It still seems odd, doesn’t it, McLaren in off-road racing? And yet this year will be the third that the famously squeaky-clean brand has gone and got its feet or rather its tires dirty.
The 1999 Formula 1 championship battle was one for the ages, with reigning champion Mika Hakkinen fending off an unlikely challenge from Ferrari's Eddie Irvine - stepping up to the plate after teammate Michael Schumacher was injured - in a duel that .
The 1999 Formula 1 championship battle was one for the ages, with reigning champion Mika Hakkinen fending off an unlikely challenge from Ferrari’s Eddie Irvine – stepping up to the plate after teammate Michael Schumacher was injured – in a duel that went to the final round of the season in Jap.
A track that delivered for XE
After Saudi Arabia I was calling for a shorter or tighter track. Senegal delivered the latter, with a hugely technical and physical challenge that was a world away from the vast open spaces of the desert.
The result was a course that allowed drivers to follow, battle, and compete. Overtaking might not have been all that easy, but that just made every passing move that did come off all the more special – and there was a good few of those, and not just off the start line either.
There’s no fans at these events, and while us journalists are supposed to remain professional, the cheers and jubilation coming from the media center in practically every session showed just how good the racing was.