69 players participated in the three preliminary heats of this year's championship. Each heat drew 31 team principals at six tables. Competition was fierce; of five players who entered all three heats (including one former champion and Runner-Up), only one advanced to the Semi-finals. That was Rich Phares, who in the second heat suffered at least one Not Classified (failed to finish) result in every race!

Regrettably, only 15 qualifiers were on hand for the six-race semi-finals Saturday evening, including two alternates; two others who had participated in the heats were allowed to race, and Mark Herman graciously agreed to play at the third table despite knowing he would not be permitted to advance.

At Table 1, Scott Nerney took the lead by winning the third race and held on for a 37-point victory. Barbara Flaxington and Ron Wuerth also advanced with 31 points, having won two races apiece.

Table 2's Peter Perla proved that consistency is the key to success in Formula Motor Racing, finishing with 33 points without winning a race. Instead, he combined four 2nd-place finishes with only one Not Classified result, while all five other players had at least two cars expire. Runner-up Matt Calkins failed to score a single point in the last race after winning the previous two, and his 30 points were not enough to make it into the Finals.

Despite trailing the field after two races, Mike Nagel won the last race at Table 3 to grab a 35-point victory and become the only repeat finalist from last year. Going into the fifth race, Bill Place had a 10-point lead, but managed only one fifth-place finish in the last two races. Still, that was enough ... barely! ... to squeak into the Finals with 32 points.

Unlike last year, everyone drove with abandon in the Finals, resulting in no less than 19 cars Not Classified in a seesaw battle for the Championship. A crash at Melbourne took out one of Perla's Ferraris and Wuerth's Jaguars, leaving the field clear for a Flaxington Toyota to finish 1st. A Jaguar won the second race at Imola, but a Toyota crossed the line right behind to keep Flaxington in the lead with 16 points. Both of the Toyota engines blew at Monaco, and when the dust cleared after another Ferrari-Jaguar collision, Nagel's Jordan was the surprise winner for a 6-point lead. Perla's Ferraris had yet to score a single point; Place's Williams were tied for second with the Toyotas. Then it was the turn of the front-running Jordan and Toyota to collide at Silverstone, leaving one of Wuerth's Jaguars to take the checkered flag and the series lead. That was not to last, however, as the two Jags contrived to crash into one another in the fifth race at Monza! A Nerney Minardi won the race, but another 2nd place put Flaxington back into the overall lead.

Going into the final contest, only the Ferraris were out of contention, with seven points separating the fifth-place Minardis from the Toyotas. Suzuka proved to be another high-attrition race, with no less than five cars Not Classified at the finish. For the third time one of the Ferraris crashed out, this time taking one of Nagel's Jordans with it. A Jaguar spun all the way to the back of the field, and though it eventually clawed back to take a single point, Wuerth would end up fourth overall. A Toyota also spun out and stalled, but Flaxington's remaining car finished 3rd for 32 points total. Both Minardis avoided the carnage, but second and fifth wouldn't prove good enough for Nerney, who finished in third place. On the final lap, the last Jordan charged from second place in an all-or-nothing bid, but it was not to be ­ Nagel's Cosworth engine blew up in flames, leaving victory in the race and the Championship to Place's reliable Williams team, which had scored in every race. This should not have come as a surprise, since Bill had won both the heats he entered.

Special thanks are once again due to dedicated Assistant GMs Mike Nagel and Chris LeFevre for their support during the event.