28 replies to this topic

[Finntastic]

Hakkinen: fear played a part
DailyF1.com 15th October 2001 - 12.00 GMT

Former World Champion Mika Hakkinen has said the fear of crashing and risking major injuries played a part in his decision to withdraw from the sport this year.

The Finn contested his last race in Japan yesterday before taking a year sabbatical, although he has not ruled out retiring for good.

The 33-year-old recalled his accident at the opening race in Australia this year when a suspension failure sent him crashing hard into the tyre barriers at high speed. He said that triggered off negative thoughts in his mind and made him take his life and career into perspective.

‘That affected me more than anyone could see from the outside,’ Hakkinen said in a report on the ITV network.

‘You are going flat out at top speed and then you are suddenly completely helpless and crashing into the tyre barrier in a very big way.

‘I crashed so hard my helmet was cracked.’

Hakkinen said the experience also brought back unwelcome memories of Adelaide in 1995. There, he was in serious trouble after a major accident during qualifying when a slit tyre from debris sent him into the barriers at terrific speed. Skilful work by surgeons, who performed a trackside tracheotomy after his lungs began to fill with blood, saved his life.

‘In Melbourne I had to go to the medical centre where they examined my head, throat, arms and legs,’ he explained.

‘When they were doing that it all suddenly reminded me of my Adelaide accident.

‘I was in the same country and again a technical problem had caused me to crash. When something like that happens to you again you start to think in a very negative way.

‘You try to wipe the accident out of your head and try to give 100 per cent in the next race but it’s still there at the back of your mind. I sat down and thought to myself ‘You’ve won two championships; one should never be too greedy".

‘I believe I have made the right decision but it will take time to adjust to my new life and establish whether I enjoy it or not.’

Hakkinen finished fourth at Suzuka yesterday. He could have taken third, but decided to let team-mate Coulthard through to the podium place as a way of repaying him for his support during the Finn’s Championship successes in 1998 and ’99.

[Mrv]

This is what I thought also, when he announced his retirement. The fear factor. I highly doubt we will see Mika back in an F1 car. One year with Hugo will put a seal on Mika's career in auto racing. He has had an outstanding career and why should he risk his life by coming back and getting into one of those death crates.

[Haz 2]

Although I'm sad to see Hakkinen quit, I understand his decision. A near death crash, especially one that involves head trauma must really rattle a driver. I have read interviews in which he said that the Adelaide crash screwed him up quite bad, and that he wasn't fully recovered in 96 but raced anyway. Being involved in another crash that cracked his helmet must have been the last straw. He's won plenty of races and championships, and I'm sure he doesn't want another visit from the reaper. Sometimes its just better to pull out while you are ahead.

[pole sitter]

When something like that happens to you again you start to think in a very negative way.

‘You try to wipe the accident out of your head and try to give 100 per cent in the next race but it’s still there at the back of your mind.

I wonder if MS has ever had such feelings. He too crashed big time in Silverstone-99, although his injures weren't as life-threatening as MIka's. Apparently, neither that crash nor family considerations has diminished his motivation. Does he have any fear? The only time I remember him admitting thinking about retirement, was before Monza this year, when he seemed to have been deeply affected by the events of Sept 11.

[Zoe]

I'm just waiting for tom and Kinetik to chime on with their highly qualified comments ...

Anyway, I am glad that Mika got out of F1 without major injuries. There's little less bitter ironic than deciding to quit and then having a real big accident. Just what Lauda says: If you decide to quit, then quit in this very instant.

Zoe

[Clatter]

Once a driver starts to have these thoughts then getting out is the only correct decision. I cant see him coming back as those worries dont go away.

[WDC]

Originally posted by Haz 2
A near death crash, especially one that involves head trauma must really rattle a driver.

