Kimi Raikkonen has reiterated his belief that it would be a waste of time to sign for any team other than McLaren next season, explaining he is only interested in fighting for the title in 2010.

Although talks between the Finn and McLaren appear to have stalled over financial terms and other contractual issues, like the number of sponsor appearances, Raikkonen has made it clear he is not interested in signing for anybody else.

"There is no point to go to other teams where you cannot win," said Raikkonen, who has also had an offer from Toyota. "They [McLaren] are the only team that can offer you a good car to be in a position to fight for the championship."

McLaren has been linked with Jenson Button and Nick Heidfeld in recent days, but it is believed that Raikkonen is still top of its list of candidates to partner Lewis Hamilton next year.

Rumours linking other drivers with the team certainly do McLaren little harm in showing Raikkonen that the team has plenty of other options for next year if the Finn is not willing to bring down his financial demands.

Raikkonen's decision to either do a deal with McLaren or potentially take a sabbatical from F1 next season means that Toyota will now have to look elsewhere for a lead driver next year.

The Japanese manufacturer had hoped to do a deal with Robert Kubica before the Pole committed to Renault, and it subsequently set its sights on Raikkonen - who now also appears to have rejected its overtures.

Toyota F1 president John Howett said that Raikkonen's decision meant the team was now clear on what it was going to do - although he would not elaborate on what that plan was.

"We tried to get Robert but he decided that Renault was more interesting," Howett told AUTOSPORT. "We are interested in Kimi although he has indicated that we hadn't had contact and he is only interested in McLaren. Obviously from our side, if that is the situation it is fairly clear in which direction we want to go in.

"Even two or three years ago we indicated that we would like Kimi and, if he was available, we would be interested. We've put forward what we felt was an offer that we could sustain regardless of the budget situation, and so far it was obviously not appealing enough. So fine."

via Autosport.com

Kimi Raikkonen (12th):
“We knew we did not have a car that was competitive here. It was definitely not a good weekend, but I don’t think any of us have anything to reproach ourselves for. We did the most we could with the package we hard. At the start, the track was a bit slippery and that cost me a place to Kobayashi, who was very quick today. Then, when the two Brawns were back ahead of me, after their first pit stop, our race was definitely compromised and a points finish became impossible. It’s a shame to end my time with Ferrari with this result, but this year we have never been in a position to fight for the win at every race, as I would have wished.”

Kimi Raikkonen (11th, Q2 - 1m 40.726s):
“Today we got the most out of the car, but we did not have the necessary performance to make it into Q3. Already yesterday, we realized that it would be tough, so this result is definitely not a surprise. Tomorrow, we will try to do our best, but it’s certainly not going to be an easy race, even though we should definitely be more competitive in the race than in qualifying. What I can say is that eleventh place is better than tenth, given that I will start from the clean side of the track and can choose the ideal fuel load. It will be hard to get third in the constructors’, because the McLaren is very competitive. We will have to try and get some points and hope for a bit of luck.”

Position Driver Constructor  Time
1. Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes (B) 1h56:06.337
2. Glock Toyota (B) + 9.634
3. Alonso Renault (B) + 16.624
4. Vettel Red Bull-Renault (B) + 20.261
5. Button Brawn-Mercedes (B) + 30.015
6. Barrichello Brawn-Mercedes (B) + 31.858
7. Kovalainen McLaren-Mercedes (B) + 36.157
8. Kubica BMW Sauber (B) + 55.054
9. Nakajima Williams-Toyota (B) + 56.054
10. Raikkonen Ferrari (B) + 58.892
11. Rosberg Williams-Toyota (B) + 59.777
12. Trulli Toyota (B) + 1:13.009
13. Fisichella Ferrari (B) + 1:19.890
14. Liuzzi Force India-Mercedes (B) + 1:33.502

After three years at Ferrari, this weekend’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix will be Kimi Raikkonen’s final race for the Italian team. And with Ferrari just one point adrift of long-term rivals McLaren in this season’s constructors’ championship, Raikkonen wants to end his time at Maranello on a high at the Yas Marina Circuit.

