Räikkönen may have acquired shares in the Lotus team
Kimi Räikkönen will make his return to F1 after a two-year absence in 2012 with Team Lotus. According to several observers, the Finnish driver has also taken shares in the team.
Kimi Räikkönen could have returned to F1 with Williams in 2012, but the team did not want to sell a part of the team to the Finnish driver as he requested. He ultimately chose to join the Lotus team, and the latter reportedly agreed to his request to become one of the minority owners of the team.
According to *El Mundo Deportivo* and *Italiaracing*, the 2007 world champion has reportedly acquired a part of the Lotus team, which may have allowed the team to reduce his salary and bonuses, thus enabling them to sign him for 2012 and 2013. According to the Spanish publication, Räikkönen would be the first ‘owner-driver’ in F1 in over 20 years.
The Finn is not new to this; he already owns a team with his managers Steve and David Robertson called Double R in F3. This season, he competed in the WRC with his own team, Ice 1 Racing, which is also involved in some motocross events.
