Räikkönen expects to fight in the pack
"Prudence is the mother of safety" seems to be Kimi Räikkönen's motto at the start of this year: the Finn does not expect to fight for the top spots and is not really worried about it.
After taking the wheel of the Renault R30 during a refresher course at the Valencia circuit, Kimi Räikkönen continues to haunt the columns of specialized (or not) Internet sites. Today, after interviews with the BBC and Turun Sanomat, the Finn reflected on these tests and also on his ambitions for the upcoming season.
« I expected it to be faster than it was. OK, Valencia is not the fastest circuit, but it was still quite normal. » Regarding his fitness: « I don’t feel any stiffness in the neck. I probably expected more problems with the neck, but I didn’t have any. »
« We have to see how the new single-seater is during the tests. I hope we can have a good car to fight at the front, that would be nice. But if that’s not the case, we will try to improve it. I expect to fight in the midfield. But it won’t be a drama. It won’t be different from my last year with Ferrari. » Une remarque qui, si elle est empreinte d’un réalisme à toute épreuve, a de quoi faire frissonner les observateurs de la discipline, qui peuvent se souvenir d’un Räikkönen désintéressé et assez peu motivé lors de l’exercice 2009 qui avait tout de même été marqué par une victoire en Belgique. « Obviously, the championship is my goal […] But I am not obsessed with having a new title or not. » .
A measured ambition, not far from reflecting the opinion of a veteran, Jarno Trulli, who thinks that the return of the 2007 world champion will not be easy, at least at the beginning of the season: « It will be difficult for Kimi when he has to readapt to a Formula 1 car. I don’t think he will be fast right away » he indicated to the Gazzetta dello Sport.
Deprived of one of the major innovations it had worked hard on, the reactive suspension, Team Lotus expects a rebuilding season with a new driver duo, Romain Grosjean accompanying Kimi Räikkönen, perhaps a prelude to greater ambitions if the car meets expectations. « Overall, if the car seems good from the start, you are often competitive throughout the season. I don’t think the races will be different [from 2009]. Vettel was already strong. There are more overtakes, but it depends on the movable wing. I haven’t tried it yet [the DRS], or the KERS because it was the 2010 car. But, it’s just one or two more buttons to push. »
Regarding his future, Räikkönen prefers not to commit: “I have no long-term plans. We’ll see how it goes with Lotus.” Before adding that he has a basic two-year contract.