“The race in Abu Dhabi will be my last Grand Prix with Ferrari and as usual I will give it everything to gain the best possible result,” the Finn told Ferrari’s official website. “We’ll try to conclude this difficult year with a good result, hoping that it will be enough to gain the third place in the constructors’ championship McLaren took over in Brazil.”

While the British team have been busy bringing new parts for the MP4-24 to every race, Ferrari halted development work on the F60 three months ago to focus on their 2010 car. Despite this, and the fact that it will be the first time he (and the 19 other drivers) race in Abu Dhabi, Raikkonen is optimistic he can enjoy a good result.

“It will be difficult,” he explained. “Our direct competitors are still improving their car, while we have been using the same car since the race in Hungary at the end of July. There are many expectations as far as the Yas Marina circuit is concerned, but it’s difficult making any predictions, because we’re racing there for the first time. Let’s hope we can conclude the season with something nice to be remembered!”

Raikkonen’s Ferrari seat will be occupied by current Renault driver Fernando Alonso next season, while the Finn is yet to reveal his own plans for 2010.

via http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2009/10/10139.html

Kimi Raikkonen reckons Ferrari would have had a much stronger Interlagos qualifying session had the weather not improved.

The Finn ended up fifth on the grid, but had been second in Q1, when the weather was at its worst.

Raikkonen felt the car was less competitive when the field switched to intermediate tyres following the long stoppage in the middle of the session.

"With the inters the car is not so easy as with full wet tyres," he said. "If it stayed in full wet condition then probably we would have been in a better position.

"Hopefully tomorrow we can fight for a podium. We know the car is missing grip, but I am happy because it is a good position."

Ferrari boss Stefano Domenicali added that the team cannot get complacent about its chances in the battle for third in the constructors' championship despite main rival McLaren's disastrous session.

Kimi Raikkonen concedes Ferrari is in for a difficult Brazilian Grand Prix after struggling for pace in practice on Friday.

The Finn finished down in 18th position in the second session, with team-mate Giancarlo Fisichella completing a poor day for the Italian squad by setting the slowest time.

Both Raikkonen and Fisichella admitted they were struggling with their cars in the second sector.

"I'd say this Friday was not too different to others we have experienced this season, especially in recent races," said Raikkonen. "It's all very close so it will only take a small step forward to climb back up the order, but we are definitely facing a difficult weekend.

"The tyres suffered with a bit of graining, which made itself felt especially in the second sector, but I believe that, as often happens here, once the track rubbers in, the situation will improve."

via Autosport.com

Kimi Raikkonen believes it will be hard for Ferrari to keep third place in the championship despite his fourth position at the Japanese Grand Prix.

The Finn enjoyed a strong race to finish behind McLaren rival Lewis Hamilton, whose team is now just two points behind Ferrari with two races left.

Raikkonen admitted he was comfortable with his car today, but claimed it was lacking speed to beat Hamilton.

"Today the car wasn't bad, but it was not quick enough to fight for the podium," said Raikkonen. "This fourth place is useful in terms of keeping the team in third place in the Constructors' Championship, but it will be hard to hang onto it over the final two races. I will definitely do everything I can though.

"I was unable to make up places at the start, especially as the first corner is not that far from the start line and so I was unable to make the most of the KERS.

"In the first stint, when I was on hard tyres, the situation was a bit difficult, but then, once on the softs, things improved considerably.

"I managed to close on Heidfeld and pass him at the pit stop, even though, coming away from my stop, I found myself in traffic behind Button. Then there was not much to fight for to the end of the race."

via Autosport.com

Kimi Raikkonen (8th, Q3 - 1m 32.980s):
“I don’t think we could have expected much more today. We know what our potential is and we have to accept that. Here, the situation is definitely better than in Singapore, but we continue to struggle, especially with a lack of aerodynamic downforce, which makes itself felt especially in the first sector. Overall, the car is working well and it’s nice to drive on such a demanding track as this, where the slightest error is heavily punished, as we saw today. It’s a shame I didn’t have new soft tyres for Q3, but we had to use them earlier to avoid being knocked out: all in all it was a good qualifying. Tomorrow, we will try and have a good race: it will be difficult to fight for the top spots, but we will try and we can count on having a good strategy.”

