Mika Hakkinen: Formula 1’s health is perfectly fine

Mika Hakkinen, two-time world champion and now an expert on the Finnish TV channel Viaplay, commented on the events of the last Australian Grand Prix, which ended with a confident victory for Charles Leclerc, giving the Ferrari driver his lead in the individual standings and his team in the Constructors’ Championship.

But there were many other events on the circuit at Melbourne’s Albert Park, most notably the retirement of Max Verstappen allowed George Russell to climb onto the podium for the first time as a Mercedes driver.

Mika Hakkinen: “After a race like this, there is something to talk about. Charles Leclerc had her course under full control, after which he said that the car was very good, allowed to work effectively with rubber and to pass circles with stable results. A high-class racer needs nothing else, as long as the car is fast from start to finish and reacts appropriately to its actions.

Importantly, in the three Grands Prix, Charles took two wins and finished second once, while Max Verstappen took one win but retired twice. When competition is at such a high level, technical problems should not return. Max is clearly unhappy.

In confirmation of this, George Russell, the Mercedes driver, climbed to the second line of the individual standings, although both he and his partner Lewis Hamilton are hampered by problems with the cars.

George had a great race and it was important for him to get on the podium. It is very surprising that he is now in 2nd place in the championship, but this is a result of the impressive stability and reliability of the Mercedes W13. In Bahrain, George finished 4th, finished 5th in Saudi Arabia and climbed to the podium in Australia.

It is also worth noting that he is ahead of Lewis Hamilton, although the results of the Melbourne race were greatly affected by the introduction of the safety car. Overall, I don’t think this reflects Lewis’s true speed in any way compared to his partner.

Both Mercedes drivers are doing a great job driving Mercedes cars as the team tackles the W13’s performance shortfall, which is another reason Red Bull needs to quickly resolve reliability issues. It is possible that the battle for victory will soon be led by three teams – Mercedes, Red Bull and Ferrari.

McLaren drivers Lando Norris and Daniel Ricciardo finished 5th and 6th, showing that the team is starting to unlock the car’s potential. Last weekend was a big step forward. When the technical regulations change so drastically, it always takes time to figure out how to increase the efficiency of the car, but McLaren is already on the right track.

The Australian round has returned to the Formula 1 calendar after a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic crisis. This return was successful: almost 420,000 spectators visited Albert Park over the weekend and the Grand Prix became the largest sporting event in the history of the country.

This is a great success for Formula 1; great that the Australian fans are happy with the return of the Grand Prix, which is reflected in the record stats. I have fond memories of the 1998 Melbourne win and the enthusiastic support the crowd gave me. Nice to see that the championship is so enthusiastic. All this is impressive and convincingly confirms that the health of Formula 1 is in perfect order despite the pandemic.