Kimi Raikkonen: It’s really disappointing not to finish the race, but at least the point is better than nothing. I had an engine problem, the reason for which now needs to be analysed. The car was good and I had a good pace when I found a free track ahead of me. I spun a couple of times trying to pass those ahead of me, but the first time, with Glock, I put a wheel on the grass and the second time, with Kovalainen, I was a bit too optimistic. This result is obviously not the best start to the season but it is a very long one and we are well aware that we are capable of recovering from far worse situations than this. We have to put everything in place and then we will be really competitive.
Kimi Raikkonen: Clearly I am disappointed. A few corners from the end of my in-lap, I had a problem with the electronic fuel pump which forced me to stop near the pit lane and so it was impossible for me to get back to the garage to try and fix the problem. These things happen, but it’s definitely not the best way to start the season. Now we must try do our best to pick up some points tomorrow, because it is important to score something in every race.
Kimi Raikkonen: I am not very happy with the way practice went. This morning we found some good settings for the car, but in the afternoon, we struggled and our lap times reflect that. We must look carefully at the data to work out how to improve the car. We have seen that if we manage to find the right set-up, we have the potential to be competitive.
Q: Kimi, again a year ago it was your first Grand Prix for Ferrari. What’s the difference in feeling this year?
KR: For sure it is much easier to come now. It is different because I know the team, know the people, so … (inaudible) . Last year went very well for us. Now it should be easier as I know the team.
Q:Do you agree with the way Formula One is going?(2009-)
KR: I don’t know anything about the whole thing, so I can’t really comment.
Q:How did you spend those days between and did you have any holidays?
LH: スイスとか香港とかの話を6行分
KR: I was at home, to see my friends and family, and then came here on Monday, that’s about it.
FA: Same thing. I was at home with family and came here on Monday.
I really like racing in Melbourne
Kimi Raikkonen Maranello, 10th March 2008
I’m a racing driver. And obviously all I want to do is to race. That is my job and I love it. I can’t wait for the new season to start. It really seems that the time has flown since last October. I had a nice break and now everything is ready for the start of the season. I believe that we’re going to Melbourne with a competitive car. The tests during the winter went very well and we did everything possible. The F2008 is a step forward from the car we had last year. The team has done a great job; especially in the areas where we weren’t that strong, like the behaviour through slow corners and over the curbs. We should be strong in every situation, although you never know these things for sure.
Usually I never like to look back, but for once I want to make an exception. Last season ended in a fantastic way that I will never ever forget. It feels great having finally won the Title and it feels even better, that I’ve done it in my first year with Ferrari. I’ve been quite close on a couple of occasions before, but like this it was really exceptional. I really enjoyed celebrating at the end of the season. I spent Christmas in Finland and then I went on holiday to Dubai to celebrate New Year with my wife Jenni and my friends. It’s nice having a break and chilling out after such a tough season. The only thing, which was different this year was, that I had a test session in December. It was very important to try out the car without traction control. At the begining of January I could immediately start testing with the new car, while two of them were ready. It was really important and together with Felipe we could collect many useful data for further development. I’m really satisfied with how the tests went. We have a strong, fast, competitive and reliable package. We should be there fighting for victories in every race and in the end for the two Championships.
Personally I feel a huge difference to start this season compared to 2007. Now I know the team and the way they work and there won’t be any surprises. I’ve built up a good relationship with my engineers and we understand each other: they know how I want my car to be set up.
Again the first race is in Australia. I really like racing in Melbourne and it’s nice having won there already before. The track is very slippery on the first day due to the fact that it’s only used once per year. Braking without the engine brake will be a bit more difficult, but we’ve had already many tests and a driver adapts quickly. I have good memories from last year: we dominated the whole race weekend and in the end we gained the Pole Position and won the race. It’s really nice to get off to a good start. We managed that last year, although afterwords we lost it a bit. I definitely want to win also this year, because it’s always better to lead instead of having to catch up! At the beginning of the season it’s always difficult to say what will happen, because during the tests you ever know how much fuel the others have in their cars. As I’ve said, I think that Ferrari will be competitive, but we’ll only find our for sure in Melbourne.
You should have had a Christmas mail out, we will send it to you now, it was a short update on A4 paper and another pic of Kimi celebrating his win at Brazil.
Day 4
Kimi Raikkonen(F2008) 1’30.917 66Laps
前半のものからセットアップ変更
Day 5
Kimi Raikkonen(F2008) 1’30.015 61Laps
ハイドロリック系トラブル、マッサエンジントラブル
Day 6
3.Kimi Raikkonen(F2008) 1’31.329 85Laps
理由は分からないけど。キミにしてはロングランだなぁ
膿出しが早いうちにできるのはよいことですね。マクとかルノーもですけど、何よりもゑがトップタイム出したニューエイ先生のトンデモRB4との対決が楽しみです。
