Landmark for Jordan as title race speeds up

The five points won by Giancarlo Fisichella and Ralf Schumacher at the new A1 circuit in Austria yesterday brings Jordan Grand Prix's points tally this year to an all-time record for the team of 33 World Championship points. In an exciting and close race, Jacques Villeneuve claimed a vital victory which leaves Michael Schumacher just the single point he won yesterday ahead of the Williams star in the Drivers' championship table with just three races remaining. Eddie Irvine's troubled race ended in a collision with Jean Alesi, one which the Irishman counted himself lucky to survive. As yesterday dawned, the Jordan team's focus switched away from the Damon Hill signing and on to the immediate business of achieving their ambition of beating McLaren in the Constructors' championship.

Despite one of their worst qualifying results of the season - Ralf Schumacher was 11th on the grid and Fisichella 14th - both drivers were able to work themselves into points scoring positions by the finish.

"We didn't change a thing on the cars from qualifying. It turned out that the tyres worked a lot better as they wore and looking back we should have just used one set in qualifying," said Eddie Jordan after the race. "Our strategy was good. We kept the cars out as long as possible to get the best out of the tyres." The team was rewarded when Fisichella took the chequered flag 12 seconds behind race winner Villeneuve, with David Coulthard and Heinz Harald Frentzen in between. Ralf Schumacher followed Fisichella home in fifth, just ahead of brother Michael.

Coulthard's second place means that McLaren are now 11 points ahead of Jordan with just the Nurburgring next weekend, Suzuka and Jerez remaining.

"This is our eighth points finish in a row," said Jordan. "Now we must focus on getting the podium finishes to beat McLaren."

Eddie Irvine was paler than usual after a vivid illustration of the dangers of grand prix came in a mid-race collision with Jean Alesi. The Dalkey-based driver was visibly shaken as he walked from the Ferrari garage to the motor home. "That was scary," he said. "I thought his back wheel was going to take my head off. "About half distance I was getting light on fuel and I came up on Alesi who was full of fuel (after a pit stop). I went around the outside and left him plenty of room. But he just kept coming out and caught my back wheel with his front. His car then flew up in the air and came right across the front of my car. I thought the back wheel would hit my head." Alesi was close to tears as he condemned Irvine's driving, but the Irishman totally rejected the Benetton driver's view of the accident: "With Jean it's always someone else's fault. He should look at the video. It's absolutely clear who was at fault."