F1 Half Term Report: Rate the Grid - Kimi Räikkönen

[Thang Nguyen]

"Leave me alone, I know what I'm doing..."
"Bwoah"...
I think Kimi AKA the Iceman has quite an impressive season so far, however he hasn't added another victory (in Monaco) because of the misfortunes.
Anyway, I give him 9.

 

[thatmotorfreak]

Well he has a charming personality on the radio that's for sure

 

[Peter Hooper]

Hard to judge him fully this season because on the few occasions he has been in any sort of position to challenge he hasn't been allowed to. His poor qualifying in too many races has also been disappointing and left him with no chance for the race.

Fastest laps mean diddly squat unless done on a Saturday and sometimes makes me me wonder why that pace wasnt shown when it mattered.

 

[Klodian Stafa]

he is a good driver but is time to move on

see all these talents waisting their time at bad teams and i dont think lecrerc should go to sauber and than to ferrari

going to ferrari in rookie year will be good for him

maybe vettel will go in 2019 and than lecrerc will be 1st driver and a championship winning driver

 

[F_B]

You gotta love Kimi because he’s Kimi.

 

[wombat999]

Held back by team orders and that's a shame.
F1 needs Kimi, Kimi doesn't need F1.
A solid 9.

 

[Jan Larsen]

7. If Vettel has a good car, Raikkonen is a distant 2nd in nearly all races, except for a few quali's. He has improved from last season for sure (I'm quite sure thats partly Marchionnes fault - boot up his arse), but still needs to extract more. Age is beginning to play a factor, but he has vast experience which is valuable. As long as he's got some speed and is a team player (aka Barichello like 2nd driver), he'll stay at the team. Vettel hates competitive teammates.

 

[John-Eric Saxén]

going to ferrari in rookie year will be good for him

Since when does driving well in lower series earn you directly a Ferrari seat? I have heard the same praises said about the four or five last rookies that entered F1. Few years ago Magnussen and Vandoorne were hailed as future world champions, but now where are they? One is getting schooled by Alonso and the other is stuck in a midfield team and can't out-score Grosjean. The only rookie who has actually managed to maintain his aura is Max Verstappen. You can't give too much merit to these lower series and Ferrari knows this, that's why drivers don't jump directly from F2 to Ferrari.

7. If Vettel has a good car, Raikkonen is a distant 2nd in nearly all races, except for a few quali's. He has improved from last season for sure (I'm quite sure thats partly Marchionnes fault - boot up his arse), but still needs to extract more. Age is beginning to play a factor, but he has vast experience which is valuable. As long as he's got some speed and is a team player (aka Barichello like 2nd driver), he'll stay at the team. Vettel hates competitive teammates.

Actually Raikkonen's last season was better than this one. Last year he out-qualified Vettel 11-10 and scored 87% of Vettel's points. This year it's 8-3 in quali for Vettel and KR has only 57% of Vettel's total points, though in the last six races it's 3-3 in quali. I'll give him a 7, largely due to the poor start to the season.

 

[Knoxstar]

Straight off, he's better than most out there and as good when he wants to put in the effort but unless he and Vettel have similar driving styles the car will be designed around Vettel and that makes a difference. If the money driver wants a car that is oversteery (new word) then the car is designed that way. M Schumacher days at Ferrari come to mind. That leaves the other driver to make the best of it. What I.m saying is that there is a reason why some drivers demand clear number 1 status in the team in their contracts. Senna did it when he was with Lotus (nixed Warwick coming as his teammate) and during his time at McLaren when he teamed with Berger. Vettel didn't care for the Ferrari last year and Kimi doesn't like it as much as last year.
Ferrari are not going to go with a rookie. Kimi will stay if the deal is right. He will do better in the second half as he did last year. A 10 for being the best character on the grid. 8 for driving = 9

 

[Michel Forest]

5. He's naturally quick and that's his problem: he relies on pure talent. The fact that Vettel has won many races and he has not is a clear sign that he could do better. I guess Ferrari is keeping him to please Vettel but it would be so much more interesting for F1 fans if a younger driver got the second spot at Ferrari to support Vettel. That way, when Vettel retires or leaves, his successor would be ready.

 

[Ari Antero]

Ferrari have announced that Kimi Raikkonen is to remain with the team for another year, and will race for them until the end of the 2018 FIA Formula One World Championship.