Häkkinen was born in Helsingin maalaiskunta (now Vantaa), Finland on 28 September 1968 to Harri, a shortwave radio operator and a part-time taxi driver, and Aila Häkkinen, who worked as a secretary.
Häkkinen grew up with one sister, Nina, who ran a fan site for her brother until its closure in 1998.
As a child, Häkkinen lived in the same street as Mika Salo with the two later becoming friends.
As a child, Häkkinen played ice hockey and football.

When Häkkinen was five years old, his parents rented a go-kart for him to take to a track near their home.
On his first lap, Häkkinen was involved in an accident but he escaped unhurt.
Despite this crash, Häkkinen wished to continue racing and after persistently annoying his parents, the young Finn got his wish fulfilled.
His father bought Häkkinen his first go-kart, one that Henri Toivonen had previously competed with.
He later won his first karting race in 1975 at the Keimola Motor Stadium where he raced in the regional karting championships in 1978 and 1979, winning the Keimola Club Championship in both years.
Häkkinen found further success in 1980 when he won the Swedish Lapland Cup and finished fourth in the 85cc class of the Lapland Karting Championship.
Around this time, Häkkinen also drove a Volkswagen Beetle on the frozen lakes of Finland with friend Mika Sohlberg.

In 1981, Häkkinen driving for the Blue Rose karting team won his first major karting title, the 85cc class of the Finnish Karting Championship.
The following year, he finished the runner-up in the 85cc class of the Formula Mini series and later won the Ronnie Peterson Memorial event and the Salpauselka Cup in Lahti.
Häkkinen moved to the Formula Nordic 100cc class for 1983, where he became the champion on his first attempt and also participated in the A Junior Team Races for Finland alongside Taru Rinne, Jaane Nyman and Marko Mankonen, with the line-up taking the championship.

For 1984, Häkkinen won the 100cc Formula Nordic title and later participated in the World Kart Championship race held in Liedolsheim.
Häkkinen took his second consecutive 100cc Formula Nordic Championship in 1985 ahead of Jukka Savolainen.
He later took part in the Nordic Championship A-Class in that same year, finishing runner-up to Tom Kristensen.
Häkkinen went to Parma to participate in the World Kart Championship where he retired before the event's final heat due to a mechanical problem.
In 1986, he reached his third consecutive Formula Nordic 100cc title and also took part in karting events across Europe.
To further fund his career, Häkkinen got a job with a friend repairing bicycles.

In 1987, Häkkinen made the transition from karting to car racing when he purchased a 1986 Reynard Formula Ford 1600 from fellow countryman JJ Lehto.
In that year, he entered the Finnish, Swedish and Nordic Formula Ford Championships, winning each title on his first attempt and won nine races combined.
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.
In 1988, Häkkinen entered the EFDA Formula GM Lotus Euroseries with the Dragon team, where he secured four victories and finished the runner-up in the championship, behind Allan McNish.
He later entered the Opel-Lotus EDFA Euroseries, taking four victories and became Champion 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 secured seventh position in the championship, scoring 18 points.
He was later invited to participate in the Cellnet Formula Three SuperPrix for West Surrey Racing as a guest driver where he secured pole position and the victory.
He also raced in the tenth round of the French Formula 3 championship at Le Mans-Bugatti on September 24 and finished third behind Éric Hélary and Laurent Daumet.

In 1990, Häkkinen applied to become a member of the "Marlboro World Championship Team" through what was akin to a fully sponsored racing driver a
Häkkinen was born in Helsingin maalaiskunta (now Vantaa), Finland on 28 September 1968 to Harri, a shortwave radio operator and a part-time taxi driver, and Aila Häkkinen, who worked as a secretary. Häkkinen grew up with one sister, Nina, who ran a fan site for her brother until its closure in 1998. As a child, Häkkinen lived in the same street as Mika Salo with the two later becoming friends. As a child, Häkkinen played ice hockey and football.
When Häkkinen was five years old, his parents rented a go-kart for him to take to a track near their home. On his first lap, Häkkinen was involved in an accident but he escaped unhurt. Despite this crash, Häkkinen wished to continue racing and after persistently annoying his parents, the young Finn got his wish fulfilled. His father bought Häkkinen his first go-kart, one that Henri Toivonen had previously competed with. He later won his first karting race in 1975 at the Keimola Motor Stadium where he raced in the regional karting championships in 1978 and 1979, winning the Keimola Club Championship in both years. Häkkinen found further success in 1980 when he won the Swedish Lapland Cup and finished fourth in the 85cc class of the Lapland Karting Championship. Around this time, Häkkinen also drove a Volkswagen Beetle on the frozen lakes of Finland with friend Mika Sohlberg.
In 1981, Häkkinen driving for the Blue Rose karting team won his first major karting title, the 85cc class of the Finnish Karting Championship. The following year, he finished the runner-up in the 85cc class of the Formula Mini series and later won the Ronnie Peterson Memorial event and the Salpauselka Cup in Lahti. Häkkinen moved to the Formula Nordic 100cc class for 1983, where he became the champion on his first attempt and also participated in the A Junior Team Races for Finland alongside Taru Rinne, Jaane Nyman and Marko Mankonen, with the line-up taking the championship.
For 1984, Häkkinen won the 100cc Formula Nordic title and later participated in the World Kart Championship race held in Liedolsheim. Häkkinen took his second consecutive 100cc Formula Nordic Championship in 1985 ahead of Jukka Savolainen. He later took part in the Nordic Championship A-Class in that same year, finishing runner-up to Tom Kristensen. Häkkinen went to Parma to participate in the World Kart Championship where he retired before the event's final heat due to a mechanical problem. In 1986, he reached his third consecutive Formula Nordic 100cc title and also took part in karting events across Europe. To further fund his career, Häkkinen got a job with a friend repairing bicycles.
In 1987, Häkkinen made the transition from karting to car racing when he purchased a 1986 Reynard Formula Ford 1600 from fellow countryman JJ Lehto. In that year, he entered the Finnish, Swedish and Nordic Formula Ford Championships, winning each title on his first attempt and won nine races combined. 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. In 1988, Häkkinen entered the EFDA Formula GM Lotus Euroseries with the Dragon team, where he secured four victories and finished the runner-up in the championship, behind Allan McNish. He later entered the Opel-Lotus EDFA Euroseries, taking four victories and became Champion 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 secured seventh position in the championship, scoring 18 points. He was later invited to participate in the Cellnet Formula Three SuperPrix for West Surrey Racing as a guest driver where he secured pole position and the victory. He also raced in the tenth round of the French Formula 3 championship at Le Mans-Bugatti on September 24 and finished third behind Éric Hélary and Laurent Daumet.
In 1990, Häkkinen applied to become a member of the "Marlboro World Championship Team" through what was akin to a fully sponsored racing driver a
Mika Häkkinen