Friday 10th November 1995

In the Friday Afternoon session for the 1995 Australian Grand Prix at Adelaide, Mika Hakkinen in his McLaren suffered a rear puncture heading towards Brewery Bend, causing him to spin over the curbs and to crash heavily. Hakkinen was given an emergency tracheotomy at trackside, before getting rushed to hospital. As with Ayrton Senna’s fatal accident the year before at Imola, information wasnít coming forth and some feared the worst. Thankfully Mika recovered well from the accident and went on to become a double World Champion. With today’s safety features, like HANS and lateral cockpit protection, Mika would have walked away unscathed.