Finnish F1 drivers: Mika Häkkinen

The fifth finnish F1 driver was Mika Häkkinen in 1991.

In 1991 Mika Häkkinen made his first test in a Formula One car with the Benetton team driving 90 laps around the Silverstone Circuit. He later decied to sign with the Lotus team for the 1991 season. Making his début in the United States alongside team-mate Julian Bailey, Häkkinen qualified thirteenth on the grid and suffered an engine failure on the sixtieth lap and was classified thirteenth. The next race at Brazil saw him finish ninth, and clinched his first Formula One points scoring positions with fifth place in San Marino. Häkkinen suffered from a dip in race form as he was encountered consecutive retirements in the next two races—his car suffered from an oil leak in Monaco and spun out in Canada. Before Canada, Bailey lost his seat at Lotus due to a lack of funding, so Häkkinen was partnered by Johnny Herbert and Michael Bartels throughout the remainder of the season. Although Häkkinen secured a ninth place finish in Mexico, he did not qualify for the French Grand Prix. Over the remainder of the season, he did not finish four of the nine races he entered. Häkkinen finished his début season sixteenth in the Drivers' Championship, scoring two points.

In 1992 Mika Häkkinen remained at Lotus and was partnered by Johnny Herbert. At the opening round of the season in South Africa, Häkkinen finished in ninth position, which he followed up with his first points of the season in Mexico. He managed to take a further finish in Brazil, although he did not qualify for the San Marino Grand Prix and suffered consecutive retirements in the following two races.  At Monaco, Lotus introduced their new car, the Lotus 107. Häkkinen later managed to clinch further consecutive points in the following two races, before he was forced into retirement at the German Grand Prix due to an engine failure. A similar pattern followed in the next three races which was broken when he finished fifth in Portugal and suffered a retirement at the penultimate round of the year in Japan. Häkkinen concluded the season with a seventh place finish in Australia.

During the season, Häkkinen became embroiled in an contract dispute. Häkkinen, who was under contract to Lotus, opted to join Williams. However, Williams had not submitted their entry for the 1993 season, and Häkkinen was unable to join the team when he learnt that Lotus team prinicpal Peter Collins would veto the Williams team entry if they had signed Häkkinen. Häkkinen later approached Ligier although his contract contained a clause of which his manager Keke Rosberg disagreed with. He later approached McLaren team principal Ron Dennis for a contract with the team, which was drafted at Courchevel Airport. The dispute eventually went to Formula One Contract Recognition Board, who ruled in favour of McLaren after two days of delibration.

For 1993, Häkkinen joined McLaren, originally as an race driver, although he became the team's official test driver when CART World Series driver Michael Andretti was hired by the team. Apart from regular testing duties, Häkkinen entered two Porsche Supercup races, held as an support race for the Monaco Grand Prix, where he clinched pole position and took victory in both races. He was promoted to a Formula One race seat after the Italian Grand Prix, when Andretti left Formula One. Häkkinen entered the Portuguese Grand Prix where he out-qualified regular driver Ayrton Senna. During the race, he retired due from a collision with a concrete wall. At the next race held in Japan, Häkkinen claimed the first podium of his career with a third place finish, and ended the season when his McLaren car suffered an brake pipe failure in Australia. Häkkinen concluded the season with 15th in the Drivers' Championship, scoring 4 points. In December, McLaren confirmed that Häkkinen would remain with the team on a three-year contract from the 1994 season onwards.

Mika Häkkinen with his teammate Ayrton Senna.

During 1993, Häkkinen, along with Senna, tested the Lamborghini V12 engine in a modified version of the McLaren MP4/8 race car dubbed the "MP4/8B" at both Estoril and Silverstone. Both drivers were impressed with the engine, with Häkkinen reportedly lapping Silverstone some 1.4 seconds faster in the MP4/8B with its V12 engine than he had with the team's race car fitted with the Ford V8.

