Former World Champion Niki Lauda, now an adviser for Ferrari, is not too positive on Hill's obtained Championship Title. He is quoted as saying: "He (Hill) clearly showed he was the weakest because with the best car it took him so long to become world champion. Ferrari had a new car, new engine and a new driver. McLaren wasn't as strong as expected. Benetton could not stay at the same level without Schumacher, the championship was fairly boring."

Speculation has it that Formula One teams may test in Australian at Phillip Island, home of the Australian round of the Superbikes Championship, in the week of the 24-28th February 1997. The testing would mean that under Article 9 of the 1997 Concorde Agreement, that the date of the season opener, in Melbourne, would have to be moved back to the 9th of March. The provisional calendar for 1997 has the Australian Grand Prix as the 2nd of March. Phillip Island is approximately 150km south of Melbourne, home of the Australian Grand Prix.