Red Bull driver Kimi Raikkonen has been encouraged by his progress on the Rally Bulgaria, despite losing 10 minutes after missing the final stage of day one as the result of an accident.Up until SS3 the former Grand Prix champion had been running in fourth place, until a gravelly right-hand corner caught him out. His Citroen went off the road and landed on its roof, but the damage was only cosmetic and the Finn was eventually able to continue under the super rally system, finishing 11th.
Now he feels that the experience gained will stand him in good stead for the three remaining asphalt rallies this year, in Germany, France and Spain.
"Some things were up and down but on the whole it was a good weekend," said Raikkonen. "The most important thing was to get used to driving the rally car on asphalt, which is obviously a completely different experience to driving a Formula One car. I feel a bit more comfortable on asphalt than I do on gravel, but rallying is still a totally different sport compared to racing and we have a lot to learn. Bit by bit the feeling is coming though, and I actually liked a lot of the roads here in Bulgaria: they were quite flowing with a nice rhythm."
Raikkonen will now get back to gravel with a two day test in Finland next week. "It will be nice to compete at home again and also to come back to a rally that I know a bit already," he added.
Citroen Junior Team manager Benoit Nogier said that he was impressed with Raikkonen’s progress on what was only his first World Championship asphalt rally. "If you consider his lack of experience, the times that Kimi has set are remarkable," he commented. "I think he has a lot of potential and this experience will definitely have helped him prepare for the remaining asphalt rallies."
Source: WRC
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