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Lotus team chief Eric Boullier is ready for a fight to hang on to Kimi Raikkonen as rivals Red Bull line up the Finish former champion to replace Mark Webber next season.
Speaking after Friday’s opening free practice sessions for Sunday’s British Grand Prix, in which Webber was second fastest and Raikkonen was 13th, Boullier said he believed Lotus had plenty to offer Raikkonen.
“Red Bull is chasing Kimi and we want to keep Kimi,” explained Boullier. “Kimi will decide what he wants to do and he will decide what is best for him.
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“He knows what he has with us.. He can guess what he has with Red Bull. Now we are talking with him and he is seeking some understanding of where we are going in terms of building with the new ownership. He is happy with what he has, so we will see.”
Giving more consideration to Raikkonen’s personality, Boullier added: “The environment must suit him. We will keep improving the team performance and we will keep going this way to match Red Bull’s team performance as much as possible.
“Being part of the environment to build it around yourself is the nicest challenge for a driver.”
While Boullier builds up his bid to keep Raikkonen, his Red Bull counterpart Christian Horner recovered swiftly from the unexpected and stunning news of Webber’s decision on Thursday.
Like most paddock regulars, Horner did not expect news on Webber’s future to be announced as and when it was and he was given little more than a few minutes’ notice.
But once he and the team had recovered from that bombshell, he identifed Raikkonen and both Toro Rosso drivers Australian Daniel Ricciardo and Frenchman Jean-Eric Vergne as likely contenders for the 2014 vacancy.
“At the end of the day, it will be down to equipment at their disposal. Any driver will want the most competitive environment at their disposal, but we are not just looking at Kimi Raikkonen.
“We have Daniel Ricciardo and Jean-Eric Vergne, who are true contenders for the seat. We need to take a bit of time to look at all the options that are available.”
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