Herbert Joins Stewart-Ford Team for 1999 F1 Season

Strategic Insights -

Alan Henry Johnny Herbert will make a surprise switch to the Stewart-Ford team for the 1999 Formula One world championship after three seasons with Sauber. The 34-year-old driver from Romford has signed a two-year contract with the Milton Keynes-based team, which has struggled to achieve its targets this season. Herbert's experience is expected to help the team progress and win races, alongside his teammate, expected to be Brazil's Rubens Barrichello.

Key Takeaways:

  • Herbert will join the Stewart-Ford team for the 1999 F1 season, signing a two-year contract.
  • Herbert has 34 years of experience, with previous wins in the British and Italian Grands Prix in 1995.
  • Herbert's experience is expected to help the team progress and win races.
  • Herbert will likely line up on the same grid as his former Lotus team-mate, Alex Zanardi, who is expected to join Williams for 1999.
  • Zanardi's signing is expected to partner Ralf Schumacher and displace Heinz-Harald Frentzen from the Williams team.
  • Scot Dario Franchitti, a protege of the Stewart dynasty, is mentioned as a potential future signing for the Stewart-Ford team.

Statistics:

  • 34 years old: Herbert's age at the time of the signing.
  • 2 years: The length of Herbert's contract with the Stewart-Ford team.
  • 3 seasons: The number of years Herbert has spent with Sauber.
  • 2: The number of successive CART championships won by Alex Zanardi.
  • 4th: Zanardi's finishing position at the Vancouver CART championship.
  • 1994: The year in which Dario Franchitti contested the British Formula Three championship under the Paul Stewart Racing banner.

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