2017-02 - Blog Posts

The first race car I supported: the McLaren MP4/13-Mercedes

Aidan Millward, a YouTuber who talks a lot about racing history and current affairs, recently went to an exhibit at Silverstone and came face to face with the first Formula 1 car he supported, Damon Hill's 1996 championship-winning Williams FW18-Renault. Which reminded me: I've met my first F1 hero too.

The Formula 1 season I remember paying attention to more or less in full was 1998, and the driver I supported - as you usually start in sport by supporting someone before growing more neutral when they leave - was Mika Häkkinen. Like Hill two years earlier, Häkkinen was in a car designed by Adrian Newey, who had changed teams in 1997, and he won the championship with it. The McLaren MP4/13 has a wonderful shape, and the black, silver and white with red accents is an unmistakable turn-of-the-millennium livery.

This car can be found at the Mercedes-Benz Museum in Stuttgart, courtesy of McLaren's engine partner of the time. On the racing floor of this very complete museum, well worth the visit, the MP4/13 is in fine company: Mercedes's other F1 champions from the 1950s with Fangio and since 2008 with Hamilton, Sauber Group C sportscars, the CLK-GTR, DTM touring cars, race trucks (yes that's a thing), and many more...