Eddie Irvine arrived in Japan last week admitting he was seeking the perfect end to a Suzuka sequence that had seen him better his placings from sixth in his 1993 Grand Prix debut to second last year. But the country which had turned Irvine from a talented amateur to a fully-fledge racing driver through years of F3000 training yesterday turned its back on him, denying him the ultimate prize of the world championship title as Mika Hakkinen retained his crown.

Irvine's tilt at glory began to crumble almost as soon as the weekend started. The Irishman could only manage a qualifying place of fifth on the grid and while team-mate Michael Schumacher claimed pole to leave Irvine only needing fourth to claim the title, the presence of Jordan's Heinz Harald Frentzen and McLaren's David Coulthard in front of him, increased the pressure.

Irvine responded well, getting away well and passing both Frentzen and Coulthard to claim fourth as Prost's Olivier Panis sneaked through on the inside to take third, But up ahead, Schumacher was in trouble.

The German, making his second start for Ferrari since his Silverstone accident, failed to get traction, allowing Hakkinen to fly past and on to the first turn. Running with a heavier fuel load and complaining of a problematic car, Schumacher could not match the Finn's pace and by the 18th lap and Hakkinen's first stop, the McLaren driver had pulled out an eight-second gap. Further back, Irvine was having in his own problems, pressured relentless by Coulthard and Frentzen. The pressure was relieved briefly when Coulthard dived into the pits, but a lap later, when Irvine made his first stop, he emerged to see the Scot sailing past.

Third place relinquished, Irvine was still comfortable in the knowledge that fourth was secure with Frentzen now two seconds adrift. But at the front, matters had gone from bad to worse. Brought in on lap 19, Hakkinen surrendered the lead to Schumacher but the German was unable to eke out any advantage and when he too sailed in for fuel and tyres, Hakkinen swept back into a seven-second lead.

As Irvine ploughed a lonely furrow in fourth, Coulthard attempted to make some headway towards Schumacher but, pushing hard, lost the back end of his car at the Degner curve, spinning into the armco and smashing off part of the nose cone. As the Scot made an unscheduled stop, Irvine inherited third.

With Schumacher closing on Hakkinen, the Irishman's fortunes looked up but then out of the pits came Coulthard. The McLaren number two set about frustrating Schumacher for almost a full lap, losing him close on five seconds. As blue flags fluttered hopelessly, Schumacher, fist in the air, eventually passed the Scot but the gap had been forged to leave Hakkinen in command.

As Irvine took the chequered flag and at least sealed the constructors' championship for Ferrari, Frentzen crossed the line to secure his third place in the drivers' championship for Jordan.

"I'm not disappointed to have missed the podium here as we've had lots this season, two victories, and plenty to be proud of," said Eddie Jordan, who heaped praise on the driver he signed amid some doubt for hits season.

"Heinz has had a dream season," he said. "A couple of wins, a couple of pole positions, he's had a great time. It's been a long season, very hard and we'll have to wait and see what happens next year."