How Hakkinen gave Senna a wake-up call in 1993
To celebrate Mika Hakkinen being honoured at the Autosport Awards this year, we joined him for a look back at his big break with McLaren in 1993, when he rocked the boat of none other than Ayrton Senna
The 1993 Portuguese Grand Prix was significant for a number of reasons - not least Alain Prost's announcement that he was retiring from Formula 1, the day before he wrapped up his fourth world title. But it was a big weekend for a young Finn called Mika Hakkinen, too.
Hakkinen spent the majority of the season on the sidelines, thanks to Ayrton Senna's late decision to take up a race-by-race deal with McLaren alongside Michael Andretti. Honda's withdrawal had left the Brazilian unsure of the Ford V8-powered car's potential, matched against the Williams-Renaults of Prost and Damon Hill, but Senna then won three of the first six races of the season.
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