In November, Häkkinen was announced as one of the seven men shortlisted for the Finnish Sports Personality of the Year. Now that he is slowly transitioning into retirement, Natto is a worthy successor.
The season started off with controversy in Australia when team-mate Coulthard let Häkkinen past to win the race. Häkkinen also entered two races of the EDFA 1600 Championship and raced in the Formula Ford Festival held at Brands Hatch, where he finished in seventh position. He later entered the Opel-Lotus EDFA Euroseries, taking four victories and clinched the championship with 126 points, ahead of nearest rival Henrik Larsen.Going into 1989, Häkkinen moved from the Euroseries into the British Formula 3 Championship driving a Reynard 893 chassis for Dragon. He only managed to secure seventh position in the championship, scoring 18 points. The following year, he moved to McLaren as test driver before he was promoted to the race team following the departure of Michael Andretti.After four years which yielded minor success for Häkkinen, he clinched his first Formula One victory in 1997. He managed to take a further points finish with a 5th place at San Marino, before suffering from consecutive retirements in the next three races. "On 6 November 2004, it was announced that Häkkinen would make his début in the Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters (DTM) series for the HWA Team in the 2005 season. Häkkinen went to Parmato participate in the World Kart Championship where he retired before the event's final heat due to a mechanical problem. Mansell was forced to miss the opening two rounds, so Häkkinen was partnered with Mark Blundell.Häkkinen started off the season by clinching fourth place at Brazil, and later retired in Argentina due to a collision which punctured his left rear tyre that followed a spin. The couple have one son and one daughter.
No injuries were reported, although Häkkinen's collection of Formula One trophies was destroyed. However, this marked a brief turning point for Häkkinen as he managed to clinch victory in the British Grand Prix. He clinched pole for the following race at Brands Hatch where he clinched fourth position, and followed the result with a ninth-place finish at the Norisring.Häkkinen clinched his second victory of the season at Mugello, after starting from 15th position. Häkkinen's season got off to a good start: In the season opening race in Australia, he clinched third position and later managed to score further consecutive finishes inside of the points scoring positions in the next three races. Häkkinen suffered from a dip in race form as he encountered consecutive retirements in the next two races—his car suffered from an oil leak in Monaco and spun out in Canada. To prepare himself, Häkkinen spent time at the McLaren Technology Centre to help familiarise himself with Formula One's new regulations.On 28 January 2007, it was announced that Häkkinen would remain in DTM for the 2007 season for HWA, and was partnered by Spengler, Green and Schneidler.
Häkkinen finished the season 5th in the Drivers' Championship, with 37 points.In July 2002, Häkkinen announced that he would be retiring from Formula One nine months into his sabbatical. Häkkinen later stated that fear after crashes during practice for the 1995 Australian Grand Prix and the 2001 Australian Grand Prix as well as a loss of a desire to compete for race victories were factors. Häkkinen retired from the race in San Marino when he collided with a barrier while leading.
Häkkinen was confident going about the challenge for the World Championship into the season, citing the involvement of technical director Adrian Newey. Häkkinen later approached Ligier although his contract contained a clause of which his manager Keke Rosberg disagreed. He was also awarded his second consecutive Autosport International Racing Driver Award for 1999.
Häkkinen finished the season fifth in the Drivers' Championship, with 30 points.On 15 November 2005, it was announced that Häkkinen would remain with HWA for the 2006 season, and was partnered by Alesi, Spengler and Jamie Green.
He managed to clinch further finishes with fifth place at the European Grand Prix, and achieved a podium finish with third place in Malaysia. He endured a bad start: At the opening round in Australia, both McLaren cars retired with engine failure after completing less than half of the race distance; and in the following race in Brazil, Häkkinen was forced into retirement when his car's oil pressure became problematic. He managed to clinch his fourth victory of the year at Hungary, and followed up the result with a second place in Belgium. Häkkinen concluded his season with a retirement at the Hockenheimring when his car's diffuser became damaged.On 28 January 2007, it was announced that Häkkinen would remain in DTM for the Häkkinen had his second victory of the season at Mugello, after starting from 15th position.Häkkinen announced his retirement from competitive motorsport in November 2007.In November 2008, it was announced that Häkkinen would start a new career in driver management and would work alongside On 16 March 2017, McLaren announced that Häkkinen has rejoined the team as partner ambassador.On 9 April 2019, it was announced that Häkkinen would race in Häkkinen is known for his unique driving style; journalist Häkkinen was criticized for being a poor car developer, though this may have been exaggerated due to his initial struggles with the English language early in his career.During his Formula One career, Häkkinen became known as a "taciturn" character—an individual who took lengthy pauses before answering questions placed before him and would give virtually nothing away to the media.Since his retirement, Häkkinen has often been voted among the greatest Formula One drivers.Häkkinen married Erja Honkanen, a former TV journalist, in 1998.