Paavo Laakkonen

Paavo Laakkonen
Laakkonen in 2011
Nationality	Valkean
Born	(1979-11-05) November 5, 1979 Novika, Suurilaakso, Valkea
Astyrian Formula One Championship
Years active	2001-2013
Teams	Garlan, MacGregor, Sidus
Championship titles
2007, 2012	AstyF1 Drivers' Champion
Astyrian Rally Championship
Years active	2014-2016
Teams	Hedlund Motorsport
Valkean GT Championship
Years active	2017-Present
Teams	< team 1 >, Comet Motorsport

Paavo Laakkonen (born 5 November 1979) is a Valkean racing driver who competed in Astyrian Formula One from 2001 to 2013. He won the Drivers' Championship for Sidus in 2007 and 2012. After his F1 career, he joined the Astyrian Rally Championship as a driver for Hedlund Motorsport from 2014 to 2016, and the Valkean GT championship for < team > in 2017 and for Comet Motorsport since 2018.

Laakkonen first entered Astyrian F1 in 2001, joining the Garlan team for the 2001 and 2002 seasons. He then drove for MacGregor from 2003 to 2005, and became a title contender in 2005 behind Raamaker driver Max de Ruyter. Laakkonen's seasons with MacGregor were marred with unreliability problems, prompting him to move to the revived Sidus F1 Team. This change meant he became the Drivers' Champion for the 2007 Formula One season.

Early and personal life

Laakkonen was born in Novika, Suurilaakso, Valkea to a middle-class family. His father worked as an entrepreneur and his mother was a schoolteacher. He was described by his teachers and his classmates to be a shy and nonchalant individual. His interest in cars began at the age of eight, when he went with his father to a local karting race in Novika. Soon after, Laakkonen pleaded with his father to buy him a go-kart, which the latter resisted until his son was ten.