Following news that he is to part company with Ferrari at the end of the season, Kimi Raikkonen has spoken of his sadness at leaving the Italian team. Raikkonen’s place at Ferrari will be taken by current Renault driver Fernando Alonso, who will join Felipe Massa and reserve driver Giancarlo Fisichella.

Raikkonen has been with Ferrari since joining from McLaren in 2007. That season he clinched the drivers’ title and over his three years at the team has taken nine race victories, five pole positions and 225 world championship points.

“With common consent, we have agreed to terminate the contract binding me to Ferrari to the end of 2010, one year ahead of schedule,” said the Finn. “I am very sad to be leaving a team with which I have spent three fantastic years, during which time I won plenty of races.

“Together, we have won 50 percent of the world titles in that period and I managed to take the drivers’ title in 2007, thus achieving the target I had set myself at the start of my career. I have always felt at home with everyone here and I will have many happy memories of my time with the team.”

Paying tribute to Raikkonen, Ferrari team principal Stefano Domenicali commented: “Of course, we wish to thank Kimi for everything he has done during his time with Ferrari: in his first year with us, he managed to win the drivers’ title, thus making his contribution to Ferrari’s history and he played a vital role in our taking of the constructors’ title in 2007 and 2008.

“Even during a difficult season like this one, he has demonstrated his great talent, with several good results, including a great win in Spa and we are sure that we can share more good times together in the final three races of this season.”

Raikkonen, 29, has yet to reveal his plans for 2010.

Ferrari’s Kimi Raikkonen is back. The slow start to his 2009 campaign seems but a distant memory, and having taken four consecutive podiums, including an excellent win at August’s Belgian Grand Prix, Raikkonen is looking perkier than he has in a long time. But we’ll have to wait and see what the season’s four remaining races - and 2010 - have in store for the Finn…

Q: Kimi, towards the end of the season Ferrari are enjoying a successful streak. Why did it take so long and how frustrating was it to see the Brawns and Red Bulls win races, while you were sidelined in an uncompetitive car?
Kimi Raikkonen: Well, we weren’t in the right position at the beginning of the year, and we still don’t have the fastest car, but I think we’ve got the maximum out of the car. The people who are in front probably haven’t made any mistakes. What we need to improve? More downforce. Otherwise the car is pretty good. Downforce is what’s missing. When we achieve that, the car will be very fast.


Q: After taking victory in Belgium, at Monza you seemed to have your old fire back. How important was your win in Spa to you?
KR: One win doesn’t change my life. Does it make life easier when you win? I don’t think so. But it is always nice to win, even though the next race is the same old challenge again. If you win that’s nice, but people will forget that very fast. Many times it only takes one race and then people don’t remember that you’ve won. It was a good result for me and it was much welcomed in the team after the season so far.


Q: But didn’t winning help remind you that you haven’t lost it?
KR: No, I’ve never had doubts in that respect. You never lose that certain touch of how to drive a car. It was just a difficult 2009 season. But now we’ve proved that we can win. I think all these questions are more in the head of the people outside. It’s not about me or anybody in the team. And if you found me a bit more happy in Monza, believe me, there are many other reasons to feel happy than a race win.


Q: For a while you gave the impression that you could imagine more exciting places to be than a paddock on a race weekend. Are you friends again with Formula One racing?
KR: I think there are still more exciting places. Racing is the nicest thing in the paddock, and I am pretty sure that you wouldn’t see many drivers in the paddock if it wasn’t for racing. Take the racing out and I doubt that you would find any driver here. Racing is the main thing.


Q: You worked hard at the rally in Finland over the summer break. Could rallying be your future? KR: I like it and I think it is a great sport, and good fun also. It is completely different to Formula One even though it is still driving. It might happen in the future, or it might not. But for sure I want to do more rallying, at least for fun. I will try to do it whenever I have the chance and it does not conflict with my other things. I think it is a great practice for Formula One and it gives me a good feeling.


