Kimi Raikkonen – Ferrari Driver Again?

Kimi Raikkonen

Ferrari. Home to Kimi from 2007 (his first year and the year he finally won the championship) to his exit at the end of 2009. It was a very up and down three seasons at the Maranello team for Kimi. As mentioned, he won the title in the first year, but then the car was not suited to his driving style in ’08 and ’09, and very much played second fiddle to Felipe Massa. Towards the end of ’09, relationships with the team soured, and he was effectively booted out for Fernando Alonso for the 2010 season, as well as a healthy injection of cash from his prime sponsor, banking giant Santander.

Kimi has said to the press that his time at the Italian giant was his worst time in F1 (which is saying something after his millions of break downs during his time at McLaren), so why are there rumours flying around about him possibly going back to the team that rejected him? Well, there could be benefits for both parties. One, for Kimi, he won his one and only championship there. He got what he always wanted, and won many races in his time there. Financially, he was the highest paid sportsman in the world at one time (after Tiger Woods), and he was given a fantastic car in his first year.

The team have not won a championship since Kimi stepped into the shoes of Micheal Schumacher, and perhaps are becoming disillusioned with the Spaniard that replaced Kimi. Also, the feeling might be mutual, and Alonso may be wanting to get out of his contract to move over to another team – perhaps Red Bull – and win another championship or two before he retires.

Will Kimi want to go back to a team that left him high and dry, pushed him out for another driver when there was still a year of his contract left to go? If I were him, I would think long and hard about his options. Going back to his old team may well be his best chance of winning a championship again, and as he is going on 34 years of age he does not have many years left, but is that drive enough to make him go back to the team that made life in F1 so bad for him?

Silly season in F1 is soon to come to an end, with the F1 circus winding its way to Spa Francorchamps, Belgium. This is many of the drivers favourite track, and Raikkonen himself has won there more times than any current driver (four wins). Will he be able to gain his fifth win there, and take the championship to Vettel even more? If he gets close to winning the championship this season, I think he may be tempted to continue at Lotus, but whether they can develop well enough, and find enough money to fund such a thing is a different matter entirely. Look out for my Race Preview of the Belgian Grand Prix coming up in the next few days.