5 reasons why the Alonso-Raikkonen pairing might not work for Ferrari

Can Kimi Raikkonen and Fernando Alonso set aside their egos and work for the benefit of the team?

3. Raikkonen is a ‘difficult’ character

“Just leave me alone, I know what I am doing”. This was said by Raikkonen on the team radio on his way to victory in Abu Dhabi in 2012. It was his first victory after coming back from retirement. Last year, he refused to let Roman Grosjean, his Lotus teammate, pass him in the Korean Grand Prix which led to a heated argument on the radio.

He didn’t take part in the last two races of 2013 because he was apparently not paid by Lotus Renault. At Ferrari, the team principal has to look for a smart way to handle Raikkonen, now that they have decided to get his experience and quirky characteristics into the team.

4. Alonso doesn’t like to be overshadowed

The Spanish fans would hope that history does not repeat. Alonso had left McLaren after just one season because it was very difficult for him to handle the situation of having a strong teammate in Hamilton. Last year, his comments about Ferrari not being able to provide him with a competitive car had led to disturbances in the team.

Alonso obviously wouldn’t tolerate it if he is put under the shadow of Raikkonen. But it’s not Massa this time, so Alonso will have to fight for the first place in Ferrari. This could add to tensions within the team.

5. The odds don’t necessarily favour success with two big names in a single team

F1 history has a number of examples of two star drivers being bunched together in the same team. But apart from Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost at McLaren, where the rivalry between the two legends brought the best out of each which helped the team to win 15 races out of the 16 in 1988, there haven’t been many instances of two star drivers being hugely successful for the team together.

Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber, for instance, always had conflicts which were clearly seen on the track; at the 2013 Malaysian Grand Prix, Vettel overtook Webber to take the victory, even when he was told not to do so. Back in 1986, the intense rivalry between Nigel Mansell and Nelson Piquet possibly cost both the drivers, as Alain Prost walked away with the title.

Alonso and Raikkonen would both want to win the championship for Ferrari, so it is going to be interesting to watch how the ‘dangerous’ pair perform in the upcoming season of Formula One. Will they make Ferrari regret the decision of pairing them together, or they will flourish as a team?