Mika Hakkinen's F1 career

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Mika Häkkinen's Formula 1 career
1991

Mika Häkkinen joined the Formula One Championship in 1991, at Team Lotus in a Lotus-Judd. He made his F1 debut in the GP of the USA in Phoenix, Arizona. He qualified 13th but did not finish due to an engine fire. Halfway the race his steering felt a bit strange. It appeared that his steering wheel had come loose. In the pit the mechanics fixed the problem but mounted the wheel upside down! For the first 5 races in 1991 Julian Bailey was Mika's team mate. Bailey did not qualify for 4 out of 5 races that's why he was replaced by the teams test-driver Johnny Herbert, who will remain Mika's team mate for the next 27 races.

Mika Häkkinen started his F1 career in 1991 driving a white Lotus-Judd 102B, car number 11.

Mika's best result that year was a 5th place in Imola, San Marino, were he earned his first two championship points. Not bad since he started as number 25 on the grid! With that 2 points he finished 15th in the championship of 1991. Only once that year he did not qualify for the race: in the GP of France. Johnny kept the team in the race by finishing 10th. Herbert's best result that year was a 7th place in Spa-Francorchamps, Belgium, just outside the points. Champion that year was Mika's future team-mate Ayrton Senna.