I believe the same thing is happening to Luicano Burti

[arcwulf7]

I remember an interview with John Surtees a few years ago, when he described the fear aspect of f1 racing as being cumulative -- building up with each shunt or white knuckle passing and braking manoever -- until it just starts to outweigh the glamour, money, excitement -- something clicks and you decide the compensations just don't make the racing worth it anymore. Jackie Stewart said nearly the same thing - often catalyzed the by the serious injury or death of someone you knew, a serious personal shunt, and the inevitable development of family committments. I think Mika will enjoy spending time with Erja and his kids, and doing some coaching and testing with McLaren next year, and i doubt he will ever return to f1 as a driver.

[FW11B]

If this is part of the decision then I would say that he made the right one. These feelings are nothing to be ashamed off.
However they could be very dangerous on track.

A racer who will be missed.

[pRy]

I always did think this particular accident was a major one for Hakkinen. His Adelaide crash was the result of an occurance which was beyond his control. The tyre burst was unpredicted, unexpected, and totally blame less on his part, he was sent speeding into a barrier at high speed with no real way of slowing down. The result was a near death injury which left him in a coma.

The Melbourne crash was simular. The suspension failure on the McLaren caused him to slam into a barrier at high speed, a huge impact. So it's not suprising that he felt uneasy after it. It was the worst thing McLaren could have done to him, and it happened at possibly the worst time. The first race back after the start of his family and he has a crash like that.

However, I don't believe this was a major factor in his decision to quit this year. Silverstone is evidence that Mika did not loose the speed edge. I think the headline was slightly misleading.

But still.. an interesting set of quotes. Prehaps Mika will reveal a few more aspects of this year of equal interest.

[MarkWRX]

The ability to sublimate your fear must be a critical part of the racing driver's psyche. You need to have total confidence in your own skill, which I think Hakkinen has, and you need to have total confidence in your car, which I think, as the article states, that Hakkinen doesn't have.

I have "tracked" my daily driver at Summit Point Raceway in West ("by God") Virginia as part of a Workers at the Track event and I found that I over analyzed too much. There was too much "...if I have a blowout with these kinds of lateral loads, I will not only slide off driver's left, I will probably roll..." That kept me from putting my foot flat on the floor for several laps until I gained more confidence. At turn four, a downhill right hand bend with a blind apex and about 10 feet of runoff, I could never force myself to take it flat.

If Mika doesn't have the confidence in his car or his ability, then I think he made the best decision to take a year off and decide what he wants to do.

I hope to see him back, but if he decides that he's had enough, then I happy for him.

Mark

[servellen]

Originally posted by pRy
I However, I don't believe this was a major factor in his decision to quit this year. Silverstone is evidence that Mika did not loose the speed edge. I think the headline was slightly misleading.

But still.. an interesting set of quotes. Prehaps Mika will reveal a few more aspects of this year of equal interest.

I would have to respectfully disagree with that one. i think his accident adelaid changed his life, i would even go on to say it made him a better driver but that's beside the point. His life was a t risk. I think when you're a father their's a natural instictual reaction to wan to take less risk so that you're more likely to stay around to take care of you child(ren).

Sure some have it more than others. If I were Mika, having been around when Senna was driving while having doubts and not being 100% comfortable and then getting in a fatal accident I would also probably quit.

Like he said, maybe it's not good to push your luck and get too greedy for more success. No, he didn't lose any speed or ability, but doubt causes hesitation and hesitation in turn causes you to slow down, not trust your natural reactions and can even make driving more dangerous.

I miss Mika, but respect his decision if he stays away. I think his wife is also scared, so you can imagine the emotional pressure that could put on him.

[LuckyStrike1]

A brave decision by a great man and racer. All the best to Mika and his family, whatever he decides to do after next year.

[philhitchings]

Originally posted by WDC



I believe the same thing is happening to Luicano Burti

Wendlinger had problems post Monaco too didn't he?

Mika should still be admired for his courage though and I am sure it won't be too long before people begin to quietly vilify him

[pa]

Bottom line, when the fear outweighs the pleasure and the rush of racing, that's when you quit. God knows he's got all the dough he could ever need.

[THE FULL MONTY]

I actually think that this is only an excuse. I really think that the crash in Germany 99 was even most dangerous than the one he had this year in Australia.

