Lap Ledger1950–2027 · every championship race

Race · Round 16 of 16 ·

1996 Japanese Grand Prix

Damon Hill won for Williams from 2nd on the grid at Suzuka Circuit. 6 of the starters were not classified. This round settled the drivers' title for Damon Hill.

Dry · High of 23 °C, 3.1 mm of rain on the day (modelled, Open-Meteo)

How it is modelled

ERA5's reanalysis, through Open-Meteo, of the circuit's whole local day and not the race's hours, for the grid cell the circuit sits in and not the track, so a shower can be missing from it. Contains modified Copernicus Climate Change Service information 2026. Neither the European Commission nor ECMWF is responsible for any use that may be made of the Copernicus information or data it contains.

Circuit
Suzuka CircuitSuzuka, Japan
Winner
Damon HillWilliams
Entries
2013 classified

Classification

Classification
PosDriverConstructorChassisGridLapsOutPointsFL
1Damon HillWilliamsFW18252Finished10
2Michael SchumacherFerrariF310352Finished6
3Mika HakkinenMcLaren—552Finished4
4Gerhard BergerBenettonB196452Finished3
5Martin BrundleJordan1961052Finished2
6Heinz-Harald FrentzenSauberC15752Finished1
7Olivier PanisLigierJS431252Finished0
8David CoulthardMcLaren—852Finished0
9Rubens BarrichelloJordan1961152Finished0
10Johnny HerbertSauberC151352Finished0
11Jos VerstappenFootworkFA171751Finished0
12Pedro LamyMinardiM195B1850Finished0
13Ricardo RossetFootworkFA171950Finished0
DNFEddie IrvineFerrariF310639Collision0
DNFUkyo KatayamaTyrrell201437Engine0
DNFJacques VilleneuveWilliamsFW18136Wheel0fastest lap
DNFMika SaloTyrrell201520Engine0
DNFPedro DinizLigierJS431613Spun off0
DNFJean AlesiBenettonB19690Spun off0
DNQGiovanni LavaggiMinardiM195B——DNQ0
A blank chassis is a season the team ran more than one design and no source says which car raced here.
F1DB layout suzuka-1 · 5.86 km · 18 turns, F1DB’s figures
F1DB, CC BY 4.0 · drawn by Jules Roy
The outline is F1DB’s, for every layout; the trace is OpenStreetMap’s, where it exists.

Grid to flag

05101520253035404550Laps completedGridResult21Damon Hill32Michael Schumacher53Mika Hakkinen44Gerhard Berger105Martin Brundle76Heinz-Harald Frentzen127Olivier Panis88David Coulthard119Rubens Barrichello1310Johnny Herbert1711Jos Verstappen1812Pedro Lamy1913Ricardo Rosset6DNFEddie Irvine14DNFUkyo Katayama1DNFJacques Villeneuve15DNFMika Salo16DNFPedro Diniz9DNFJean Alesi

Lines run from grid slot to result, ending at the last lap completed. A dashed line ending in a cross is a driver not classified. Nothing between is recorded, so a crossing is not an overtake at that lap.

Grid to flag
DriverGridResultLaps
Damon Hill2152
Michael Schumacher3252
Mika Hakkinen5352
Gerhard Berger4452
Martin Brundle10552
Heinz-Harald Frentzen7652
Olivier Panis12752
David Coulthard8852
Rubens Barrichello11952
Johnny Herbert131052
Jos Verstappen171151
Pedro Lamy181250
Ricardo Rosset191350
Eddie Irvine6DNF39
Ukyo Katayama14DNF37
Jacques Villeneuve1DNF36
Mika Salo15DNF20
Pedro Diniz16DNF13
Jean Alesi9DNF0

Qualifying

Qualifying
PosDriverConstructorNo.TimeGap≈ DistanceInterval
1Jacques VilleneuveWilliams61:38.909—0 m—
2Damon HillWilliams51:39.370+0.46127 m+0.461
3Michael SchumacherFerrari11:40.071+1.16269 m+0.701
4Gerhard BergerBenetton41:40.364+1.45586 m+0.293
5Mika HakkinenMcLaren71:40.458+1.54992 m+0.094
6Eddie IrvineFerrari21:41.005+2.096124 m+0.547
7Heinz-Harald FrentzenSauber151:41.277+2.368140 m+0.272
8David CoulthardMcLaren81:41.384+2.475147 m+0.107
9Jean AlesiBenetton31:41.562+2.653157 m+0.178
10Martin BrundleJordan121:41.600+2.691159 m+0.038
11Rubens BarrichelloJordan111:41.919+3.010178 m+0.319
12Olivier PanisLigier91:42.206+3.297195 m+0.287
13Johnny HerbertSauber141:42.658+3.749222 m+0.452
14Ukyo KatayamaTyrrell181:42.711+3.802225 m+0.053
15Mika SaloTyrrell191:42.840+3.931233 m+0.129
16Pedro DinizLigier101:43.196+4.287254 m+0.356
17Jos VerstappenFootwork171:43.383+4.474265 m+0.187
18Pedro LamyMinardi201:44.874+5.965353 m+1.491
19Ricardo RossetFootwork161:45.412+6.503385 m+0.538
20Giovanni LavaggiMinardi211:46.795+7.886467 m+1.383
Before knock-out qualifying arrived in 2006 there is one time per driver; from 2006, the best lap of each of the three sessions.
How it is derived: distance, Qualifying

