quoteRaikkonen, Me, Leclerc and the boredom Happy weekend to everyone. Today, like every Friday, I was on Radio 24 for the chat about motorsport. And I was stuck with messages. Topic: Kimi Raikkonen. Why am I so stubborn to defend him? Aaaarrrghhhhh !!!! Aaaaarrrrghhhh !!! I have declared a one-sided moratorium on the subject. I brake the silence now, then I promise I won't talk it anymore. Well, it's such a boring situation. I've really had a heart attack because of the Holy Drinker after Interlagos 2007. But in my life I talked to him twice as much. Mystical experience, though. So there is nothing personal. Zero private interests. Simply, I think Raikkonen is a great driver. I use the verb at the present, not at the past. Telling that Raikkonen, who had two less Gps because of Bottas, is experiencing a disappointing season, well, is curiously bizarre. If in the last five qualifying a "boiled" driver is three times ahead of Vettel, what does it mean? For the record, today at Radio 24 Emerson Fittipaldi said that Kimi is doing a great season. It must be a solidarity between stupid old men. But it's okay, everyone is free to think whatever. I think the same of Seb, when he says everywhere he wishes for another year for Raikkonen at his side. But let's also say that the German is frightened by the arrival of a stronger partner (it's a bullshit, Vettel is not afraid of anyone). Who? Perez, a good team player as McLaren and Force India already know? Hulkenberg, who does not exactly look like the new Schumi? Sainz, who crashed almost in every race? Ricciardo, and I already imagine the face of Seb when they will say him, "ah, you know, you are doing a huge effort to win the worldchampionship with Ferrari but we thought to bring you in the team your old friend in Red Bull"? Rocky Balboa? Apollo Creed? Jeeg Robot? Donald Trump? Rocco Siffredi? About Hamilton and Verstappen, according to my sources, they are not on the market. So Sergio Marchionne will be wise and will do what he prefers. He decides, he and only him, Kimi decides a bit for his part, but the president has the first and last word. If Marchionne, without doubts about Vettel, puts on the second Red the young Leclerc, I bow and applaud. It would make sense, it would be a bet on the future, a logical investment. Replacing Raikkonen with the potential ace of tomorrow can be a right move. On the other hand, always in the name of solidarity between stupid old men, I would not understand. But it is not important that I understand, eh. Still, a good weekend.
quoteRalf Schumacher on Kimi Raikkonen and Ferrari’s line-up for 2018 Ralf Schumacher raced against Kimi Raikkonen in his own F1 career
German former racing driver Ralf Schumacher, the younger brother of seven-time Formula One World Champion Michael Schumacher, can imagine Scuderia Ferrari deciding to keep Finnish driver Kimi Raikkonen on board for the 2018 Formula One season and adds that the Maranello team should in fact do everything possible to keep Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen as the driver line-up for next year given their talent and abilities, but also their good friendship.
While for the moment the Italian side is not ready to commit to the Finn for 2018, there are reports suggesting that German driver Sebastian Vettel is close to signing a new contract and as part of the deal he wants the 37-year-old Finnish driver to continue with Ferrari, making this a condition of his own contract extension beyond this Formula One season.
Ralf Schumacher raced against Kimi Raikkonen in his own F1 career and told Finland’s Ilta Sanomat: “In terms of talent I think Kimi is brilliant. He is already a world champion but is certainly able to achieve more. When you take into account his age, he is doing a great job. I think Ferrari has been smart to keep him as a driver. This year he has a good car, but Sebastian Vettel has been stronger. I think it’s ideal for Sebastian, but Kimi is still able to win races. We will see what happens next season.” – the German former racing driver explained, while overseeing his kart team in Finland, as reported on Monday by Ilta-Sanomat, one of Finland’s two prominent tabloid size evening newspaper and the second largest paper in the country.
Ralf Schumacher also admitted that he is currently enjoying watching Formula 1 as a spectator this year: “It has to be said that Formula One has become very interesting now that Ferrari and Mercedes are fighting each other. I think Mercedes are still stronger in terms of competitiveness, especially in qualifying, and this gives them an advantage each time, because Ferrari are forced to take risks at the start in order to try to overtake their rivals and then use the entire potential of the their car. Ferrari have a good race pace but have to stay out of trouble and not lose time in traffic in order to be able to challenge Mercedes.” – the former Williams driver concluded.
quoteF1i exclusive: Eric Boullier rates his F1 drivers
McLaren racing director Eric Boullier has worked with a dozen drivers in F1, getting up close and personal with a few high profile names such as Fernando Alonso, Jenson Button or Kimi Raikkonen. F1i asked the Frenchman to give us his assessment of the prominent racers he encountered and managed.
Across his eight-year tenure in Formula 1, which started at Lotus in 2010, McLaren's Eric Boullier has enjoyed a privileged vantage point from which to observe a diversity of drivers in his realm.
As a man held in high esteem by all who have worked with him and by his peers, Boullier's appraisal is sought and valued.
He gives F1i his insight and review of the talented men he has managed and supported, a list which includes Fernando Alonso, Jenson Button, Stoffel Vandoorne, Kimi Raikkonen, Romain Grosjean and Robert Kubica.
“There is no specific rule when it comes to building a rapport with your drivers as a team principal,” Boullier told F1i.
