Schumacher has again repeated his statement that Hill is going to be this year's Formula One World Champion: "The championship is Damon's, I'm sure of that. He is in an incredible position. I am 27 points behind now. That means he could finish second six times in the remaining eight races and even if I won them all it would not be enough, but I have always said our aim is to go for the title in 1997. We must get on with development work."

Frank Williams, team-boss of the Williams-Renault team, is warning Hill not to believe Schumacher and get a too laid back attitude towards the championship: "Michael in a pram would be dangerous and the title is still wide open. (...) The Formula One World Championship is a marathon and we have just one reached the halfway point of the season."

Katayama has received a conditional 1 race ban from the FIA for crashing into the TWR of Rosset last weekend during the Canadian Grand Prix.