The Formula 1 world championship 1999 it lived its key moment in a period far from the final part of the season, even in the heart of the summer of that year. The event that characterized the last segment of the 90s before the advent in the 21st century was staged in the early stages of British Grand Prix: on the Silverstone circuit, Michael Schumacher he was the protagonist of a bad exit from the track with his Ferrari, from which he was extracted by the medical team after a violent impact against the barriers. Later transported to the hospital, fortunately without ever entering in danger of life, the German was found the fracture of tibia and fibula of the right leg. In short, the injury put an end to the dream of being able to fight for the world championship once again.
At the same time, the Kaiser’s KO seemed to automatically open the doors to success for his greatest rival at the time: Mika Hakkinen. The Finn, at the wheel of the McLaren-Mercedes, in fact, presented himself to the 1999 season in the role of reigning world champion, having obtained the double title of the drivers and constructors title in 1998. The excellent form of the English team, combined with the sudden departure of Schumacher, therefore seemed a more than solid basis to be able to win the second consecutive title with relative ease. Instead, the unfortunate British GP was the spark that triggered the desire for redemption Ferrari.
Without the contribution of the German, the red player played the Northern Irish card Eddie Irvine, in turn supported by another Finnish like Mika Salo, who will excellently play the role of replacement for Schumacher. Irvine, in the second half of the season, was the protagonist of a surprising comeback on Hakkinen. The latter, at the same time, sensationally lost shots in the world championship standings with a series of performances not up to his talent. In a season full of twists and turns and unexpected circumstances – including the return of the Kaiser two races from the end of the world championship – the October 31, 1999 Formula 1 flew in Japan for the last race of the season, with still all to be decided not only for the drivers ‘title, but also for the constructors’ title.
TO Suzuka both Irvine and Ferrari found themselves ahead of their rivals in their respective rankings, with Hakkinen 4 points behind the Northern Irishman. For the Finn, therefore, it became necessary to finish in front of the Ferrari driver, or in any case to reach equal points, in order to automatically be crowned world champion due to the greater number of victories won. The same obviously also applied to Irvine, the protagonist of a not particularly brilliant weekend: in qualifying, in addition to becoming the protagonist of an accident, he was unable to go beyond the 5th place, in the same session in which Schumacher instead conquered the pole position right in front of Hakkinen.
The green light on the race, therefore dating back to exactly 22 years ago, however, saw the lightning bolt of the McLaren driver, very skilled in outclassing the German rival at the start. The latter, therefore slipped into second place, still managed to keep his distance from a surprise Olivier Panis and by Irvine, third and fourth respectively. Complicating the comeback plans of the title candidate was the resistance of the Frenchman from Prost, determined not to give up the position to Irvine, so much so that he only had to give in to Ferrari’s attack on lap 16.
In the meantime, with Hakkinen and Schumacher always in the first two positions, McLaren decided to anticipate the stop on Irvine by calling back to the pits David Coulthard, with the Scotsman who in fact managed to get back on track in front of the Ferrari driver. A move, that of the British team, designed above all to slow down the Northern Irishman, thus avoiding any possible comeback attempt on Hakkinen. However, the Ron Dennis did not go well: more than for the goal itself, to ruin the plans of the English team was not only an excellent pit stop by Ferrari, but also and above all the retirement of Coulthard, protagonist of an exit of track.
With Hakkinen now unattainable, Ferrari itself ordered Schumacher to slow down the pace a few laps from the end to avoid the risk of accidents or retirements, with the German who therefore crossed the line in second place ahead of his teammate. So, Mika Hakkinen became world champion for the second and last time in his career, erasing Irvine’s hopes and dreams of glory, destined to leave Maranello the following season to make way for Rubens Barrichello. At the same time, however, the 1999 Japanese GP also put an end to a very long spell for the Modenese Scuderia: the order imposed on Schumacher, in fact, was aimed at the safe arrival on the podium of both drivers, who, taking advantage of the Coulthard’s withdrawal, they allowed the Ferrari to win the 1999 constructors’ championship. In doing so, the Prancing Horse returned to the top of Formula 1 for the first time since 1983.
On the same circuit, the following year, Schumacher will be able to triumph over Hakkinen in the drivers’ championship, absent from the Maranello showcase since 1979. The Japanese GP twenty-two years ago also coincided with the last appearance in F1 of another champion of the world like Damon Hill, in addition to that of Alessandro Zanardi. Furthermore, among the teams, Suzuka was also the team’s swan song Stewart.
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