1994 F1RGP2C French Grand Prix
The 1994 F1RGP2C French Grand Prix was the seventh round of the 1994 F1RGP2C season. The race was won by Jack Christopherson for Williams-Renault after rivals Daniel Moreno and John Zimmer both failed to finish.
Race Report
Qualifying
Daniel Moreno took his third consecutive pole and his fourth of the season on Saturday by 0.276 seconds over his teammate Jack Christopherson. John Zimmer lined up third for Benetton next to Douglas Mann's McLaren. Damon Cannon delivered another brilliant effort to qualify 14th in the underpowered Lotus. Sebastien Belo failed to perform on home soil, qualifying nine tenths behind his teammate.
Race
At the start, Daniel Moreno dashed off into the lead. Mann shot into second as Zimmer held third. Christopherson fell back to fifth as O'Connell took fourth. Pippa Mann collided with her teammate at the first turn and knocked off her front wing. Zimmer quickly re-passed Douglas Mann and chased after Daniel Moreno. Moreno's lead dwindled to three seconds but Zimmer was unable to make the move. Zimmer's teammate Kazuhiko Takagi retired on Lap 4 with the first of seven Ford engine failures on the day. Masta Valsattis was the second for Minardi on Lap 11. Once again, reliability drastically affected the points runners as Douglas Mann retired on Lap 14 from fifth with an engine problem and Pieter Kickert retired on Lap 18. Zimmer gradually fell back and he pitted on Lap 26. George Tramontani became the third For failure on Lap 27. Moreno pitted his Williams on Lap 30 and rturned in the lead.
Unfortunately, in a scene reminiscent of the Spanish Grand Prix, Moreno pulled off the track with a terminal transmission problem. This gave John Zimmer the lead with Christopherson in second and von Gottorp in third. The race became very processional as the drivers just tried to make it to the end of the race without breaking their cars. Four more drivers with Ford engines found themselves out of the race, the most notable being leader John Zimmer who retired on Lap 54. Jack Christopherson, who had been a complete non-factor to that point, took the lead. He managed to finish the race and won by seven seconds over von Gottorp. Poppy Whitechapel finally broke through to finish on the podium for Tyrrell. Dennis Mignolet survived an early electrical problem to finish in fourth. Samael Meerwick somehow brought his Lotus home in fifth. Rory McAllister did not finish the race but he was awarded sixth after a late-race engine failure. Ford won Reject of the Race. Christopherson's win moved him up to first in the standings with Zimmer second and Moreno third.
Standings after the race
- Bold text indicates who still has a theoretical chance of becoming World Champion.
- Drivers' Championship standings
| Pos | Driver | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Jack Christopherson
|
28 |
| 2 |  John Zimmer
|
24 |
| =3 |  Daniel Moreno
|
19 |
| =3 |  Leonhard von Gottorp
|
19 |
| 5 | Tom Douglas
|
18 |
- Constructors' Championship standings
| Pos | Constructor | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Williams-Renault
|
47 |
| 2 | Benetton-Ford
|
30 |
| 3 | McLaren-Peugeot
|
29 |
| 4 |  Jordan-Hart
|
27 |
| 5 |  Ferrari
|
14 |
- Note: Only the top five positions are included for both sets of standings.
| Previous race: 1994 Canadian Grand Prix |
Formula 1 Rejects Grand Prix 2 Championship 1994 Season |
Next race: 1994 British Grand Prix |
| Previous race: None |
French Grand Prix | Next race: 1995 French Grand Prix |
