Kulthard admitted that he adopted the idea of touring from Steiner.

      In spring, the racing world learned news likely to interest both seasoned fans and those whose knowledge of Formula 1 is limited to the names of current world champions and vice-champions. However, it was primarily aimed at the public living in different parts of the United Kingdom: in the fall, Mika Hakkinen and David Coulthard will go on a tour across England, Scotland, and Ireland.

      The tour begins in September, and the Formula 1 veterans, who were teammates at McLaren from 1996 to 2001, plan to share entertaining stories about those glorious days. A total of seven performances are scheduled, the first of which will take place on September 22 in Nottingham.

      But already over the past weekend, they met at the Goodwood Festival of Speed, where Mika drove McLaren cars, and David drove Red Bull machinery, and of course, they spoke with the press. Specifically, Coulthard shared "creative plans" related to the upcoming tour.

      David Coulthard: “Mika and I were teammates for seven years, but even after finishing his career in 2001, he remained a brand ambassador for Mercedes for some time. So, we continued participating together in various events, as we were part of Mercedes’ history, sharing our experiences. A couple of years ago, we even held fan evenings in Denmark.

      The current rise in Formula 1’s popularity gives us confidence that people will want to come and listen to two former drivers who crashed into each other a few times but are now ready to share their stories and discuss matters that are unlikely to make it onto TV or, say, be heard in ordinary circumstances.”

      Duncan is willing to admit that their decision, shared with Mika, was definitely influenced by the success of Gunter Steiner’s similar project—a former Haas F1 boss, now a "free artist," author of books, and working as an expert for several TV channels.

      “I met him at the airport as he was returning from Manchester, where he had another appearance, and he really enjoys that experience!,” Coulthard said. “It seems that the audience is genuinely ready to respond positively to cursing and to very frank conversations!…

      True fans and even people who bought tickets without fully knowing who these two guys on stage are will come to these events. But they do like Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen, and they want to learn something about these drivers.”

      At the same time, Mika Häkkinen, two-time world champion, believes that even motorsport enthusiasts now see Formula 1 differently: “I think fans have also changed and differ from the crowd during our time.

      Earlier, people mostly liked fast and beautiful cars. But now, the documentary series *Drive to Survive* has presented a different picture to them. And they now have questions like: ‘What about Mika and David? What were their relationships like? Did they have any philosophy in their racing lives?’”

      “I believe that when Mika and I made contact in the first corner at Spa (it was in 1999, and Finn’s car was spun around), and I won that race, it was a pretty tough moment, and there was some cooling off in our relationship,” explained Coulthard further. “I remember Mika was not very inclined to talk on the podium. But when you succeed, it can turn into failure for your teammate—and vice versa.

      We didn’t always speak face to face afterward, but that’s racing. Now Mika eagerly looks forward to our tours because, back in the day, we flew in two different private jets, but he hasn’t yet realized that we will have to share one hotel room since our new project has a more modest budget!” (laughs)

      “Overall, it will be an interesting journey!” Mika concluded, then asked, “By the way, is the weather in the UK good in September?”

      During their time racing for McLaren, Mika Häkkinen and David Coulthard achieved 30 wins, and their team won the Constructors’ Cup in 1998.