Q&A with Kimi on Thursday May 10th 2012

Galina, Russia

" Kimi, it is already hard to imagine Rally Finland without you and your car! How much do you want to come back there (this or next year) and how hard Lotus is against that?" Thanks!))

Answer:

I miss rally now as much as I did miss F1 while I did WRC. It’s not a must, but I still like a lot driving rally.

Nicole:

Do you still write your Finnish columns?

Answer:

Not anymore.

Rich Eklund:

I was just wondering is we will see the ICEMAN documentary that was supposed to be released in 2011?

Answer:

No decisions made yet.

ketcayu:

Kimi, i heard that you share your driving data with Romain

Answer:

It’s quite normal in every team. Every team shares all the data between the drivers. There is nothing to hide away, because it would not be useful for the team. We check the set-ups, and look, if the other likes something in it, or not. During qualifying I’m not that interested in his telemetry, while I just focus on my own.

carbonfiber diet:

Hey Iceman, Since your return, what changes have been the toughest to adjust to? CFD?

Answer:

Must be the tyres. It’s about learning them, not just getting used to them. It depends on circuits. Somewhere it goes smoothly, sometimes there is adjusting to do.

Atlanta, GA:

Hei Heikki, could you ask Kimi his expectation towards the WCC/WDC standings this year? And on which circuit will Kimi/Lotus have better chances this year? And upon what aspects (aero, engine, ect) do Lotus have advantages over other teams?

Answer:

We don’t think of the championships, we focus on getting the best possible result every time. The results have so far been going like in crossroads, so being consisten, getting 4th, 5th places, you can suddenly end up high in the standings, while the points are nowadays that big. Our car has so far been quick in every circuit. It’s a question getting everything right and not hurt ourselves like we have done in a few weekends.

Claudia:

I´d like that know whether Kimi is already to 100% confident with the car and his driving (compared to the last time he drove in F1) or whether there is still some room for improvement (hehe okay he will say that you can alway improve)

I´m just asking because I noticed that his pace on the softer tyres compared to Romain or other drivers is better than it´s on the mediums or hards. Of course my observations could be totally wrong =D

Answer:

I feel confident as always. As usually, there is room to improve, but my driving is what it is, and it’s not going to change from that.

About soft tyre, I don’t know. Some tyres have worked better than some others. Propably in comparison my soft tyres were working better than the hard ones in that race, while it was more tricky to the hards working. It depends on driving style, too.

Andrea:

How many hours a day to you train? I heard that you like to sleep until noon! So when does your training session usually start? Do you always just train with Mark or do you also do some stuff on your ownn or with friends?

Answer:

It depends on the day. We usually start at 11.00, if we do mountain biking, it’s 3 hours or something, then we do gym etc. Yes, I train with Mark according to his programmes.

Celine:

I heard that you always beat Vettel at Badminton. Is he that bad or are you that good? Do you often see each other when you are not at the races? Are there some other drivers you like to spend time with?

Answer:

Seb has never won me. Last time we played was in Kuala Lumpur - and I won.

Do you prefer to spend your time in Switzerland or in Finland?

Answer:

I love both, but it’s more peaceful in Switzerland.

Heni:

Hei Kimi! When you meet Sebastian just talking about Formula 1?

Answer:

We talk all kind of things, but, of course, about F1, too.

Ingrid:

Are you still in contact with Kaj? Are you planning to do Rally Finland?

Answer:

Yes, I keep in touch. He’s now rallying with Pajunen. No, I’m not planning Rally Finland.

Kriss:

Do you think that driving in rally for 2 years made you a better F1 driver?

Answer:

Rally and F1 are completely different sports. They don’t have anything in common. I like to drive them both, but two years of rallying were two years of rallying, nothing else.

Melina:

I´d like to know whether Kimi watches some starts prior to some races to prepare himself. Or whether he does watch the race again after it is over to analyse his driving.

Answer:

No, I don’t watch the starts, I did previously, but some how it stopped. And why do it? If I would watch ten starts from the others, it would not mean our start would be similiar to them.

Joy Chan:

From the bottom of your heart, which one do you love more? WRC or F1?

Answer:

I like them both as much. I have done racing more than 25 years and rallies for 2 years and my career is not finished yet.

