MIKA'S MAGICAL RETURN

Nicholas Frankl, TACH European Bureau

You may have read the bare facts on The Auto Channel a few days ago, about 27 year old Mika Hakkinen who literally returned from the dead. Well, as good as.

On November 10, 1995 he was practicing for the last race of the season in Adelaide, Australia. He went out on to the track and as a result of some debris picked up a puncture which made him spin into a tire barrier at well over 1OO mph. He hit the tires head on and had it not been for three brilliant Australian doctors who performed a tracheotomy by the side of the track to stop Mika from choking on his own blood, he would never have made it. The early signs were not good. He lapsed into a coma and many of us feared the worst. It certainly did not occur to any of us that he would ever driver again. Yet, just three months later, to the day, here he was at Estoril, scene of the Portuguese Grand Prix, smiling and ready to face the world's Press. He was a bit thinner but still the old Mika, a racer's racer.

"I have to admit that I was a bit nervous when I got back Into the car last week. lt was ok at first, but then I was standing next to the car putting on my balaclava and my gloves and I suddenly realized all the mechanics had gone silent. Usually, in Formula One there is noise everywhere and a lot happening, but it was completely quiet. But then, when I sat in the cockpit and selected first gear and went out into the pit lane I felt fantastic. I did not feel scared any more and that first lap behind the wheel was wonderful. When I shifted up through the gears it felt so smooth. Braking for the corners, accelerating, just simple things gave me this warm feeling. lt was as though I had my life back again. This is what I love doing."

Even though Mika has yet to win a Grand Prix, he is regarded as possibly the fastest man in Formula One. In 1993, at this very track, he out qualified three times world champion Aynon Senna when they were team-mates. Since then he has had some great drives, but he also made some silly mistakes over the years when he wanted to win the race at the first corner. ln fact he pushed Senna off the track in Aida just weeks before that fateful weekend in Imola. He was also punished by a one race ban for causing a multiple pile up at the German Grand Prix at Hockenhelm in 1994. The fact that he was half a second quicker than Schumacher during secret tests at the Paul Ricard track in the South of France, shows that he has not lost any of his legendary speed. How he will shape in the heat of the battle on March 10 - back in Australia is a different matter. He has no illusions.

"You have to accept that over the course of a normal season you are going to spin a couple of times and maybe hit the wall. That is just the way motor racing is. You have to accept it is going to happen to you and just hope it won't he a big one. You just have to make sure you are as fit as you can be so you are prepared for it. By the start of the season I will be ready. I am going to Melbourne."

Welcome back Mika, I think even your rivals wish you all the best for the forthcoming season!