Räikkönen: only victory will be beautiful
Brilliant second in the Bahrain Grand Prix, Kimi Räikkönen, as usual, did not exult with joy on the podium. At the wheel of an astonishingly competitive Ferrari this season, only victory interested the Finn.
Thanks to excellent tire management and a flawless race, Kimi Räikkönen was able to pressure and ultimately overtake Nico Rosberg’s Mercedes in the penultimate lap. With a slightly earlier pit stop in the middle of the race, he might even have been able to challenge the winner, Lewis Hamilton.
The Finn was therefore torn between these two feelings on the podium: “You are never satisfied when you finish second. However, after a difficult start to the season, I am happy to finally achieve a satisfactory result. We must of course be satisfied because we improved compared to the qualifying, even if I was hoping for a better result than this,” said Kimi Räikkönen, who was answering the wise questions of Sir Jackie Stewart.
Ferrari has shown it: they are capable of aiming for victory on their own merits – and they will be even more soon. That’s definitely Kimi Räikkönen’s goal: « I am happy with the team’s work, which has made so much progress compared to 2014. The atmosphere in the team is excellent, we are working well, and I am sure that we will end up fighting for victory, even if it takes time ».
This is Kimi Räikkönen’s first podium since the South Korean Grand Prix in 2013, and also his first since returning to Scuderia.
