Heinz-Harald Frentzen

Interesting facts

Frentzen and Michael Schumacher were already rivals in the 1989 German Formula Three championship; after a controversial race at Zeltweg, Frentzen claimed Schumacher had forced him off the track, and the two finished the season tied on points. In 1997 he replaced reigning champion Damon Hill at Williams, winning on his very first outing at San Marino and taking pole at Monaco. His finest season came at Jordan in 1999, with two wins (France, Italy) and third place in the championship - many observers named him driver of the year. Jordan terminated his contract mid-season in 2001; team boss Eddie Jordan later revealed the real reason was to appease Honda so the team could sign Japanese driver Takuma Sato. Peter Sauber observed that Frentzen needed a very specific team atmosphere to perform well, and he reportedly offered his own money to fund technical upgrades during a rough patch at Jordan. Heinz-Harald Frentzen raced in Formula 1 from 1994 to 2003, across 10 seasons as a German driver. He scored a total of 174 championship points over his career. His best season was 1997, when he finished 2nd in the championship with 42 points.