Häkkinen stayed at McLaren for 1994 and was partnered by experienced driver Martin Brundle. He endured a torrid start: At the first two races of the season, Häkkinen retired as his car developed engine problems in the Brazilian Grand Prix and gearbox issues in the Pacific Grand Prix which included a collision with Senna on the first lap. He later managed to clinch his first podium finish of the season at the San Marino Grand Prix, although he suffered a dip in form as he was forced into consecutive retirements in the next four races.

Häkkinen clinched a further podium finish at the British Grand Prix, despite an last-lap collision with Jordan driver Rubens Barrichello for which he received a one-race ban, suspended for three races. The ban was enforced after the German Grand Prix, where Häkkinen collided with Williams driver David Coulthard with the Finn's car sliding into another group of cars. He was replaced by Philippe Alliot for the next race in Hungary.

Häkkinen returned for the Belgian Grand Prix, initially coming third but was later promoted to second after the disqualification of Benetton driver Michael Schumacher. He managed to clinch consecutive 3rd-place podium finishes in the next three races, before rounding off the season by finishing the final two races in Japan and Australia, abeit outside of the points scoring positions. Häkkinen managed to clinch fourth place in the Drivers' Championship, scoring 26 points.

In 1995 Häkkinen remained at McLaren and was partnered by Nigel Mansell. During pre-season testing, Häkkinen and team-mate Mansell complained the car, the McLaren MP4/10, was not wide enough to fit in, resulting in their hands and elbows striking the sides of the cockpit. Mansell was forced to miss the opening two rounds, so Häkkinen was partnered with Mark Blundell.

Häkkinen started off the season by clinching fourth place at Brazil, and later retired in Argentina due to a collision which punctured his left rear tyre that followed a spin. He managed to take a further points finish with a 5th place at San Marino, before suffering from consecutive retirements in the next three races. For the French Grand Prix, McLaren introduced a revised version of their car, the McLaren MP4/10B. This did not revive Häkkinen's fortunes as he did not finish in the points scoring positions, and later suffered consecutive retirements in the next four races, but managed to clinch second place at the Italian Grand Prix. He was forced to miss the Pacific Grand Prix due to an operation for appendicitis and was replaced by Jan Magnussen. He returned for the Japanese Grand Prix, clinching second place.

At the season finale held in Australia, Häkkinen's car suffered a tyre failure during the event's first qualifying session, which resulted him crashing heavily in the wall. He was critically injured in the accident, sustaining a skull fracture, internal bleeding and swallowed his tongue, causing a blockage of his airway. His life was saved by the efforts of FIA Medical Delegate Sid Watkins who performed an emergency cricothyroidotomy at the side of the track. Häkkinen finished the season seventh in the Drivers' Championship, with 17 points.

The 1996 season was the first in which Häkkinen was the more experienced driver in his team and was partnered by David Coulthard. Häkkinen was confident going into the season and set himself a target of winning races. To ensure his fitness, Häkkinen spent time training in Bali and in February, McLaren conducted a secret test at the Paul Ricard Circuit. In the event that Häkkinen was not prepared, McLaren had Magnussen to replace him should the need arise. The season started well for Häkkinen: He clinched consecutive points scoring positions in the opening two rounds, before he suffered his first retirement of the season in Argentina as his car developed an throttle problem. He later managed to finish the next two races, abeit outside of the points scoring positions, before clinching consecutive finishes inside of the points in the following four races.

In the following race held in Britain where McLaren brought a revised version of the car, their McLaren MP4/11B, Häkkinen clinched his first podium finish of the season with third place.

However, he retired from the next race held in Germany due to a gearbox failure. This marked a turning point in Häkkinen's season as he managed to finish the next three races, including consecutive third place finishes in Belgium and Italy. In September, it was announced that Häkkinen would remain at McLaren for 1997, having previously been linked to Williams and Benetton. He retired from the penultimate round in Portugal resulting a collision with team-mate Coulthard, damaging Häkkinen's front wing and eventually led to his retirement on the 52nd lap of the race. He rounded off the season with a third place finish in season finale held in Japan. Häkkinen finished the season fifth in the Drivers' Championship, scoring 31 points.

