The season began on a damp
Donington Park track. On the second lap,
Allan McNish and
Emanuele Naspetti collided on the straight before the Esses. McNish's car went over the concrete wall, and its engine broke away and killed a spectator. Meanwhile, the race continued uninterrupted and several drivers, including polesitter
Andrea Montermini, spun off in the damp conditions. McNish's
DAMS Lola teammate
Érik Comas took the victory. At the next round at
Silverstone,
Damon Hill overtook the two DAMS cars at the start, but suffered the same rear tire failure that had earlier claimed his teammate
Gary Brabham. McNish took an emotional win just one week after his Donington crash. The third round at
Pau had to be restarted twice after accidents caused traffic jams on the narrow streets.
Marco Apicella took a commanding lead, but slid off into a tire barrier, leaving
Eric van de Poele to take the win. Érik Comas won the next round at
Jerez, with Apicella coming second. Comas won at
Monza as well, this time pursued by
Eddie Irvine. At
Enna, a dusty track surface was exacerbated by the rubber “marbles” that resulted from the wearing tires. Many of the favorites spun out of the race, and
Gianni Morbidelli won despite a spin of his own. Eddie Irvine managed to come in fourth with a broken front wing, having been off the track at least three times. Irvine won from Apicella at
Hockenheim after polesitter Hill had spun off early. Allan McNish won on a drying
Brands Hatch track as the series returned to England. Van de Poele took his second win of the year at the
Birmingham Superprix, a race in which
Fabrizio Barbazza walked away from a spectacular accident. On the
Bugatti Circuit at Le Mans, championship leader Comas led away. He was challenged by
Philippe Gache, who put in a surprising drive in a year-old Lola before retiring. Comas won the race and clinched the title. Van de Poele won in the wet at
Nogaro to take second in the championship. The final round, scheduled to be held at
Dijon-Prenois was cancelled. An official statement cited the
Gulf crisis and French talks on tobacco sponsorship as the reasons behind the cancellation. ==Teams and drivers==