Round 12 · 1999

Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps

Spa, Belgium · August 29, 1999 · Circuit History · Wikipedia

Kings of this circuit
The race, in perspective

Race debrief

What did we expect after qualifying—and who beat it?

R121999
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22 stored results 22/22 Elo snapshots 22/22 numbered grid slots 0/22 qualifying results
Elo × qualifying → race result

Did they beat the expectation?

A strong driver recovering from a poor qualifying position isn't automatically a surprise. This model estimates a finish from both inputs, then compares it with what happened.

Experimental · v1

Expected finish assumes a classified finish. DNFs stay in the full grid but receive no performance verdict. Qualifying is not the starting grid; grid differences are flagged, not silently substituted.

Fit on 279 earlier finishes across 27 races, 1996–1999. No results from this race enter its expectation.

0/22 entrants have an estimate. Missing Elo or qualifying stays visible below; a grid position is not used as a qualifying result.

Top 3

Beat the estimate

No comparable estimates available for this race yet.

Flop 3

Below the estimate

No comparable estimates available for this race yet.

0/22 entrants assessed. Up to three per side, ranked by expected minus actual finish. DNFs, missing estimates and gaps rounding to 0.0 are excluded. “Flop” means below the model's estimate—not poor driving. A ranked gap can still be inside the usual error range.

Full grid: pre-race Elo rank, qualifying position, estimated finish, actual result and difference from expectation. Positive differences mean finishing ahead of the estimate.
DriverPre-race EloQualifyingExpectedResultP1 ← position → P22vs expectedReading
D. CoulthardMcLaren #32340 No error range P1 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
M. HäkkinenMcLaren #42329 No error range P2 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
H. FrentzenJordan #22359 No error range P3 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
E. IrvineFerrari #12464 No error range P4 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
R. SchumacherWilliams #52229 No error range P5 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
D. HillJordan #82152 No error range P6 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
M. SaloFerrari #92148 No error range P7 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
A. ZanardiWilliams #201958 No error range P8 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
J. AlesiSauber #162023 No error range P9 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
R. BarrichelloStewart #112108 No error range P10 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
G. FisichellaBenetton #122085 No error range P11 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
J. TrulliProst #102118 No error range P12 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
O. PanisProst #72158 No error range P13 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
A. WurzBenetton #62188 No error range P14 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
J. VilleneuveBAR #221904 No error range P15 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
M. GenéMinardi #152038 No error range P16 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
P. de la RosaArrows #181990 No error range DNFTransmission Not assessedQualifying unavailable
L. BadoerMinardi #142051 No error range DNFSuspension Not assessedQualifying unavailable
R. ZontaBAR #172004 No error range DNFGearbox Not assessedQualifying unavailable
J. HerbertStewart #132059 No error range DNFBrakes Not assessedQualifying unavailable
P. DinizSauber #191989 No error range DNFSpun off Not assessedQualifying unavailable
T. TakagiArrows #211911 No error range DNFClutch Not assessedQualifying unavailable
How useful is the model? See the historical check

Average absolute error on 70 classified finishes in 7 earlier races within the last ten years. Each race was held out and predicted using only older races; all three models use the same samples.

Elo + qualifying
2.22places
Qualifying only
2.27places
Elo only
2.50places

The range scales the 80th percentile of earlier held-out absolute errors to this field size, rounding outward. It is an empirical error guide, not a guaranteed 80% chance for a particular driver. We require at least five checked races and 100 checked finishes before showing it.

Inputs are field-normalised Elo rank and qualifying position. The target is position among all race entries, trained only on classified finishers. Estimates are averages, not a unique predicted finishing order. Penalties, the circuit, weather, incidents and strategy aren't model inputs. Historical qualifying coverage is patchy; this is an exploratory backtest on corrected records, not proof of live forecasting accuracy.

The rating ledger

What changed in Elo?

These are actual rating changes. The expectation model above does not change Elo or fantasy scoring.

Largest Elo gain

Zanardi+59.8 Elo

Largest Elo loss

Herbert−55.1 Elo

Largest grid-to-finish gain

Alesi+7 places

The bigger picture

Championship after this round

Top five in the stored standings. Points include sprint results where applicable.