In 1997 Häkkinen's season got off to a good start: In the season opening race in Australia, he clinched third position and later managed to score further consecutive finishes inside of the points scoring positions in the next three races. He suffered his first retirement of the season at the Monaco Grand Prix  when he was involved in a collision with Benetton driver Jean Alesi. Häkkinen later managed to take ninth position at the Spanish Grand Prix, but later suffered three consecutive retirements in the next three races—a collision with Ferrari driver Eddie Irvine in Canada and engine failures in France and Britain. At the latter race, he had seemed set for his first win, but his engine blew while he was holding off eventual winner Jacques Villeneuve.

Häkkinen managed to secure another podium finish with second place in Germany and later retired from an hydraulic problem in Hungary. He later secured third place in the Belgian Grand Prix but was later disqualified when it was discovered that his car used an illegal type of fuel during the event. He secured a ninth place finish in Italy and later suffered from consecutive retirements in the next two races—engine failures in the Austrian Grand Prix and the Luxembourg Grand Prix while leading both races.  Häkkinen ended the season with a fourth position in the penultimate round in Japan and clinched his first Formula One victory at the season closing European Grand Prix. Häkkinen ended the season sixth in the Drivers' Championship, with 27 points.

Häkkinen remained at McLaren for 1998, partnered by Coulthard. Häkkinen was confident going about the challenge for the World Championship into the season, citing the involvement of technical director Adrian Newey. The season started off with controversy in Australia when team-mate Coulthard let Häkkinen past to win the race. Häkkinen had earlier been called into the pit lane by an engineer by mistake. Coulthard later revealed an pre-race agreement by the team that whoever led into the first corner on the first lap would be allowed to win the race. Despite this, Häkkinen managed to take back-to-back victories by winning the next race in Brazil. He managed to maintain his good form at the Argentine Grand Prix where he finished second, although he retired from the San Marino Grand Prix when his car's gearbox failed. However, Häkkinen managed to clinch consecutive victories in the next two rounds, which was followed by a retirement from the race in Canada as his car suffered another gearbox failure.

Häkkinen followed this up by taking consecutive podiums in the next two rounds—third in France and second in Britain. He managed to clinch further consecutive victories in the next two rounds, and followed this up with a sixth place finish in Hungary. In August, it was announced that Häkkinen and Coulthard would be retained for 1999. Häkkinen retired from the following race held in Belgium when Ferrari driver Michael Schumacher collided with the Finn and was also hit by Sauber driver Johnny Herbert. He later managed to clinch fourth position in Italy despite suffering from brake problems resulting from a spin. Häkkinen finished the season by taking victory in the final two rounds at the Luxembourg Grand Prix and the Japanese Grand Prix, which ensured he took enough points to clinch the 1998 World Championship, with 100 points, ahead of nearest rival Schumacher.

Häkkinen was awarded the Autosport International Racing Driver Award for 1998. He was also named the Finnish Sports Personality of the Year by journalists. The Finnish Post Office issued stamps to commeorate Häkkinen's World Championship in January 1999.

In 1999 McLaren suffered problems with their car, the McLaren MP4/14, during pre-season testing, resulting in a lack of preparation. Despite these setbacks, Häkkinen was confident going into the season, saying: "I've gained confidence and experience and am more relaxed. With this title I no longer have to tell myself every morning I can win, to put pressure on myself".

At the opening round in Australia, Häkkinen was forced into retirement as his car developed an throttle issue. However, he managed to clinch his first victory of the season in Brazil, despite his car developing a gearbox problem early in the race. Häkkinen retired from the race in San Marino when he collided with an barrier while leading. At the Monaco Grand Prix, Häkkinen managed to clinch third place, having slid on oil left on the track surface in the race. He followed up the results by clinching consecutive victories in the races held in Spain and Canada. Häkkinen took a second place finish in France, and was forced into another retirement in Britain, as a result of a wheel failure.

During the Austrian Grand Prix, Häkkinen who started from pole position, was hit by Coulthard from behind and rejoined at the back of the field. Häkkinen eventually finished in 3rd place.

