"He’s having fun that’s the main thing": Kimi Raikkonen opens up on his son Robin's road to Formula 1

Former F1 world champion Kimi Raikkonen provided an update regarding his Robin-Ace's karting career and said that the important thing was that his son was enjoying his time in motorsports. The Finnish retired at the end of the 2021 season after having spent almost two decades in the sport.

Ever since, Raikkonen has ventured into other categories such as NASCAR in the USA occasionally while preferring to spend time with his family away from the track. For the first time since his retirement from F1, he was spotted at the 2024 Italian GP last weekend in the Kick Sauber garage.

In an exclusive interview with F1.com, Kimi Raikkonen spoke about his life away from the sport while also shedding light on his son Robin-Ace Raikkonen's karting career and prospects of entering the pinnacle of motorsport in the future. He said:

“It’s been busy. We moved to Italy, I’ve been a mechanic for Robin [as he settles into karting], Rianna is doing gymnastics, and we have a small one [Grace], so a busy family life! But it’s been great,” Raikkonen said.

“Ah, he’s enjoying. Everything is going nicely. We’ll see. If something comes or not, who knows? But he’s having fun – that’s the main thing,” he added.

The nine-year-old recently won the 2024 edition of the Rotax Max Challenge Switzerland where he took two victories at the event and dominated the field.

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Kimi Raikkonen gives his take on F1's current competitive state

2007 world champion Kimi Raikkonen believed it a competitive field in the sport, given four teams vying for race wins in 2024 was a positive one for the fans from the entertainment aspect.

Kimi Raikkonen said that he hadn't caught up to the sport despite the enthralling nature of the current season, saying:

“Not much, because there’s always something that we’re doing with the kids and the family. When [there’s] been a time when we’ve been home and it’s been on TV, I watch, I still have the interest, but I don’t know everything like I used to know," he said.

“But it’s good. [It’s] interesting to see always how it goes. It looks like things are getting closer now in the racing, so it’s good for F1 and all the fans,” he added.

The former Ferrari driver also mentioned that it was good for the sport to have new faces racing after Mercedes announced Kimi Antonelli as Lewis Hamilton's replacement next year. He further expressed confidence in the German team as he believed that they could make the 18-year-old ready for F1:

“I’m sure they know how to get him ready. Obviously, these days they have simulators. When I started, there was no simulator, you [just] jumped in and got going! I think it’s much easier [to move up to F1], in many ways, now. I wish them and all the rest all the best!” Raikkonen said.