Dean:

Kimi before the start of the season you complained about DRS and that it´s not that difficult to overtake nowadays.

Do you still think like that or do you like it now?

Answer:

DRS is just a bottom in the steering wheel. In some circuits it’s still very difficult to get close enough to overtake. That has not changed.

Piotr:

During your Nascar races and rallys we often heard you swearing (really I think Kaj was more of an Iceman than you were);D

Do you also often swear to your team at the F1 team radio?

Answer:

You swear, while it’s not going in the way you like.It doesn’t not have anything to do with iceman status.

One question concerning the team. Do you already get on well with them? I mean do they already understand what you want? Is there a blind trust?

Answer:

The relationship has been good since the beginning. Now we just know each better. The atmosphere is something I like very much.

icemaid:

If you win your 2nd WDC this year or in 2013 will you continue to race in F1?

Answer:

I have a contract for 2013. But you never know what happens in this sports.

whatever:

Q. What was going through your mind being back at the podium after so long?

Answer:

I was not that happy, while I knew it could have been better.

Anonymous:

Are you interested in the history of F1? If you could drive any legendary Formula One car of the past, which car would you choose?

Answer:

I would pick the the age of those ’cigarboxes’ back in the sixties.

kuttan:

You can only go as fast as your car is capable of. How many tenths extra’ can a driver bring purely from skill. ( if there are ideal lap times calculated by the computer, how often do u go better than that)

Answer:

You never beat the ideal lap time. First it’s measured by a computer, and if I break it, the new ideal lap is then my time. I think, you never get a 100% perfect lap so in fact there is not ideal lap time at all.=

Courtesy: Nicole

Räikkönen is not going to Australia

Although Kimi Räikkönen was going to go to Rally Australia in September, he has decided to skip it.

– I won't drive there. I was going to but we aren't going. It's so far away that I'm not interested in travelling there, Räikkönen confirmed to Turun Sanomat.

Germany is Räikkönen's 6th WRC-rally this season. Since he leaves Australia out of the program he still has France, Catalynia and Great-Britain.

Turun Sanomat, Trier

HEIKKI KULTA

Courtesy: Nicole

Exclusive interview with Fernando Alonso: LOOKING DOWN

Turun Sanomat 22.7 2010

Fernando Alonso is known as a tough top driver who without suffering much can even step on his team mate's toes if his own advantage in the race requires it.

In public interviews the Spanish star usually shoots straightly what he thinks without blinking the eye.

But in a smaller group Alonso's being changed: all of a sudden he is in front of you like a shy schoolboy.

I got a unique opportunity for a private interview with Ferrari's superstar and we talked about many current and less current matters.

The driver's answers were very well justified, he takes a position - but he doesn't even by accident look the interviewer in the eye. His eyes were all the time looking down as if the star of the world would be as shy as an monolingual person abroad.

I got a feeling of getting to know the real Fernando who in public always hides behind his tough image.

Those who know Alonso closer feel that his behaviour comes from him not trusting anyone and that he is reserved because he thinks everybody is against him.

What is certain is that it doesn't bother Alonso's mind at all how he got to be a Ferrari-driver a year before although he sits with Finns.

Alonso started his F1-career exactly the same time Kimi Räikkönen did in Australia 2001. He promises to stop immediately when he sees that he isn't winning anymore.

But Alonso won't become a rallydriver after that. The Spaniard admitted very honestly that he wouldn't have the same patience as Kimi has. Whatever Alonso does, he wants to win immediately.

ALONSO MISSES FAIR RÄIKKÖNEN

After the winter tests Fernando Alonso assured that Ferrari's F10-car is the best car he has ever drove during his F1-career. On Thursday when interviewed by Turun Sanomat the Spaniard still assured that he feels the same even though he is only 5th in the championship-serie.

– Yes. This is absolutely the best car I have ever drove. The engine, aerodynamics, the feeling it gives... Everything works much better than in those cars I have earlier drove.

– I am satisfied but one has to remember that my opponents also have strong cars. The fact that this Ferrari is the best car I have ever drove doesn't mean that it would be the best car in the championship-serie 2010, Alonso emphasizes.

Only thing not in balance is luck

Alonso won his debut race with Ferrari in Bahrain but has ever since become more weaker. Where is the problem - luck, car or mistakes?