Q: Ferrari have had their share of unlucky moments this season with a difficult car, a driver accident and now with a second reserve driver. How much has that upset the routine of the team?
KR: For sure it hasn’t been the easiest year for us, and it’s unfortunate that it’s happened, but we are getting back to where we should be. Sometimes times are difficult but then you have to make sure that you put all strength into getting back to where you belong. Sometimes in hard times you see what people are made off. That’s the good thing, as we are improving with every race.


Q: It’s common knowledge that you have a contract with Ferrari for 2010, but it seems the team have three drivers and only two cockpits. Are you interested in a drive? Will Ferrari have to make a decision by getting you all to play a round of musical chairs?
KR: I always can only repeat that I have a contract - and that has not changed. If they want to talk with me, we need to sit down to talk. I am fully committed, as otherwise I would not have signed the contract in the first place. Musical chairs… that would be a funny idea!


Q: The FIA found Renault guilty of deliberately causing an accident at last year’s Singapore Grand Prix. What do you make of that? Are drivers that vulnerable to the influence of their management?
Well, it doesn’t matter what you do, some people are easier to be manoeuvred into something than others. That has nothing to do with Formula One. And a person with little experience is always more vulnerable than somebody who has seen it all. I would say that what happened is part of life and can happen everywhere.


Q: Ferrari were a bit unlucky at last year’s night race. Are you ready for another go, with a better result?
RK: Ha, it shouldn’t be too difficult to have a better result than last year. Hopefully we manage to do it. There should be some points in it for us. A podium would be great but we will only know that tomorrow after hitting the track.


Q: Who is your favourite for the title, and why?
KR: I don’t really care who wins. We cannot win, so for me whoever wins deserves it. For me Jenson (Button) is in the strongest position and I think it would be difficult for him to lose it.

via Formula1.com

Kimi Raikkonen says he will be looking to take full advantage of Ferrari’s Kinetic Energy Recovery System to make up places off the grid in this afternoon’s European Grand Prix.

The Finn will start from sixth place after a strong qualifying performance, and should be able to use the extra 80bhp KERS boost to move up the order on the first lap.

Given the difficulty of overtaking on the Valencia street circuit, which is dusty off-line, Raikkonen reckons it will be even more important than usual to make a good getaway.

“Our final result will depend basically on how the start goes,” he said.

“It will be very important to make up a few places, because if we end up behind a slower car, then the race is compromised.”

Raikkonen has been pleased with his car’s handling this weekend and believes he is in with a shout of a podium finish.

more at http://www.itv-f1.com/news_article.aspx?id=46658

With just 26 points and one podium after eight races, Ferrari have endured a difficult first half of the season and are 65 points shy of where they were this time last year. For driver Kimi Raikkonen the time has come to admit a win will be highly unlikely at this weekend's German Grand Prix and a podium finish will be his real target.

“Realistically this year our objective can’t be a win,” said Raikkonen on Ferrari’s official website. “We still have to make up ground compared to the leaders as far as performance is concerned. It’s always difficult making predictions and promising something to the fans, but for us today a place on the podium is already a good result, considering that we’ve been there just once this year.

“There are still nine races until the end of this extremely difficult season for us. Our objective has to be to give it our all race after race, without thinking that the leaders are so many points ahead of us. I really trust the team’s work and its capacity to close the gap between us and the leaders.”

At the previous round, June’s British Grand Prix, the Finn qualified in ninth and finished one place higher in eighth to score a point. But after crossing the line over a minute down on the victorious Red Bull of Sebastian Vettel, the Italian team had little reason to celebrate and have been back at their Maranello factory seeking to improve the errant F60 ahead of this weekend’s German event.

“The team has continued to work very hard over the last weeks to bring some new solutions to this race,” Raikkonen continued. “The track should be better for the F60’s characteristics than Silverstone, but we’ll get a clearer picture during Friday’s free practice sessions. To be competitive you need a car with good traction, which is very stable while braking.”