Sadly, as many people think, I am pretty sure that we are not going to see Mika again in a F1 car. He has been one of the greatest and if he would have the good cars that Schumacher had all around his carrer is possible that this guy would have as win as Schumi has...

[pRy]

Originally posted by servellen


I would have to respectfully disagree with that one. i think his accident adelaid changed his life, i would even go on to say it made him a better driver but that's beside the point.

Sorry.. I meant his accident at Melbourne this year in that respect.

[boost]

Thats a normal feeling to have after a shunt or major accident, if u dont question yourself, i think somthing is very wrong with you.
But did we see a fearful mika in Spain, Silverstone or Indy this year? no.
Have a nice year Mika

[Snow1]

It's just like Clint Eastwood said in Dirty Harry, "A man has got to know his limitations".

Mika's decision shows that he knows himself very well and has the wisdom to go with what he feels he needs to do. When one door closes, another opens. You just have to turn the knob. He'll find new stuff to do

[silver fan]

I just hope those that choose to vilify him for whatever reason appreciate the courage it takes to come back from an accident like adelaide 95 and go on to compete at the level that Hakkinen did. Equally I hope people also appreciate the courage it takes for a man to admit publically to his own limitations. The one thing that saddens me is that it would appear that Hakkinen had efectively come to his decision early in the year and yet was forced to keep quite while McLaren played 'musical chairs' behind closed doors. It would have been nice to see Hakkinen drive his final year in F1 without having to play these bullshit political games that are the life-blood of F1.

As much as I will miss his driving I hope Hakkinen doesn't come back. There is only two sports that I follow, motor racing (F1 in particular) and boxing. While the two on face value share little in common, they are I believe closely related. These two sports unlike other sports are driven not only by back-stage politics but by fear. Other sportspeople often talk about fear but really they don't know what fear is, they just think they do. If a tennis player or golfer mishits a ball what does he have to fear, not a whole lot actually. A 'miss-hit' in an F1 car or the boxing ring carries with it potentially a far more serious punishement. To be able to deal with this requires a self-belief that you just don't see in other sports. Consequently this self-belief often drives these people on past their prime. So often we have seen a driver who has lost his edge still competing at the back of the field getting lapped every weekend, or the old boxer who gets in the ring with the young guy and cops a beating.

If Hakkinen does come back in 2003 then I hope it is purely for the love of the sport and not because that is all he knows what to do. Conversely if he doesn't come back then I'm glad he won at Indi in the manner in which he did. It was a win that not only showed that Hakkinen was as fast as ever but also showed that despite driving an inferior car he could drive with the type of patience and cunning that Prost and Lauda would have been proud of. It was a fitting slap in the face to his critics.

[Hakk]

That is natural. If I would have won everything I can in F1 and I would have a year old son (I do actually ), I wouldn't continue racing either. It's pretty risky and family goes ahead of everything else.

[Oho]

Originally posted by THE FULL MONTY
I actually think that this is only an excuse. I really think that the crash in Germany 99 was even most dangerous than the one he had this year in Australia.

Ave !!!

The thing about Australia was not only the danger but the surrounding circumstances. Mika had quite a few potentially serious incidents from 95 till the one that perhaps broke the camels back.

In 97 suspension failed at 300 km/h at Spa during Saturday practise. Couple of hours later Mika outqualified David by almost a second. Less than a week later another suspension failure put him to the wall at Monza during testing, didnt scare him off did it. In 98 at Monza in Ascari without warning front brakes totally failed while in pursuit of Michael, sent Mika spinning at 300 km/h. Two weeks later he nailed a perfect race by skinning the entire Ferrari outfit. In 99 after Michael hit the wall at Silverstone in the very same race Mika exits Luffield at full throttle one wheel short and mere four weeks later a tyre disintegrated while approaching Stadium section at Hockenheim.

At Melbourne the entire setting was so reminiscent of 95 that it made his heart stop.

- Oho -

[Mat]

Originally posted by THE FULL MONTY
I actually think that this is only an excuse. I really think that the crash in Germany 99 was even most dangerous than the one he had this year in Australia.