“Personally, I let the Alonsos and Raikkonens do their own thing. I set out a frame, a limit where I step in. For the rest, they are free to live their own life. That way, they don’t feel like they are being watched all the time.
“With drivers like Romain [Grosjean] or Stoffel [Vandoorne], the relationship is tighter. I want to be close so I am aware of what is happening exactly since it’s easier for younger drivers to go off the right route because of little details.
“All grand prix drivers are both fast and professional. They know precisely where they are headed and as such can focus on what is essential.”
Still, what makes some drivers special? That’s what we tried to find out when asking the McLaren-Honda racing director to describe some of the racers he has worked with across the years, listed below in alphabetical order.
KIMI RÄIKKÖNEN
“Kimi is quite a special case [laughs]! His driving style is similar to Jenson’s in that he is very gentle with the tyres, very smooth, almost phlegmatic. He brakes earlier and in a gentle manner while carrying more speed through the corners, which is not what Nordic drivers usually do.
“Kimi’s greatest asset though remains his racecraft. He can read a race as if he had a GPS in his mind. I remember the 2012 Hungarian Grand Prix. He had started P5 and was quite slow and already 9s behind Hamilton who was leading the race. I asked him over the radio why he was not picking up the pace when he could have gone much faster. I did not get any answer, you know how Kimi is, ‘leave me alone’ and everything.
“The entire strategy was just unfolding live in his head, looking at the data, gaps, and screens: I’ve never seen anything like this.”
“All of a sudden, he started banging laps that were 1.5s quicker all the while keeping a 2s gap to Hamilton. We could not grasp what was happening. That’s only when he pitted that we understood his strategy: he was leapfrogging Romain [who had started from the front row alongside Hamilton]. Kimi’s plan worked to perfection and he came home in second place. The entire strategy was just unfolding live in his head, looking at the data, gaps, and screens: I’ve never seen anything like this.
“Kimi is a more sensitive guy than what he looks like from the outside. That would be a mistake to think otherwise. A good example of the difference between who he really is and what he wants to show the world is his 2012 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix victory. On his in lap after crossing the line, he was warm, even emotional in his thanks to the team over the radio. Then, as soon as he stepped out of the car, the ‘Iceman’ was back. Of course, that’s part of his personality but it’s also a form of protection.”
Ferrari have announced that Kimi Raikkonen is to remain with the team for another year, and will race for them until the end of the 2018 FIA Formula One World Championship.
It will be Raikkonen’s fifth consecutive season with the Italian squad, whom he rejoined for their 2014 campaign, having previously raced for them between 2007 and 2009, winning the world title in his first year with the Scuderia.
It means the Finn’s driver partnership with Sebastian Vettel will continue for a fourth season, assuming Vettel also stays on with Ferrari for 2018 – something considered highly likely, especially in light of Raikkonen being retained.
The pair have formed a strong bond at Maranello, and though it is Vettel currently leading the drivers’ championship, Raikkonen has also been very much on form of late, finishing on the podium at the last two rounds.
Despite his recent upswing in performance, however, Raikkonen has not won for Ferrari during his current stint with the team, his last victory in red coming at the 2009 Belgian Grand Prix.
In total, nine of his 20 F1 career victories have been with Ferrari. He won another nine with McLaren early in his career, and two with Lotus in 2012-13.
Raikkonen's 122 starts for the Prancing Horse, meanwhile, place him third on the team's all-time list, behind only Michael Schumacher (179) and Felipe Massa (139).
quoteKimi Raikkonen comments on new Ferrari deal for 2018 Kimi says he is happy to continue with Ferrari
Scuderia Ferrari Kimi Raikkonen says he is happy with the one-year extension of his contract with the Maranello team, as he considers his Formula One future “one season at a time”. The Finn’s resigning, which was announced yesterday, was widely expected and it was predicted earlier this month that the Italian outfit would likely extend its collaboration with the Finn for a fifth consecutive season. The deal had actually been agreed to by both parties for some time, as the 2007 Formula One world champions recently admitted, adding that negotiations were quick and simple, given the fact that his enjoyment with the Maranello team made it an easy decision for him to continue for at least one more year:
“We started discussing it at a late stage and quickly agreed. It did not take long to think about it. I have known about it for some time but only now read it in the newspaper.” – Kimi Raikkonen said at a sponsor event in Helsinki on Tuesday.
It is believed that Kimi Raikkonen’s current deal is a precursor to Scuderia Ferrari also retaining its de-facto ‘number 1’ driver Sebastian Vettel for the 2018 Formula One championship, as news regarding the German driver’s future with the Italian team are set to be revealed next week at Monza: “I would not have signed it if I was not enjoying it and I did not have a good cooperation with the team and all the people.” – the Finnish driver added, as reported on Wednesday by Italian national sports newspaper based in Rome Corriere dello Sport.
The 2007 Formula One world champion insisted the fact that the new contract with Scuderia Ferrari will be available for only one season is of no importance and would have no bearing on his focus for the remainder of the current F1 championship: “At this point it is good to take one season at a time.” – the 37-year-old Finn said – “It does not matter one way or another if there is another contract or not. I always try my best. Probably in a month’s time they will begin speculating about the next one.” – Scuderia Ferrari’s Finnish driver concluded.
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Wed May 17, 2017 12:35 am
All the best growing family Räikkönen 
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Bradamante 
Great news 