While his faith in his car’s suitability for the Nurburgring may prove well founded, Raikkonen’s record in Germany leaves a lot to be desired. Despite scoring pole on four occasions, he has never won on German soil, and with his declared objectives for this weekend's race, it doesn't look like he will remedy this in 2009.

Ferrari has dropped a firm hint that it will soon switch its focus on to the 2010 car, with its current F60 having failed to prove a match for the race-winning Brawn and Red Bull Racing cars.

With Felipe Massa and Kimi Raikkonen having scored just one podium finish so far this year, the team has little chance of turning its fortunes around in time to battle for the title.

And that is why Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo has suggested that the team will soon start shifting its efforts on to making sure that it gets its 2010 car spot on.

"I am confident we can improve our performance in the next races, but having said that it is quite difficult if not impossible really to dramatically change the car during the season without tests," di Montezemolo told the official Ferrari website.

via Autosport.com

We had some pretty interesting improvements on the F60 at Silverstone, such as an improved front suspension and a new front wing. On such a fast track it was important to understand how much downforce we could have: we can say for sure that the car wasn't bad in terms of the set up, but we're still missing downforce to be able to compete with the leaders. Having said that, the developments go in the right direction.
The qualifying seemed very promising. I was very happy with my lap in Q2, but then, when I had refueled the car didn't go as good anymore. Starting from the fifth row my goal was to gain some points. This time I had a good start: the main straight is quite long, but it wasn't enough to pass Nakajima. I came on the grass and then I was on fifth position, impossible to gain more, because my first stint was too short. I couldn't overtake: in the fast corners at Silverstone it's very difficult to stay behind the car in front of you, especially when you have less fuel on board than the first ten cars on the grid. So I had a difficult race. In the end I gained one point. Better than nothing, but still a poor result. We are on position four in the Constructors' Championship and I think that this is our current value. We're out there fighting for third position, but the two teams on the top are still ahead of us in terms of performance.

After Silverstone we have two whole weeks to get ready as good as possible for the last two races before the summer break. The first of these two races is at the Nuerburgring. We'll get there with some improvements. It's a track with more slow corners and more braking points than the English circuit. We have to be more competitive, but it will also depend from the improvements the others can make. As usual.
I want to congratulate Sebastian for his great race. If the Brawns had some problems we could benefit: the next circuit is very different from Silverstone. We'll see how things go before we make any conclusions.

via Ferrari.com

Former world champion Kimi Raikkonen on Friday blamed the dramatic schism and fallout in Formula One on warring egos.

The 29-year-old Finn, who won the world title in 2007, said that he believed that the Formula One Teams Organisation (FOTA) and the ruling body the International Motoring Federation (FIA) had lost sight of the real issues.

Ferrari ace Raikkonen said: "This is nothing to do with sport anymore, it's more politics and more about egos fighting against each other.

"It's not really about Formula One anymore. It's about who is going to win and who is going to lose. It's sad, but that's how it is, and we'll just see what happens."

Without mentioning names, Raikkonen appeared to support the belief that the split in the sport boiled down to a direct power struggle between FIA president Max Mosley and several individual teams and team chiefs.

In essence, it came down to a simple question: who owns and runs this sport?

Mosley, once a team owner himself with March, has worked for decades in tandem with another former team owner Bernie Ecclestone, once of Brabham, to exercise total control over Formula One?s rules, structure, commercial activity and calendar.

Now that many of the teams are owned by major automotive manufacturers such as Mercedes, BMW, Toyota and Renault, the once-acceptable dictatorial style of management offered by the FIA has been rejected.

The teams want to have rights of their own and run their own sports-business, in much the same way as several other major sports have seen the creation of elite competitions for the elite competitors.

Raikkonen added: "Of course it's sad to see. I don't know what will happen or where we are going to race, but let's finish this year then we will know more about next year."

The Finn confirmed that he, like Fernando Alonso of Renault, and most other top drivers, would follow his team out of Formula One in order to continue racing at the top level against the best teams and drivers.

