lap 25, with Häkkinen moving past three laps later as Alesi was held up behind the lapped Montermini. Once in front of Schumacher, Hill was able to gradually extend his lead to 3.4 seconds by lap 30 despite carrying a heavier fuel load for one fewer planned pit stop. However, he lost second gear during the course of that lap, and then spun off at turn two on lap 31, retiring from the race with a suspected gearbox seizure. On the same lap, Herbert also retired from the race after suffering damage in a collision with Suzuki, who himself had to make an unscheduled pit stop to replace his car's damaged nosecone. Schumacher thus assumed the lead as a result of Hill's retirement, leading by 11.5 seconds from Coulthard. Salo was third in the remaining Tyrrell, 39.4 seconds behind Coulthard. Häkkinen and the two Ferrari cars completed the top six positions. Schumacher made his second pit stop on lap 37, exiting in second position behind Coulthard. Salo and Häkkinen, both performing much better than had been expected prior to the race, battled over third position until lap 39, when Salo, suffering from cramp and driving with one hand, spun at the final bend. He made a pit stop soon after for fresh tyres, dropping to eighth position. Häkkinen, having moved up to third, made his second stop on lap 43, exiting behind the two Ferrari cars, Berger moving in front of Alesi as the latter made his stop on the following lap, rejoining in seventh. Coulthard made a pit stop from the lead on lap 47, the gap between him and Schumacher not big enough to allow him to maintain the lead. Schumacher set the fastest lap of the race, 1:30.921, extending his lead to such an extent that when he made his own final stop on lap 52, he maintained the lead. After his final stop, Schumacher gradually opened his leading margin 11 seconds, winning the race after 71 laps in a time of 1:48:49.972s, with Coulthard finishing second in his Williams. The Ferrari cars of Berger – who made his final stop on lap 49 without losing a place – and Alesi were third and fifth respectively, but off the pace as Schumacher lapped them both in the closing stages. Häkkinen, despite losing part of his rear wing after his car was struck by a bird, split them