He happens to be among the most widely respected drivers across all eras in Formula 1. He is among the fastest and most successful drivers to have entered the sport from Finland. Few men stood up to a legend like Michael Schumacher- the undisputed king of Grand Prix racing- the way he did. And after 2 world titles, 20 race wins and notching up one of the greatest overtaking moves ever scored in the history of Formula 1, today when Mika Hakkinen states a thought or shares some insight on Grand Prix racing, you hear it and you attach a lot of respect to it. What’s interesting are the comments made by Mika Hakkinen on Ferrari.
Not someone who attaches any theatrics or tries to trick his way into stating something, the observations made by Mika Hakkinen on Ferrari recently struck a chord and actually seem to be right on point.
But first up, what are the insights made by Mika Hakkinen on Ferrari
The former Finnish F1 driver, commonly also hailed as the “Flying Finn,” is of the view that of the current cars on the grid, Ferrari have the best car.
Where the math of the ongoing season pans out, then it could be said, it is easier to comprehend than ever. If the first half of the season clearly belonged to Mercedes, who won 8 10 races, with Lewis alone responsible for winning 8 of them, the second half including the Grands Prix of Belgium, Italy, and Singapore has seen Ferrari paint the sport in dashing red color.
Implicit in Ferrari’s spectacular triumphs at the high-speed racing venues of Spa-Francorchamps and Monza, also labeled as the “Cathedral of Speed,” was Charles Leclerc making the most of the SF 90’s straight-line speed.
In fact, so impressive has been this little period of resurgence of sorts for the Maranello-based outfit that not even Lewis Hamilton has been able to tackle the imposing speed of the red cars.
To that count, Hakkinen’s views pertaining to Ferrari seem utterly on point and in lines with the train of thought at Mercedes.
Why Ferrari have the best car right now?
Source: comments made by Mika Hakkinen on Ferrari reflect the car’s true speed and the imposition of will (autosport)
Hakkinen shared the following, “Singapore was proof that Ferrari now really has the best car in Formula 1. At Spa and Monza it was all about pure speed, in Singapore, it should have been different. A bumpy circuit with many different movements and a few slow turns. Many people had expected a fight here between Red Bull Racing and Mercedes, but Ferrari surprised everyone.”
But that’s not all. The former rival to Michael Schumacher also added some interesting observations about Ferrari’s recent Singapore success, a contest that perhaps sprung Sebastian Vettel back into the thick of things, the German driver finally ending a year-long wait to make it to the top step of the podium.
The Finn added, “Ferrari dominated in Singapore. There was already no doubt that their engine was by far the most powerful, the result in Singapore shows that the car as a whole also works well. New upgrades seem to work and suddenly it is Lewis Hamilton who believes that Ferrari will be hard to beat in all remaining locations.”
But all of that said, if there’s a contest where Ferrari’s superiority, thus far unchallenged at Spa, Monza, and Marina Bay, will be truly tested would be at the upcoming Russian Grand Prix at Sochi.
For the record, no other team apart from Mercedes has stepped onto the top step at the Sochi Autodrome. Will this change this weekend?