  1. 1 Häkkinen 60pts +1
  2. 2 Irvine 59pts −1
  3. 3 Coulthard 46pts 0
  4. 4 Frentzen 40pts 0
  5. 5 Schumacher 32pts 0

Movement since round 11. A dash means the earlier standing is unavailable.

Explore the season →
Across the garage

Teammate results

Two-driver constructor entries from this race. A result comparison, not an adjustment for strategy or reliability.

Sauber

AlesiP9+39.0 Elo
DinizDNF−48.3 Elo

Non-finish recorded; no finishing gap comparison.

BAR

VilleneuveP15+14.7 Elo
ZontaDNF−35.7 Elo

Non-finish recorded; no finishing gap comparison.

Minardi

GenéP16−19.3 Elo
BadoerDNF−37.7 Elo

Non-finish recorded; no finishing gap comparison.

What this analysis can—and cannot—tell you

This debrief is calculated from stored results and rating snapshots. The experimental expectation model learns from earlier races only, using Elo rank and qualifying together; it never feeds back into Elo. It is not a separately reviewed race report.

Elo uses the result order, including retirements. It does not isolate driver skill from the car, reliability, penalties or strategy. Elo seed comparisons use pre-race ratings, never today's ratings. Equal ratings share the midpoint of their rank range (for example, tied first and second become seed 1.5).

Grid gains use numbered starting slots and classified finishes only. Zero or missing grid values are excluded; a position gained is not necessarily an overtake. Qualifying gaps use the latest segment both teammates have a valid time for, never Q1 against Q3.

Lap-by-lap pace, tyre stints, pit-stop execution and safety-car effects are not available in this report. Missing data is omitted, not inferred.

Read the Elo methodology →
22
Result Entries
Avg Elo
Highest Elo (Irvine)
6
Non-finishes

Race

Qualifying

# Driver Grid +/- Points Season Pts Season # Elo Change Elo
P1 🇬🇧 D.Coulthard 2 +1 +10 46 P3 +38.6 2,379
P2 🇫🇮 M.Häkkinen 1 -1 +6 60 P1 +32.7 2,361
P3 🇩🇪 H.Frentzen 3 +4 40 P4 +20.1 2,379
P4 🇬🇧 E.Irvine 6 +2 +3 59 P2 -1.7 2,462
P5 🇩🇪 R.Schumacher 5 +2 24 P6 +27.1 2,256
P6 🇬🇧 D.Hill 4 -2 +1 7 P9 +35.1 2,187
P7 🇫🇮 M.Salo 9 +2 0 6 P10 +28.0 2,176
P8 🇮🇹 A.Zanardi 8 0 0 P19 +59.8 2,018
P9 🇫🇷 J.Alesi 16 +7 0 1 P16 +39.0 2,062
P10 🇧🇷 R.Barrichello 7 -3 0 12 P8 +13.0 2,121
P11 🇮🇹 G.Fisichella 13 +2 0 13 P7 +10.0 2,095
P12 🇮🇹 J.Trulli 12 0 1 P15 -4.9 2,113
P13 🇫🇷 O.Panis 17 +4 0 2 P14 -21.3 2,137
P14 🇦🇹 A.Wurz 15 +1 0 3 P11 -35.4 2,153
P15 🇨🇦 J.Villeneuve 11 -4 0 0 P23 +14.7 1,918
P16 🇪🇸 M.Gené 21 +5 0 0 P20 -19.3 2,019
DNF 🇪🇸 P.de la Rosa 22 0 1 P17 -17.2 1,973
DNF 🇮🇹 L.Badoer 20 0 0 P21 -37.7 2,013
DNF 🇧🇷 R.Zonta 14 0 0 P22 -35.7 1,968
DNF 🇬🇧 J.Herbert 10 0 2 P13 -55.1 2,004
DNF 🇧🇷 P.Diniz 18 0 3 P12 -48.3 1,940
DNF 🇯🇵 T.Takagi 19 0 0 P18 -41.6 1,869

Qualifying results are not available for this race.

Elo Changes