Distance at the session-best lap’s average speed, on the layout raced that year.

Pit stops

05101520253035404550LapStops on each lap (up to 5)1Damon HillLap 18: pit lane 35.5 sLap 34: pit lane 32.2 s2Michael SchumacherLap 16: pit lane 31.7 sLap 32: pit lane 31.1 s3Mika HakkinenLap 18: pit lane 31.1 sLap 32: pit lane 31.5 s4Gerhard BergerLap 4: pit lane 34.5 sLap 22: pit lane 29.9 sLap 36: pit lane 30.4 s5Martin BrundleLap 16: pit lane 33.4 sLap 35: pit lane 32.6 s6Heinz-Harald FrentzenLap 16: pit lane 33.0 sLap 29: pit lane 32.1 s7Olivier PanisLap 17: pit lane 31.7 sLap 31: pit lane 33.0 s8David CoulthardLap 1: pit lane 40.5 sLap 16: pit lane 31.4 sLap 34: pit lane 34.2 s9Rubens BarrichelloLap 14: pit lane 33.0 sLap 32: pit lane 32.2 s10Johnny HerbertLap 17: pit lane 32.4 sLap 33: pit lane 33.4 s11Jos VerstappenLap 29: pit lane 34.7 s12Pedro LamyLap 16: pit lane 31.5 sLap 35: pit lane 31.6 s13Ricardo RossetLap 26: pit lane 36.2 sLap 27: pit lane 38.4 sDNFEddie IrvineLap 18: pit lane 31.9 sLap 33: pit lane 31.4 sDNFUkyo KatayamaLap 15: pit lane 32.6 sLap 26: pit lane 44.5 sDNFJacques VilleneuveLap 14: pit lane 35.1 sLap 32: pit lane 35.4 sDNFMika SaloDNFPedro DinizDNFJean Alesi

Bars run in finishing order, ticked at each stop. An unticked bar may hide a stop: F1DB’s record has gaps. A cross is a driver not classified. Ticks and strip mark the lap, not cause, tyres or gain; the table gives times.

Pit stops
DriverResultLapsStops recordedStopped on lapPit-lane time (s)
Damon Hill152218, 3435.5, 32.2
Michael Schumacher252216, 3231.7, 31.1
Mika Hakkinen352218, 3231.1, 31.5
Gerhard Berger45234, 22, 3634.5, 29.9, 30.4
Martin Brundle552216, 3533.4, 32.6
Heinz-Harald Frentzen652216, 2933.0, 32.1
Olivier Panis752217, 3131.7, 33.0
David Coulthard85231, 16, 3440.5, 31.4, 34.2
Rubens Barrichello952214, 3233.0, 32.2
Johnny Herbert1052217, 3332.4, 33.4
Jos Verstappen115112934.7
Pedro Lamy1250216, 3531.5, 31.6
Ricardo Rosset1350226, 2736.2, 38.4
Eddie IrvineDNF39218, 3331.9, 31.4
Ukyo KatayamaDNF37215, 2632.6, 44.5
Jacques VilleneuveDNF36214, 3235.1, 35.4
Mika SaloDNF200None recorded—
Pedro DinizDNF130None recorded—
Jean AlesiDNF00None recorded—
A pit-lane time is all of a stop’s time in the pit lane, any wait or repair there included.

