Heikki Kovalainen is going through quite complicated moments in his personal life and to the point that he is being forced to abandon professional competition in the World Rally Championship due to a delicate health problem that puts his life at great risk.
At the time, the Finnish driver joined the Vodafone McLaren Mercedes team, where he marked the beginning of an era in Formula 1 starting in 2008. He teamed up with the multiple world champion, the Englishman Lewis Hamilton, whom he accompanied throughout that season. to win the first of the 7 crowns he holds today.
Kovalainen always had Hamilton’s back and proved to be one of the most experienced drivers. and important while he lived in Formula 1 from 2007 to 2013, where he also defended the colors of teams such as Renalut, Lotus and Caterham.
The Finn spoke about his medical situation
In a recent conversation with his nation’s newspaper Iltalehti, Kovalainen commented on the difficult time he is going through with his health.: “At the end of last season, I decided to have a thorough medical check-up. The idea was to check that there was no serious problem, but then I discovered this.”
The media placed great emphasis on the fact that this health problem It can also be called an aortic aneurysm and can cause the aorta to rupture., whose chances of survival are “almost non-existent.” “It’s a hereditary disease that I can’t do anything about. It’s good that it was discovered now. Generally, this problem is asymptomatic, except when it occurs for the first time,” mentioned the Finnish pilot.
The doctors were quite clear with Kovalainen about not having any type of activity that is strenuous enough until he can fully recover, this evidently to preserve and ensure his life: “Since November, I have not been allowed to do any hard physical exercise.” “The day before the check-up, I went for a run. I was delighted with how good I felt. It was a bit shocking when the next day the doctor told me what the tests had found,” said the 42-year-old pilot.
Open heart surgery
Both the pilot and his work team and doctors made the decision that the best option for the Finn would be to have open heart surgery., which has its own risks: “It is such a large operation that there is always the risk of the worst. However, the aorta has dilated so much that the surgical threshold is exceeded. Plus, the operation will have to be done at some point anyway. Therefore, postponing it to the next few years makes little sense.”
“I’ve spent all winter studying what can be done about it. I have been to Japan to talk to professionals”he explained. Accordingly, the active skier and fitness enthusiast elaborated on his story: “The odds are on my side. However, if it happens that I can’t continue running despite the operation, so be it. My main goal is to return to a normal life.”
Career in Formula 1
Heikki Kovalainen raced in a total of 112 races throughout his stay in Formula 1 and was able to score 105 points. He also stood out by achieving a Pole Position at Silverstone in the 2008 season, although he was unable to maintain that position after finishing the race in fifth place in a Grand Prix won by Lewis Hamilton.
Their best historical position in the final classification was seventh place in 2007 and 2008. He also had outstanding performances as a professional driver in 2004, when he took first place in the World Series, and in 2016 he won the Japanese Super GT with the Lexus team.
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