had a lot of trouble with him. He's an idiot," said the frustrated Jordan driver. Poor Ralf Schumacher. What a dire race. From 11th on the grid he was 20th by the end of the first lap and could make no impression on even the humble Tyrrell of Takagi. Eddie Jordan was gravely disappointed. "There is absolutely nothing I want to say about today's race except let's forget about it and move on to Monaco".