– I think that luck has always been a key factor during the beginning of the season. With another kind of luck I could now lead the championship. I have done mistakes

- jumpstart in China and crash in Monaco practice - but that department is in balance since my opponents have also lost points because of making mistakes.

– Luck is the only thing which is never in balance. I have had less luck than my main opponents. I am expecting better luck in the last season - and less Safety Car -situations.

A poorer season hasn't brought Alonso down. He still believes that he is fighting for the WDC.

Different positions as a chaser

Yet the situation is different when compared to years 2005 and 2006 when Alonso won the championships. In 2005 he fought Kimi Räikkönen for the title and in 2006 he fought Michael Schumacher for the title so that he was leading all season long.

Now four other drivers drive for the victories and Alonso has become a chaser from behind.

– There's is remarkably more competition now than it was during my championship-seasons. I have four drivers ahead of me and I have to be able to improve my position.

– What makes the situation tricky is that I can't concentrate on only one opponent. On the other hand it makes the situation easier that those four can't win the race at the same time so that's why taking podiums will improve my situation. When the points go here and there I can quickly get higher, Alonso plans.

– The most important is to win the championship in November.

Kimi will also become a rally winner

Then what does it mean to Alonso now that his longtime competitor Kimi Räikkönen has disappeared from the F1-tracks?

– Kimi was a completely unique F1-driver, different character, brilliant driver and the most fair opponent I have ever known. Kimi is respectable and he is a respectable racer. In every battle or overtaking with Kimi you always had the feeling of us being safe because he always drove so fairly, Alonso praises.

– It's obvious that this bunch of 24 drivers miss Kimi. I think he enjoys it where he drives but it would be cool if he would come back again.

Have you been following Räikkönen's rally career?

– Yes. Kimi has already become a good rallydriver. It hasn't been easy for him because the opponents are years ahead of him when it comes to experience. Yet I believe that Kimi will soon win in rally and I also genuinely wish that he will win the championship in that serie too.

Then would Alonso's patience be enough to like Räikkönen take a challenge that requires years of work to grow into?

– I don't love rally so much that I would ever go there. And I'm also probably not patient enough because rally is so competitive and requires so much learning. It's almost the same as with DTM. You like watching them both but if you try to go there yourself it takes 1-2 years before you know how they work there.

Especially the Finns have been astonished over why Felipe Massa was so even in qualifications with Räikkönen when Alonso again has beaten the Brasilian 7-2.

– I can't answer to that but I think that Kimi found some trust in the car in the end of last season when Felipe couldn't drive. If Felipe would have been driving then I believe that Kimi would had been ahead Felipe just like I am now.

– This year Felipe has slipped because he has had problems getting his tyres temperature right during the qualification lap. In practice and races we are very even. Higher temperatures during this summer's qualifications will help Felipe for sure, Alonso thinks.

ALONSO WILL END HIS CAREER AT FERRARI

Does Fernando Alonso have a life after Ferrari? Can you imagine driving for another team at some point?

– Everything changes when you go to Ferrari. When you drive in this team you are a Ferrari-driver for the rest of your life. It changes your whole life. Someday when I have retired I can tell my children and grand-children that I was a Ferrari-driver. It's more than my whole career as a whole.

- After Ferrari it would be impossible to drive anywhere else, Alonso says to Turun Sanomat.

Then for how long will Alonso continue? The current Ferrari-contract will continue for the next two seasons.

– My continuance depends upon how these years go. If I succeed, am happy and enjoy life like I do at the moment. If I feel that I can still win in the future, then I will continue for as long as Ferrari wants me. If I don't enjoy it enough, then I won't just continue because of doing something. Then it's better to do something completely different, Alonso summed up.

TESTING BAN A BIG SACRIFICE FOR FERRARI

When Michael Schumacher drove for Ferrari he could test whenever the car didn't function the way he wanted. Is Fernando Alonso envious of this testing freedom when the F10-car hasn't developed like expected?

– For sure. We would have the potential to test in the same way - we have the facilities, track and probably also budget but we just can't use them. It's a shame. The situation isn't fantastic but maybe it is needed when thinking about F1's future. Ferrari gave something to help teams in financial troubles but also lost something for sure, Alonso told Turun Sanomat.