"For sure we want to have the best drivers and the best teams in the same championship. That's really what Formula One is all about. For sure, next year we are going to race somewhere, but I don't know where."

via AFP

Kimi Raikkonen: “I got a good start, but then I was unable to push as much as I could have done because I was always in traffic. Obviously, my grid position, given my fuel load, penalised me in terms of strategy. After the first run of pit stops, I found myself right behind Trulli and from then on, my race was pretty much over. I tried to pass him getting very close sometimes, but it wasn’t really on as overtaking is still very difficult. I ended up fighting with Glock but I could defend my position comfortably, both thanks to the KERS and to the fact that I actually had quite a good pace. It’s a shame, because given where I was at the end of the first lap, I could have got a better result. A single point is definitely nothing to get excited about, but it’s better than nothing. The car wasn’t bad today, much better than it had been in qualifying yesterday.”

Chris Dyer: “We got the most out of a weekend that was definitely not brilliant in terms of performance. Both our drivers had great starts, getting the most of out the KERS. Then Felipe picked up a good pace that, along with the strategy, allowed him to move up quite a few places. As for Kimi, he was slowed by traffic and the key moment in his race was when Trulli came out on track ahead of him when he made his first pit stop. He was unable to pass him on the track and then, during the run of pit stops, other drivers were able to get ahead of him. Yesterday, we were rather disappointed both with our result and with our performance, but today things were definitely better: however, we have to admit there is still a great deal of work to do to be competitive at the highest level, which is where we want to be.”

Kimi Raikkonen says he did the best possible job in qualifying for the British Grand Prix, as his Ferrari team struggled to make an impression.

The former world champion qualified in ninth place, while team-mate Felipe Massa finished down in 11th.

Raikkonen believes he actually put on a good performance, but said his car was simple not fast enough.

"I didn't have much expectations, I didn't know exactly where we are, so overall I think we did as good a job as we could in the qualifying," said Raikkonen.

"Unfortunately the car is more or less where we are now. We did nothing wrong, we couldn't really go much faster."

The Finn reckons his team has continued to improve in the last few races, but he feels its rivals have taken bigger steps forward.

"We try to do the best that we can in every race. For sure is more fun to fight for first place but that's not happening right now. We are where we are and still pushing forward and trying to improve all the time.

"Sometimes the races can be exciting when you are fighting in the middle of the field, but for sure we would prefer to be in front.

"We have improved the time all the times, but the other teams have improved it even more. We are improving all the time but other people do not stop improving."

Raikkonen also claimed he did not believe he had distracted Red Bull Mark Webber, after the Australian was critical of the Finn for being in the racing line during his final flying lap.

"I tried to lose to the side as much as I could, so I don't think he lost any time," Raikkonen said.

via Autosport.com

There’s always lots of wind at Silverstone and it often rains, even in the summer. The track conditions are changing extremely quickly so that it’s difficult to find the right set up for the car. Usually, when you’re leading in the Championship, you hope for stable weather conditions, but this year it’s different and we try to consider this variable part of the fun of racing in England. For the first time we’re racing at Silverstone without any prior test sessions.

The Team prepared some new solutions, which we will test on Friday morning: as never before this year it’s fundamental to exploit the three free practice sessions as much as possible. At Silverstone the performance in the fast corners is very important, where you need a high aero downforce. We hope that the new solutions will help us to improve in an area, which brought us into difficulties in Turkey. As I’ve said several times before we need to be patient: we’re improving thanks to the hard development work, but we’re still not able to fight for a win against the Brawns.

I’m extremely confident and I’m convinced that after another couple of races we’ll have closed the gap between the leaders and us. I know that this is what our fans want from us and we’re giving it our all to succeed.

It will be a difficult British GP: a place on the podium would be a great result. Form me this is really significant track. This was almost the starting point of my international career in the minor Formula series and I always loved to race here. That’s why it’s a bit sad that this should be the last edition of the race, but I have to admit that I also really like Donington: I’ve won there too already….

via Ferrari.com