JUNE 14, 1999

Irvine tries to up his salary

EDDIE IRVINE is never very subtle - on or off the track - and in recent days he has been trying to raise his salary at Ferrari but hinting that he has plenty of other offers for the 2000 season. Irvine hinted to an Italian magazine that there might be a possibility of a drive with McLaren, saying "you know how it is" when asked if he had been having talks with McLaren. The suggestion caused much amusement in the paddock where McLaren boss Ron Dennis's views about Irvine are well-known. Dennis rallied to David Coulthard's defense saying that "David's position in this team has never been more secure."

Irvine said that he had no intention of going to Jordan - as has been rumored . This was not a surprise as the team says it is not particularly interested in running him again. Irvine also told the magazine that he had two offers which were $2m more than he is being paid by Ferrari and that he did not take the drives because "I don't race for money".

This will be good news to Jean Todt who will, no doubt, ignore Irvine's attempts to raise his price. We expect Eddie to stay at Ferrari next year.