I grew up with Mika Hakkinen ( not literally of course), it was his and Michael Schumacher’s famous wheel to wheel racing that was the main reason I began to follow F1.
Consequently, I was greatly saddened that he took a sabbatical in 2001 and never came back.
In the wake of Kimi Raikkonen storming to victory in Abu Dhabi, it’s only right to look back on the career of his mentor and fellow Fin.
A country of 5.4m people Finland is the most sparsely populated country in the European Union, as such, it’s quite incredible how much driving talent it has produced over the years, Keke Rosburg, Tommi Makinen, Juha Kankunen and Heikki Kovalainen to name but a few.
Hakkinen, the 1998 and 1999 world champion, spent 2 years with Lotus in 1991 before moving to Mclaren in 1993, staying their for 8 years.
Ask most F1 fans about Mika Hakkinen and they will tell you 2 things, he was famously emotionless on camera and that he always drove flat out.
The exception that proves the rule to the first part of my statement, was in Monza 1999, when after crashing out of the Grand Prix he belived he had thrown away his chances of a second World Title.
He strode of into the bushes and burst into tears, unfortunately for him a helicopter filmed the whole scene.
Perceived as cold and unfeeling, Mika could be a nightmare for Journalists, famed for his one word answers and blunt countenance ( something Kimi Raikkonen seems to have taken to heart. )
Here we see Mika Hakkinen fighting with Michael Schumacher at the A1 ring in Austria 1998.
The 1998 car was the first designed by Adrian Newey and that season Hakkinen shot out of the traps, winning 4 of the first 6 rounds of the Championship, he clinched the title in Suzuka on the last day of the season.
1999 was a much harder fight for Mika, despite Michael Schumacher crashing at Silverstone and breaking his leg. It took until the last day of the season, again at Suzuka, for Hakkinen to emerge victorious. His 76 points enough to pip Ferrari’s Eddie Irvine to the title .