A detailed profile of Lotus F1 driver Kimi Raikkonen – Formula 1
Kimi Raikkonen is a Formula 1 driver who hails from Finland and is currently driving for the Lotus F1 team.
Like most other F1 drivers, he began his racing career with Karting. He started with pedal karting when he was three years old and was quite successful in Kart racing by the age of ten. His initial races had all taken place in Finland but at the age of fifteen,
he attempted his first race outside his homeland in Monaco. The particular race was eventful as his steering wheel came off but he continued racing and his mechanic came to know about the problem only when he was waving the wheel in his hand at him. His next
Monaco race was similarly memorable. This time he got to the wrong side of the safety fence after his car collided in the first lap. He kept racing only to be stopped after he finally ran out of anymore track to drive on. His enthusiasm encouraged him to physically
lift his kart back on the original racing track. While his mechanic was sure that the driver must have retired, he was racing fast enough finish the race in third place.
Until the year 2000, he kept taking part in different competitions like Nordic karting Championship, European Formula Super A Championship and Formula Ford Euro Cup. He won the British Renault winter Series when he was twenty years old.
He was able to successfully impress the Formula 1 community which resulted him getting signed as a regular driver by the Sauber F1 team. The critics did not support the decision as they believed that Raikkonen was an inexperienced driver with only having
participated in twenty three races at that time. He earned a single point in his debut Grand Prix despite the fact that he was sleeping half an hour before the race began.
He became a part of the McLaren team in 2002. His first season with the team earned him four podium finishes. The next year was even more powerful not only ending with ten podium finishes but also the second place in the drivers’ championship. He lost to
the legendary German driver Michael Schumacher by the difference of only two points. He suffered from car reliability issues in both 2004 and 2005 but was once again at second place in the drivers’ championship in the latter year. His last year with the team
saw him fail at winning any race as the reliability issues continued despite having point scoring finishes in each race of that season.
Raikkonen signed a two year deal with Ferrari in 2007. He not only became the highest paid driver in the world of motorsports but also won his first ever F1 championship. He was estimated to be earning US $51 million per year. His points also brought that
year’s constructors’ title in Ferrari’s name. By the end of the 2009 season, the team confirmed that the driver will be leaving the team. It was being anticipated that he will make a comeback to McLaren but then it was announced by his manager that Raikkonen
will not be driving for any of the F1 teams that season.
In his absence from F1, the driver took to racing in Rallying and NASCAR. However, he returned to F1 in 2012. His failures at winning races were the cause of him being speculated to have lost interest but then he won the recent Abu Dhabi GP.
His recent comments over the radio, ‘leave me alone, I know what I’m doing’, have already become a F1 favourite.
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