Who stopped first, between neighbours

Who stopped first, between neighbours
Drivers, in grid orderGridResultFirst recorded stop, lapStopped firstGrid to flag
Damon Hill · Michael Schumacher2 · 31 · 218 · 16Michael SchumacherKept their order
Michael Schumacher · Mika Hakkinen3 · 52 · 316 · 18Michael SchumacherKept their order
Michael Schumacher · Gerhard Berger3 · 42 · 416 · 4Gerhard BergerKept their order
Gerhard Berger · Mika Hakkinen4 · 54 · 34 · 18Gerhard BergerSwapped places
Gerhard Berger · Martin Brundle4 · 104 · 54 · 16Gerhard BergerKept their order
Heinz-Harald Frentzen · Martin Brundle7 · 106 · 516 · 16Same lapSwapped places
Martin Brundle · Rubens Barrichello10 · 115 · 916 · 14Rubens BarrichelloKept their order
Heinz-Harald Frentzen · Olivier Panis7 · 126 · 716 · 17Heinz-Harald FrentzenKept their order
Heinz-Harald Frentzen · David Coulthard7 · 86 · 816 · 1David CoulthardKept their order
David Coulthard · Olivier Panis8 · 128 · 71 · 17David CoulthardSwapped places
Rubens Barrichello · Olivier Panis11 · 129 · 714 · 17Rubens BarrichelloSwapped places
Olivier Panis · Johnny Herbert12 · 137 · 1017 · 17Same lapKept their order
David Coulthard · Rubens Barrichello8 · 118 · 91 · 14David CoulthardKept their order
Rubens Barrichello · Johnny Herbert11 · 139 · 1014 · 17Rubens BarrichelloKept their order
Johnny Herbert · Jos Verstappen13 · 1710 · 1117 · 29Johnny HerbertKept their order
Jos Verstappen · Pedro Lamy17 · 1811 · 1229 · 16Pedro LamyKept their order
Pedro Lamy · Ricardo Rosset18 · 1912 · 1316 · 26Pedro LamyKept their order
Pairs of classified drivers who started or finished next to each other, each with a stop recorded; the two names in a row are in grid order. Both are read from the stops F1DB records, which has gaps. It is the order things happened in and no more: with no lap times, the record cannot say whether stopping first won or lost a place.
Practice sessions Practice 1 · Practice 2 · Warm-up

Practice 1

Practice 1
PosDriverConstructorNo.Best lapGap≈ DistanceIntervalLaps
1Gerhard BergerBenetton41:42.350—0 m—30
2Mika HakkinenMcLaren71:42.954+0.60435 m+0.60422
3Michael SchumacherFerrari11:43.321+0.97156 m+0.36724
4Jacques VilleneuveWilliams61:43.372+1.02259 m+0.05130
5Damon HillWilliams51:43.747+1.39780 m+0.37530
6Martin BrundleJordan121:43.845+1.49586 m+0.09829
7Jean AlesiBenetton31:43.860+1.51086 m+0.01522
8Eddie IrvineFerrari21:44.092+1.742100 m+0.23221
9Rubens BarrichelloJordan111:44.441+2.091120 m+0.34925
10Heinz-Harald FrentzenSauber151:44.598+2.248129 m+0.15724
11Mika SaloTyrrell191:44.971+2.621150 m+0.37327
12Johnny HerbertSauber141:45.194+2.844163 m+0.22324
13David CoulthardMcLaren81:45.471+3.121179 m+0.27722
14Ukyo KatayamaTyrrell181:45.789+3.439197 m+0.31829
15Olivier PanisLigier91:45.893+3.543203 m+0.10430
16Jos VerstappenFootwork171:46.105+3.755215 m+0.21217
17Ricardo RossetFootwork161:47.285+4.935283 m+1.18024
18Pedro LamyMinardi201:48.724+6.374365 m+1.43927
19Giovanni LavaggiMinardi211:50.227+7.877451 m+1.50329
20Pedro DinizLigier102:02.130+19.7801,132 m+11.90312
Each driver’s best lap of the session and the laps they ran: a classification, not lap timing.
How it is derived: distance, Practice 1

Distance at the session-best lap’s average speed, on the layout raced that year.

Practice 2

Practice 2
PosDriverConstructorNo.Best lapGap≈ DistanceIntervalLaps
1Jacques VilleneuveWilliams61:40.534—0 m—23
2Mika HakkinenMcLaren71:41.136+0.60235 m+0.60217
3Rubens BarrichelloJordan111:41.842+1.30876 m+0.70618
4Eddie IrvineFerrari21:41.916+1.38281 m+0.07418
5Damon HillWilliams51:41.980+1.44684 m+0.06422
6David CoulthardMcLaren81:42.009+1.47586 m+0.02920
7Michael SchumacherFerrari11:42.368+1.834107 m+0.35917
8Olivier PanisLigier91:42.672+2.138125 m+0.30422
9Johnny HerbertSauber141:42.714+2.180127 m+0.04226
10Mika SaloTyrrell191:42.759+2.225130 m+0.04524
11Heinz-Harald FrentzenSauber151:42.839+2.305134 m+0.08021
12Martin BrundleJordan121:42.905+2.371138 m+0.06624
13Pedro DinizLigier101:43.106+2.572150 m+0.20125
14Gerhard BergerBenetton41:43.445+2.911170 m+0.33920
15Jean AlesiBenetton31:43.643+3.109181 m+0.19815
16Ukyo KatayamaTyrrell181:44.340+3.806222 m+0.69723
17Ricardo RossetFootwork161:45.198+4.664272 m+0.85821
18Jos VerstappenFootwork171:45.653+5.119298 m+0.45521
19Giovanni LavaggiMinardi211:47.473+6.939404 m+1.82026
20Pedro LamyMinardi201:48.082+7.548440 m+0.60916
Each driver’s best lap of the session and the laps they ran: a classification, not lap timing.
How it is derived: distance, Practice 2

