Mika Hakkinen overhauls Michael Schumacher with one of F1’s most memorable overtakes – 2000 Belgian Grand Prix

To mark F1’s seventy fifth anniversary celebrations, F1.com is counting down the game’s 25 biggest races with a brand new characteristic each week. When you could not agree with the order, we hope you benefit from the tales of those epic races which have helped make this sport what it’s at the moment. You’ll be able to learn the introduction to the collection and see the checklist of races here.

At No. 17, Mika Hakkinen provides Mike Seymour his perspective of the dramatic, rain-hit 2000 Belgian Grand Prix, a weekend on which the Finn dominated Qualifying, spun out of the race lead in slippery circumstances, after which hunted down Michael Schumacher earlier than pulling off an overtake folks nonetheless discuss to today…

After changing into a two-time World Champion, I used to be filled with confidence heading into the 2000 season. Once more, Adrian Newey had designed our automotive, and once more, it was very quick – even when it was very tough to drive. I keep in mind it being on a knife-edge.

Our begin to the yr was okay. We had some technical points, which disturbed issues, however going to the Belgian Grand Prix, I felt we’d do nicely. I knew that our automotive could be fast at Spa-Francorchamps – and it was. Actually, actually, actually fast!

When it got here to Saturday’s Qualifying session, I used to be in a position to maximise the efficiency of the automotive in each sector of the lap and take pole place by greater than seven-tenths of a second.

Then the rain arrived on Sunday. Whenever you’re driving an F1 automotive within the moist, it’s fairly a scary expertise, particularly in case your automotive is on a knife-edge. All the pieces went superb at first; I obtained the lead, I used to be snug, however then I touched the kerb a bit of bit an excessive amount of at Stavelot, misplaced management and spun…

Fortunately, the engine was nonetheless working after I ended up on the grass. In fact, I noticed Michael – ‘Neeeeeooooom!’ – going flat-out previous me. I stated, ‘Oh my God’. However I used to be nonetheless assured. ‘I’ve automotive,’ I believed to myself.

When these form of issues occur, you don’t have time to consider it an excessive amount of. ‘What did I do unsuitable?’ You simply should focus, return to the monitor, verify that there isn’t any injury anyplace on the automotive and put your foot down.

After that, I began searching down Michael. I feel he had a bit of bit extra downforce than me, as a result of he was excellent within the center sector of the monitor, which has fairly a number of corners. He was in a position to draw back a bit of bit there, however each time we went in a straight line, I used to be catching him in a giant means.

I put in some unbelievable lap instances and I knew I used to be going to catch Michael ultimately, though I wasn’t certain if I’d be capable of overtake him. I knew Michael, I knew how he raced, and he was a extremely robust man to overhaul. He didn’t open the door for you.

In the event you tried to make an overtake on Michael the conventional means, while you go away your braking to the final minute and put your nostril in, it was in all probability going to finish up in a crash. He was very aggressive in that form of state of affairs. The constructive was that he was constant!

After I lastly caught Michael, I checked out the place he was fast, the place he was gradual, what sort of tactic I needed to undertake to have the ability to overtake him. I quickly knew there was just one place the place I had an opportunity to overhaul him – the Kemmel Straight. However, to do this, I wanted to undergo Eau Rouge practically flat-out.

With the race configuration, with tyres that have been previous, with a automotive that was already knackered… to undergo Eau Rouge flat-out, I knew that it was a threat. However I needed to take this threat to have the ability to overtake him.

Michael additionally knew that was the one place the place I might overtake – and he stored closing the door. Even after I was subsequent to him, he put me on the grass. I used to be like, ‘Michael, come on… I’m a lot sooner, don’t defend, it’s ridiculous. It’s not going to finish up a pleasant means when you proceed defending’. However he continued defending.

Then there was a bit of little bit of luck. I don’t usually take into consideration luck. It’s important to work on your self, you need to work with the crew, maximise every part you can. On this case, it was luck that there was a backmarker – Ricardo Zonta – on that straight. I believed, ‘That is it. I’ve to make use of this chance now’.

Unusually, Ricardo was driving in the midst of the monitor. Not driving on the appropriate, not on the left, however the center. It was very uncommon. After we approached him, Michael went left, which made sense, as a result of the opposite aspect of the monitor was nonetheless a bit damp. I knew that Michael was going to purpose for the dry line to assist below braking for Les Combes.

As quickly because it turned clear that Michael was going to overhaul on the left, I simply went flat-out on the appropriate. However I knew that I needed to come again to Michael’s line as quickly as potential and be on the dry a part of the monitor to hit the brakes. That’s why the motion occurred in a short time.

It was an ideal, nice feeling when all of it occurred.

I actually wanted to focus laborious afterwards. As quickly as I obtained previous the second sector and third sector with Michael nonetheless behind me, I stated, ‘Ookay, that’s it, now I’m going to place my foot down’. I didn’t make any errors, Michael dropped again, and I used to be like, ‘Wow, that is cool’.

When the race was over, I went to see Michael about his defending. I’d identified him for a few years and we’d been racing one another for a few years. We had some little incidents prior to now, and these incidents didn’t occur as a result of, ‘Oops, sorry, I made a bit of mistake’.

I defined to Michael, ‘Look, this isn’t the way in which racing ought to occur. We’re each opponents, we’re each World Champions, let’s construct our respect on the racetrack that we battle good and clearly’. Michael simply stated, ‘No, that is racing, Mika’.

Anyway, it’s a very long time in the past. It’s historical past. I’m not this example negatively. I had a chat with Michael, I understood his means of working, and that’s it. All of us do issues in a different way…

Basically, I feel it was an unbelievable time for the game. F1 at the moment is mega, no query about it. However that interval was particular as a result of Michael was at Ferrari, whereas there was McLaren as an English crew with a German engine, serving to this Finnish man to beat a German driver…

In Germany, folks have been like, ‘Who’re we going to assist right here? Are we going to assist Mika or Michael? Michael is at Ferrari, Mika is utilizing a Mercedes engine and doing commercials round Germany’. So, it was a really highly effective fan base, and a pleasant fan base in my view. It was a fantastic factor.

The followers are an important on this enterprise and, after I raced in opposition to Michael, it created a pleasant setting. We didn’t argue within the media; we fought on the monitor – even when Michael was a bit aggressive generally!