1995

Nigel Mansell had driven the four "guest" races in 1994 under the impression that Williams would take up the option on his contract to employ him for the 1995 season. But Frank Williams went for the cheaper and less experienced David Coulthard, who had shown great potential.

The regulations had been changing continuously throughout the previous season but the biggest change for this year would see the size of the engines reduced from 3.5 to 3 litres. Moreover, Williams' engine supplier Renault had chosen to power the Benetton machines too, which although would see their resources stretched between the rival teams it did mean they would almost certainly be powering the winning car.

Brazil opened the season, with Damon Hill claiming Pole Position. Schumacher got the jump on Hill at the start, but after several attempts at passing Damon chose to hang on until the first pit-stop, where in clean air he was able to open up a gap and remain ahead.
But then disaster struck: having already suffered problems from his gearbox, Hill's day ended when his rear suspension gave way, pitching him onto the grass.
Schumacher won ahead of an unlucky Coulthard (who could have taken the lead at the second pit-stop had it not been for a stricken Jordan blocking his path) but due to a fuel irregularity both drivers would be stripped of the points they had earned for their teams.

Argentina saw the next race of the Championship, and this time it was Coulthard's Williams on Pole, although sadly he was to retire around quarter distance with throttle problems. Damon meanwhile had passed Schumacher and had started to pull away with ease. He wasn't to be challenged for the rest of the race and took a very satisfying first win of the season.

Formula 1 returned to Europe for the San Marino Grand Prix, which would see Damon start in fourth after a wet second qualifying session ruined any chance of getting Pole. The race started with the track drying out, and after 6 laps or so the front runners came in to switch to slicks.
Damon managed to pass Coulthard in the process but was dealt an ace when the change of tyres caught Schumacher out and he spun off into retirement. Berger meanwhile was leading, but stalled during a pitstop thus giving Damon the lead which he protected to win the race, and more importantly, head the Championship.

Spain would prove to be disastrous for Damon as on the final lap when running a comfortable second behind Schumacher, his car would suffer from hydraulic problems that would see him coast across the line in fourth. The fact that he had set the fastest race lap was of no consolation.

Damon dominated qualifying at Monaco, taking Pole by nearly 0.8 seconds at a track where it is so important as over-taking is almost impossible. Hill led into the first corner both times (the race having to be restarted after a collision involving Coulthard and the two Ferrari drivers) and was trying his best with his ill-handling car when it became apparent that Schumacher's strategy of stopping only once was the superior one and Damon was forced to settle for second.

The Canadian Grand Prix was to prove very emotional for both Damon and Jean Alesi, but for entirely different reasons. For the Frenchman it would see his first ever Grand Prix win, and for the Englishman... a late retirement, again down to the hydraulics. Furious with the poor reliability both he and Coulthard had suffered of late, the only bright side for Damon as far as the Championship was concerned was that Schumacher had only managed to finish 5th after gearbox problems.

Damon, as in previous years, took Pole at the French Grand Prix. He led until the first pit-stop where backmarkers and a slower stop saw Schumacher take the lead. Damon again was forced to settle for second.

Another strong qualifying performance saw Damon take Pole at the British Grand Prix, and things were beginning to look good as he pulled away from the rest of the field. Once again however it became apparent that Schumacher had the better strategy, and on lap 46 under immense pressure to close the 11-point Championship advantage at his home Grand Prix, Damon went for the inside at Priory after seeing Schumacher run slightly wide. The two cars touched and with 15 laps to go spun into retirement, leaving Johnny Herbert in the second Benetton to take his first Grand Prix win in front of his home crowd.

Damon's hopes were dashed once again at the German Grand Prix, when having opened up a commanding two second lead from Pole Position, he mysteriously spun into retirement at the beginning of the second lap.
The German crowd went crazy as Schumacher cruised home to an easy win, second-placed Coulthard not being able to make any impression.

Damon knew he had to win in Hungary if there were to be any chance of him taking the title, and he started the weekend in the best possible way by taking Pole Position. Leading from start to finish (and running at a pace that surprised even his team-mate who had the same fuel on board), his Championship chances were increased further when four laps from the end Schumacher retired with a fuel pump failure having been in second place. Just to rub salt into the wounds Damon took fastest lap as well.

Due to the unpredictable nature of the weather at the Belgian Grand Prix, we witnessed a rather bizarre starting grid, with Damon in 8th and Schumacher down in 16th. They both made it to the front, but changing conditions once again threw a spanner in the works, seeing some very questionable weaving from Schumacher to keep Damon behind, and a 10 second stop-go penalty for the Englishman due to speeding in the pitlane. Schumacher took another win, Damon another second.

Remarkably enough neither Damon or Schumacher led the Italian Grand Prix before their controversial exit on lap 24. Running in second and third they came up to lap Taki Inoue. The Japanese driver moved over to let Schumacher through then blocked Damon. Coming into the second chicane alongside the Footwork Damon realised he either hadn't seen him or was just refusing to give him room. Caught between a rock and a hard place, Damon couldn't slow down quickly enough and hit the back of Schumacher's Benetton which had braked earlier than normal, sending them both into retirement.

Pole Position, Fastest Lap and Race Victory all went to David Coulthard in Portugal as Schumacher and Damon were forced to play second fiddle. Damon had held his second position initially but after the race was restarted due to a terrifying crash for Ukyo Katayama it was Schumacher who got into the first corner behind Coulthard. After the final pit-stops it was Damon who was running second, but as he was on a two-stop his tyres were badly worn and so Schumacher (who was on a three) managed to pass him.

Coulthard and Schumacher had the benefit of starting on the dry side of the track at the European Grand Prix, and after suffering from lack of traction on the wet side Damon managed to fight his way back up the field. Schumacher and later Alesi were both very aggressive towards Damon, forcing him onto the grass when he had pulled along side them. Having pitted for a new nose-cone Damon was down in fourth, and on lap 58 spun off into retirement, his steering having suffered from the off-road excursions. Damon's spirits remained high, even though the Championship was virtually decided.

An unwise switch from three to two stops by Coulthard at the Pacific Grand Prix saw him emerge in traffic after his final stop which delayed him sufficiently for Schumacher to take the lead, and with it, the Driver's Championship. Damon finished third - the last car not to be lapped - after a variety of problems, but even in defeat Damon managed a smile, and congratulated his rival who it could be said without a doubt had clinched his second World Championship fair and square.

It was wet again for the Japanese Grand Prix, and the race was a disastrous one for the Williams team. Not only did they lose the Constructor's Championship to Benetton, but they did it with neither of their cars finishing and with their rivals first and third. It was of little consolation that several other drivers also spun off at Spoon corner, but it did mean that with both titles settled the gloves were truly off for the final race.

After the disappointments of late Damon had a perfect end to the season - Pole Position, Fastest Lap, and Race Victory. The result had been an easy one for Damon as the rest of the field managed to either wipe itself out or succumb to technical failure, but he had led a controlled race, finishing five laps ahead of the 8th (and last) place driver, but more astoundingly, two laps ahead of the second placed driver.

1995 had belonged to Benetton and Michael Schumacher, and it was clear that Damon - and Williams - had a lot to think about during the winter break. But the season hadn't been an entire failure - a further 4 wins, 7 Pole Positions, 4 Fastest Laps and 69 World Championship points had been added to Damon's Formula 1 career total, but more importantly, he had learnt some valuable lessons.