Distance at the session-best lap’s average speed, on the layout raced that year.

Warm-up

Warm-up
PosDriverConstructorNo.Best lapGap≈ DistanceIntervalLaps
1Jacques VilleneuveWilliams61:48.664—0 m—11
2Rubens BarrichelloJordan111:48.937+0.27315 m+0.27312
3Jean AlesiBenetton31:49.373+0.70938 m+0.4368
4Damon HillWilliams51:51.390+2.726147 m+2.01711
5Ukyo KatayamaTyrrell181:52.013+3.349181 m+0.62312
6Olivier PanisLigier91:53.537+4.873263 m+1.52411
7Michael SchumacherFerrari11:53.677+5.013270 m+0.1408
8Mika SaloTyrrell191:53.957+5.293285 m+0.28011
9Pedro DinizLigier101:54.526+5.862316 m+0.5699
10Pedro LamyMinardi201:54.781+6.117330 m+0.25513
11Heinz-Harald FrentzenSauber151:54.896+6.232336 m+0.11510
12Martin BrundleJordan121:56.763+8.099437 m+1.86712
13Gerhard BergerBenetton41:58.753+10.089544 m+1.9907
14Johnny HerbertSauber142:02.452+13.788744 m+3.6996
15Eddie IrvineFerrari22:04.512+15.848855 m+2.0604
16Jos VerstappenFootwork172:05.863+17.199928 m+1.3515
17Mika HakkinenMcLaren72:23.659+34.9951,887 m+17.7963
18David CoulthardMcLaren84:49.078+3:00.4149,729 m+2:25.4192
19Ricardo RossetFootwork1623:38.561+21:49.89770,640 m+18:49.4832
Each driver’s best lap of the session and the laps they ran: a classification, not lap timing.
How it is derived: distance, Warm-up

Distance at the session-best lap’s average speed, on the layout raced that year.

The cars in this race

The photograph each car's Wikipedia article leads with, from Wikimedia Commons: taken wherever and whenever that was, not necessarily at this race.

Williams FW18
Williams FW18
1996 Williams-Renault FW cropped · This photo was taken by Przemysław Jahr Autorem zdjęcia jest Przemysław Jahr Wykorzystując zdjęcie proszę podać jako autora: Przemysław Jahr / Wikimedia Commons cropped by Morio · Public domain · unchecked
Ferrari F310
Ferrari F310
Ferrari F310 front-left National Motor Museum, Beaulieu · Morio · CC BY-SA 3.0
Benetton B196
Benetton B196
Jean Alesi - Imola 1996 (5) · Restu20 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · unchecked
Jordan 196
Jordan 196
Jordan Peugeot 196 · LSDSL · CC BY-SA 3.0 · unchecked
Sauber C15
Sauber C15
Heinz-Harald Frentzen 1996 Imola · Restu20 (upload), Francois-Pier (edit) · CC BY-SA 4.0 · unchecked
Ligier JS43
Ligier JS43
Ligier JS43 front-left Honda Collection Hall · Morio · CC BY-SA 3.0

A photograph marked unchecked has a file name that does not name the car it is shown for. Most are still the right car, filed under the driver rather than the machine — but nobody has confirmed these one by one.

3 more photographs
Footwork FA17
Footwork FA17
Grand Prix Monaco96 131954710 · Steve Gregory from Bradley Stoke, UK · CC BY 2.0 · unchecked
Minardi M195
Minardi M195
Pierluigi Martini 1995 Britain · Fox 1 from Beta Quadrant, England · CC BY-SA 2.0 · unchecked
Tyrrell 024
Tyrrell 024
Tyrrell 024 Mika Salo 1996 German Grand Prix · Matthias v.d. Elbe · CC BY-SA 3.0

Where this comes from

Round
16 of 1996
Grand Prix
Japanese Grand Prix
Dates
Layout raced
—
Format
Standard weekend
Constructor
Williams
Entrant
Williams-Renault
Confidence
reference

No layout is recorded for this round: this register has no layout timeline for the circuit, and a blank here is better than a guess.