Kimi Räikkönen hated simulators that the testing ban made them use. Alonso laughs when he hears that Kimi got seasick in the simulator.

– We do some work in simulators but I can't say more than that except that we take it so that 50% of the results from the simulators are correct and 50% needs to be checked. A simulator is a good tool but Ferrari's philosophy is that only a real car is a reality, Alonso says.

Source: HEIKKI KULTA - Turun Sanomat
Courtesy: Nicole

A chat with Kimi - from Turun Sanomat

Kimi Räikkönen's debut with Red Bull Citroen's WRC car has attracted 170 media people to Rovaniemi. As many as there were when Ferrari and McLaren presented their cars this week. On Thursday night Räikkönen spent over an hour interviewed first by the tv and after that by the press people.

In F1 you said that you will always drive for victory? Is it possible this year in rally?

"No and that's for sure. There are pretty tough drivers out there and they have raced for many years the same rallies. They remember quite a lot from the stages and know what to do where. Like I said, you have to learn a lot before you get experience and can start improving your pace," Räikkönen says.

So this new challenge with a WRC car will replace his will to win this season.

What kind of expectations do you have from Sweden's rally?

"Everything is new to me so first of all I have to be patient. It's difficult to say what to expect when I haven't raced with this car. We'll see in Sweden how it goes. It's useless to say anything beforehand when there are so many things that can go wrong," Räikkönen said.

Sordo can't afford to lose

On Thursday Räikkönen got some comparison to Daniel Sordo's times when the duo drove the same stages with the same cars.

"Tunturi-rally is just a practice for Sweden. It's difficult to say how it goes here either. I have so much to learn in many things so the result doesn't mean anything to me in this race. You will see our pace in Sweden."

Sordo has drove in even colder conditions in Norway. Tunturi is his 6th snow rally. How badly will it hurt if the 3rd overall in WRC would lose to Räikkönen right from the beginning?

"Kimi is undoubtly fast but we try to go faster. If Kimi is faster it's not a good thing for me," Sordo thought.

There will be enough testing

Räikkönen had time to test for three days with Citroen before the races start. If there is need for it, can you test as much as you want?

"Of course there are some limitations. It depends on so many things, what kind of contracts who has and who pays what. I'm not even sure what the regulations say but I think you can test pretty freely in WRC. Other teams test, others don't," Räikkönen said.

Räikkönen denied many times the claims that he wouldn't have been motivated in F1 tests.

"Everyone can have their own view even if I wouldn't even know about the whole thing. The truth is that I have never had anything against any test where you try new parts and new things. It's a different thing if you just drive 600 km per day just to try if the car can take it without breaking," Kimi assures.

Brothers as competitors

Big brother Rami Räikkönen will drive in Tunturi in Kimi's old car Fiat Abarth Grande Punto. Now the brothers compete on rally paths for the first time.

"It's still my car but when Rami wanted to try rally and has been doing it for a longer time as a hobby I thought why not?"

Own pace notes to polish

So at what stage will the widely discussed Räikkönen's practice to make pace notes take place? How much do you trust the notes Kaj Lindström gives you?

"I trust in them because I have made them myself. There are many things. Of course I trust what Kaitsu says when I have made them myself and he has so much experience that if I would have made them totally senseless, he would have mentioned about it already when we made them. There won't be that kind of a mistake. It's more about the driver listening properly to the notes so that he doesn't make an error because of not listening."

"There is a lot to learn so that you can make good notes in a good place and precisely understand how fast you can drive there. Easily it goes so that if you can't describe it well enough it means that you can't drive as fast as you should."

A year in rally is not an obstacle for coming back to F1

Did you look at Ferrari's new F10 car from the internet?

"I have seen the car. It's hard to say anything based upon pictures. I guess they will start testing it next week. You see it then. It looked a lot like it looked last year ago too. Nothing terribly different," Räikkönen summed up.

Do you still have a burn for a comeback to F1?

"I have no contract with anyone for year 2011. Of course a lot depends on what happens and where. I guess I have a long year ahead of me and you can never know what is going to happen."
Will this year be wasted if you decide to go back to F1?

" It's not wasted in any way. I always do my best. In the final games this was the best option of all options for this year. That's why I drive rally now."

Thanks: KR Spaces and Nicole