Kimi Räikkönen is known for not living in the past - still the 31-year old racer hasn't yet grabbed his future either.
At the eve of Germany rally Räikkönen managed to walk around every pitfall when interviewed by Turun Sanomat.
Räikkönen says he is satisfied with his development during the second year in WRC. He has five rallies behind him and five positions on WC-points.
– It has been a little more easier than it was before. We have lost a few positions when we had the tyre puncture in Jordan and crashed into a fence in Jyväskylä. The best is that we have progressed in time from last year, Räikkönen estimates.
How will the development proceed if Räikkönen drives WRC-rallies for the third season?
– Time will tell, he says.
Then how open is Räikkönen's next year?
– There are no plans.
Then is there something that you at least have ruled out of your options?
– Useless to ask, Räikkönen grins.
You aren't planning on stopping your driving career, are you?
– I don't know. It's useless for you to ask. Even though you would ask me in a hundred different ways, the reply won't change. When you don't know it yourself, then there aren't many others who know either, Räikkönen insists.
Then what would you still want to do - Le Mans 24 hours or perhaps the Dakar-rally?
– It could be really cool to drive Le Mans. But if you are going to drive it, then you also have to drive a few races as a test and the schedules can become tricky. If I would go for example with Peugeot to Le Mans, then I would have to drive at least three test races.
– I haven't even thought of something like Dakar. It could also be a cool experience but I don't have any urge to go there. I'm sure it would be very different, although I don't know since I haven't been there.
Lets go back to rally.
A year ago in Germany Räikkönen achieved his first rally merit when being the fastest on the last SS. This year that same 4,37 kilometer long Trier's Circus Maximus SS will give power stage points to the three fastest.
Räikkönen has been driving with his own Citroen DN3 WRC -car only a day on tarmac when testing. He doesn't start specifying his expectations.
– There could have been a little more testing. Now we more or less try out things here. We'll see soon how the rally takes off. There is a small bit of real tarmac too, although the surfaces are mostly somekind of beton.
A track driver's experience doesn't help in tarmac rallies.
– There is nothing similar in them. The normal roads are never like a real track, the car is jumping and flying here and there.
It's easy to determine that Räikkönen would take a F1-challenge if he would be given the right offer.
How much do you follow F1-races?
– Everytime when I'm at home.
What do you think about the multiplied overtakings in GP-races?
– Apparently it's easier in some races than in others. It depends upon how they decide about where the back wing can be opened. But it has nothing to do with the actual overtakings anymore. All you have to do is move beside and press a button and the one in front of you can't do a thing.
– I guess they have been trying to take it into the right direction. Maybe it looks more cooler in television but it's not any real racing.
– The tyre department again is a completely different thing. Those races where the tyre consumption have been decisive, they have been the best competitions, Räikkönen thinks.
Doesn't it tingle at all to get there and start overtaking?
– It doesn't change my attitude at all if they overtake there or not. It is always cool when you get to race. That's all it takes.
Räikkönen is not surprised that Sebastian Vettel's superiority has evened out a bit during the season.
– Often the situation always evens out every year if someone has been clearly leading in the beginning. And Vettel probably doesn't even have to win races in order to stay in the lead up until the end.
– That was the best in those Nascar-races. To just drive alone in a circle was boring but especially in the truck-race the feeling was great. It's great to race when you have cars all around you. It's racing all the time. The Nationwide-car didn't turn anywhere. That's why it wasn't as cool as the truck-race was.
Are we going to see Räikkönen in Nascar-races in the future?
– I don't know. Let's see. I could go there if I wanted to but like I said I haven't thought about next year at all.
Räikkönen was expected to go to the States again last weekend for the Watkins Glen's Nascar-race. Actually they tried to lure the him there very much after one Sprint Cup -driver was injured and his car was offered to Räikkönen.
– I just didn't want to go there. Besides the race was postponed by a day and I wouldn't have got here in Germany for recce then, Räikkönen said.
Turun Sanomat, Trier
HEIKKI KULTA
Courtesy: Nicole
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