During the German Grand Prix, it was announced that Häkkinen would remain at McLaren

for 2000. Häkkinen encountered further bad fortunes in the race when his car's right rear tyre exploded at high speed, forcing his car into a 360° spin before resting on a tyre wall. He managed to clinch his fourth victory of the year at Hungary, and followed up the result with a second place in Belgium. Häkkinen retired from the following race held in Italy, due to a spin while leading the race.

He managed to clinch further finishes with fifth place at the European Grand Prix, and achieved a podium finish with third place in Malaysia. At the season finale held in Japan, Häkkinen took victory, which ensured he took enough points to clinch the 1999 World Championship, with 76 points, ahead of nearest rival Eddie Irvine.

In November of 1999, Häkkinen was ranked seventh in the Reuters Sports Personality of the Year Poll scoring 46 out of a possible 260 points. He was also awarded his second consecutive Autosport International Racing Driver Award for 1999. In November, Häkkinen was announced as one of the seven men shortlisted for the Finnish Sports Personality of the Year. At the awards ceremony on 28 December, Häkkinen was awarded second place behind skier Mika Myllylä.

For 2000, Häkkinen set himself new limits along with physical and psychological preparations for the upcoming season. He also believed that he along with Schumacher and Coulthard would be the key drivers of 2000. He endured a bad start: At the opening round in Australia, both McLaren cars retired with engine failure after completing less than half of the race distance; and in the following race in Brazil, Häkkinen was forced into retirement when his car's oil pressure became problematic. However, this marked a turning point as Häkkinen took consecutive second place finishes in the next two rounds, and later clinched his first victory of the season in Spain.

Häkkinen finished in second position at the European Grand Prix, having traded the lead position with Schumacher throughout the race. He followed up the result by taking sixth place at Monaco, fourth in Canada and a podium finish with second position in France. The day after the French Grand Prix, it was announced that Häkkinen would remain at McLaren for 2001. Häkkinen won the following race held in Austria, although his team were stripped of constructors' points due to missing seal on the electronic control unit in Häkkinen's car. He took another podium finish with a second place in Germany, and later clinched another victory at the Hungarian Grand Prix where he took the lead of the World Drivers' Championship from Schumacher. Häkkinen clinched his second consecutive victory in Belgium, which included a simultaneous pass on Michael Schumacher and Ricardo Zonta in the Kemmel straight. Häkkinen later took second place in Italy, and retired with an engine failure in the United States. He rounded off the year with a second place in Japan where he conceded the World Championship to Schumacher, and clinched fourth position in the season closing race held in Malaysia.

In 2001 the season started badly for Häkkinen: He was forced into retirement in the opening round held in Australia due to an failure with his car's suspension resulting in his car spinning violently into a tyre barrier. The McLaren cars were off the pace in Malaysia, with Häkkinen managing to clinch 6th place. He retired from the following race in Brazil when his car stalled on the starting grid, and clinched further points at the San Marino Grand Prix. At the Spanish Grand Prix, Häkkinen looked on course to clinch his first victory of the season, until the final lap of the race, when his car was hampered with a clutch failure and was classified ninth.

He suffered further consecutive retirements in Austria where he stalled his car on the starting grid, and Monaco where his car's steering failed after fifteeen laps of the race. At the following race held in Canada, Häkkinen took his first podium of the season with a third place finish. He clinched sixth place at the European Grand Prix, and was unable to start the French Grand Prix as his car developed a gearbox problem. However, this marked a brief turning point for Häkkinen as he managed to clinch victory in the British Grand Prix. He was forced into another retirement in Germany when his engine failed, later managing to clinch fifth position in Hungary and fourth place in Belgium.

Before the Italian Grand Prix, Häkkinen announced that he would be taking a sabbatical, citing the reason to spend more time with his family. He was forced into another retirement during the race due to a gearbox issue. He managed to clinch the final victory of his career in the United States despite incurring a grid penalty, and ended the season with a fourth place finish in Japan. Häkkinen finished the season 5th in the Drivers' Championship, with 37 points.