I wouldnt call it an excuse mont, if you call at the entire '01 season. Nothing went write for Mika from the very start. This wouldnt have put him in the best of mindsets.

Especially in the first half of the season, nothing that happened seemed to be in his control, and I do think all the incidents during the year played a big part in his decision.

He first had the accident in Melbourne, which was a very big shunt. He then had the car stall at the front of the pack in Brazil. I think these two incidents alone would have really rattled him. Any F1 driver will tell you there is nothing worse then stalling and having to sit in the car and just wait for the impact. Then there was the clutch failure on the last lap in Spain, just when he was re-gaining his feet. Add to this Luciano Burti's crash in Germany, again in Belgium as well as Jacques' crash in Melbourne and Mike slowly realises that the penny could drop, and if it did, there wouldnt be much he could do to avoid it.

I really think the 'Days of Thunder' similiarities come in and where he previously thought he was in control of his own destiny he realised he relied more on luck, and on the reliability of his car than he would care to admit.

Here's to a double World Champion.

Mat

[Jonathan]

Fear making Hakkinen quit ? HuH ?

This man has been racing f1 since when ? 1991 ?
He has been with McLaren since '93

I would say Hakkinen's quitting is do to several factors:

A strong desire to be invovled with his family.

The desire for self-preservation.

A certain sense of frustration with McLaren for not supporting him in his WDC championship bit, to the degree that he clearly deserves.

Having a suspension failure at speed certainly does rattle your nerves and in some cases causes you to loose confidence in your team. Yeah fear does have something of a role too... but I think its more an issue of common sense.

Brian Redman when offered a ride with Lotus in the 1960ies turned it down siting several examples of the cars not being safe enough. Jackie Icks, and Emerson Fittipaldi also left Lotus in part do to their lack of confidence in the cars safety. All three of these men are still alive today. None of these mean are known for being easily scared.

No sense in risking your life if you arent confident in the team's ability to deleiver a safe and competitive car.

I am very happy for Mika, and wish him much happiness. On the other hand I think F1 racing will be greatly improved, if he does decide to return.

[mikabest]

Those of you who have wondered if there was something wrong with Mika's car during the closing laps at Suzuka, because he just didn't only let David pass him but also let Rubens almost catch him: In a finnish newspaper Mika said that after he had let David ahead there was no need to push anymore and he just relaxed and cruised safely to the finish-line "trying to keep his car safely on the track". So Mika wanted to make sure there wouldn't be any last moment accidents.

Here's to the classy double champion

yours,
ever so biased MIKABEST

[SennasCat]

Even as a Schumacher (M) supporter, I greatly respect and admire Mika as a competitor and also as a role model for what a good F1 personality should be. He is straight as a die, doesn't play stupid games and when it was all together, last year and this, was still right on top of the game. I was glad to see him win Indy and Silverstone and think it takes real guts to admit, in the macho world of F1, you are scared and there may be more to life in F1. I felt great relief for him after Suzuka, knowing he was pretty safe (and also Alesi). I truly felt the most earned championship for Schumacher was beating Mika after Schu's mid season slump, Mika's pass at Spa, and fighting in a world of their own, miles ahead of everyone else at Suzuka 2000.

Thanks for the memories Mika and I hope you do the right thing for yourself and all near you.

[swing]

it takes real guts to admit, in the macho world of F1, you are scared and there may be more to life in F1...

maybe thats the factors that make him a true and lively character in F1...

[speedy]

Seems that Mika is a fearless man, the fact remains that he went through 130R in his last race as the fastest of them all. Auto Sprint has published speeds there : 1. Mika Häkkinen 293,9 km/h 2. Michael Schumacher 293,1 km/h 3. David Coulthard 287,4 km/h.

[Hotwheels]

I have always been a Mika fan and am sad to see him go .

I agree that if you lose "that little extra" it is better that you call it quits and walk out with you head high .
I don't see Mika back in F1 - and just hope we get to see another really nice guy who was very fair, competative and one of the greats.