Ferrari, Raikkonen: “I have speed and passion, the results will come soon”

Kimi Raikkonen returns to speak just before enjoying two weeks of healthy relaxation. The Finnish Ferrari driver, whose confirmation for next year is always hanging by a thread, said he was certain he could achieve great results already in this championship. Raikkonen, who hasn't been on the podium since Bahrain, ran into a series of three highly negative races, where between his mistakes and technical failures he only collected four points compared to Sebastian Vettel's fifty-two.

An endless crisis, punctuated above all by imperial misfortune, just think of the Budapest match, masterfully faced before accusing the PU of a fatal problem. However, Raikkonen left the Hungaroring with two certainties; the first is to have regained the full trust of the team between England and Hungary, given that his speed performances were excellent, the second is to have demonstrated that he is a driver who is still in splendid shape.

“Of course we can look at the situation from two points of view – Kimi said – if we look at the results things are not going well, but if we look at the performances we must admit that we are doing very well. We have the right speed, things are going well, of course we still need to improve in some areas because the objective is to reach the finish line first. However, this year is much better than the previous one, of course we made some mistakes but I am fast and I believe in myself. If I noticed that I had lost performance and passion I would calmly stay at home. With a little more luck I would have achieved better results, all you need to do is have a problem-free weekend. Unfortunately, something often went wrong, with the car or because of me. It's part of the game, but I'm sure I'm close to the decisive turning point."

A motivated Raikkonen, sure that the wheel will finally turn. And god only knows how important confidence is for a racing driver. In closing, a brief joke about that future which is torment and curiosity: “I really don't know what will happen next year; you know, it doesn't depend on me...". Of course, the future depends on the will of the Ferrari leaders, because Raikkonen has indicated his willingness to extend the contract that binds him to Maranello. But Kimi has a great chance to enchant the Maranello leaders; the world championship starts again from SPA, the F1 university where Raikkonen is the absolute holder of the chair.

Antonino Rendina

Follow @antorendina