Hakkinen praises Brown for pulling McLaren out of Australian GP

Mika Hakkinen has praised McLaren chief Zak Brown after his decision to withdraw the team from the Australian Grand Prix after an outbreak of the coronavirus within the squad.

Even though the race was eventually cancelled on Thursday, that came after McLaren pulled themselves out following the news that one of their team members tested positive for the virus.

Hakkinen believes it was the right move from Brown, whose decision was ultimately vindicated after the race was cancelled anyway.

"After a member of his team tested positive for the virus, my good friend Zak Brown’s decision to withdraw McLaren from the Grand Prix was definitely the right one,” the former world champion wrote in his Unibet column.

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“As CEO of McLaren Racing, he is also a massive fan of the sport, but the wellbeing of team personnel has to come first.

"Ultimately most of the other teams agreed with Zak’s position, and finally the Australian authorities alongside Formula 1 and the FIA made the decision to cancel the race."

The Finn has highlighted the dangers of an outbreak within the F1 community due to how the sport is run, with everyone constantly together and constantly travelling together, too.

"As a World Champion I am huge fan of Formula 1, but nothing is more important than the health of our fans, team personnel, marshals, event staff, F1 and FIA employees," he insisted.

"Formula 1 is one big circus, and we travel together, sharing hotels, hire cars, restaurants and bars.

“The potential for coronavirus to spread in this environment is clear, and the situation has changed very quickly - particularly in Europe, where all the teams are based - in the past week."

Although no official confirmation has been announced, it is expected that the 2020 Formula 1 season could be delayed until May.

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