First F1 victory since 1955:
Williamsstarts 1997 with the best
car, but fails to win the first race
of the season in Melbourne. David
Coulthard duly steps forward
to claim Mercedes’ first victory
since 1955, despite qualifying two
seconds off Jacques Villeneuve
Back-to-back championships:
Poaching design ace Adrian Newey
from Williams finally pays off as
McLaren-Mercedes takes a title
double under the narrow-car,
grooved-tyres regulations of 1998.
Mika Hakkinen follows up with
a second drivers’ title in 1999
Surprise successwith Brawn:
Ross Brawn’s deal to salvage the
ex-Honda works team proves a
masterstroke. McLaren permits
Brawn to shoehorn customer
Mercedes engines into the car,
and the rest is history...
LewisHamilton’sfirsttitle:
McLaren-Mercedes ends eight
seasons of world championship
drought by clinching the 2008
drivers’ title with Hamilton in
a dramatic final race showdown
at the Brazilian Grand Prix