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Jean Todt

Kimi To Wrc!!!!!

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Kimi Raikkonen's F1 career isover, at least for now, after Citroen confirmed that the Finn willcompete with their Junior Team in next year's World Rally Championship.

Having failed to secured a race-seat with McLaren for nextyear's Championship, Raikkonen announced that he would be taking a yearout of Formula One, admitting that a season spent rallying could be onthe cards.

That was finally confirmed on Friday when Citroen revealed thatthe 2007 F1 World Champ will contest next year's WRC in a RedBull-backed Citroen Junior Team car.

"I always wanted to compete in rally, especially in the World Rally Championship at some point in my career," said Raikkonen.

"Thanks to Red Bull, I have the opportunity to drive the bestcar of the series with the Citroen C4. This is a new but very excitingchallenge."

But just because he's off rallying next year it doesn't meanRaikkonen's F1 career is over for good as the Finn revealed that he hasonly signed a one-year deal with Citroen.

"For the moment we have a one-year contract and we will see howit goes for the future," he said. "I am really looking forward totesting the car and taking the start of the first rally."

Citroen team boss Olivier Quesnel added: "It is with immense joythat we welcome Kimi Raikkonen to our ranks. We are very proud that hehas chosen Citroen."

Looks like Kimi may get a chance to drive Redbull Racing in the future.....:D

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Yep - I guess that was kind of expected.

He's got his formula 1 WDC crown under his belt and now he's off to a racing format that suits him far better.

I don't blame him at all - actually I'm happy for him. A place with far less ego and more down to Earth characters will suit him well.

I don't see him coming back to F1.

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Yep - I guess that was kind of expected.

He's got his formula 1 WDC crown under his belt and now he's off to a racing format that suits him far better.

I don't blame him at all - actually I'm happy for him. A place with far less ego and more down to Earth characters will suit him well.

I don't see him coming back to F1.

Agreed TF.

Covering eyes. Have you put your clothes back on yet?....

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Sad to see Kimi go, and hope he does get a seat back in F1 for 2011. I think Kimi would have to be one of the most honest straight forward drivers in F1. Everything he's said has pretty much happened.

Anyway, looking forward to watching Kimi in 2010, and hoping we actually get some television coverage of him too rather than a 10sec snippet.

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I think Kimi would have to be one of the most honest straight forward drivers in F1. Everything he's said has pretty much happened.

Explain please.

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Explain please.

He said "I was taking a Sh#t".

And he was. So it happened.

That's all he said in his whole F1 career, as far as I know.

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That's all he said in his whole F1 career, as far as I know.

I remember he said once 'that was pretty much like that'.

Probably Piquet was the most straight forward F1 driver ever. eusa_think.gif

Seriously, Kimi talked many times on the asphalt and now I hope he does it again on asphalt, ice, snow, gravel...

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Very true. He did well on the straights.

Ouch.

Domenicali said Raikkonen was "very fast, but also very closed.

"In a car that is capable of winning, he was and is perfect," the Maranello-based outfit's team principal continued. "But if the car needs to be developed and the team fired up, Alonso is better."

Source:http://en.f1-live.com/f1/en/headlines/news/detail/091204161010.shtml

Double ouch :P

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Ferrari confirms what I've been saying about Kimi since his first season at McLaren (it's nice to be right for a change). Now I need to go argue with my wife and go back to being wrong all the time*.

*A bit of wisdom I've learned through hard experience. Guys, never argue with a woman. Ever. Have you ever seen an old married couple where the wife is talking and the husband is saying nothing at all? How about another old couple but this time the husband is muttering to himself? Those are men that have learned to not argue.

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For Ferrari's sake, I hope Domenicali is right, otherwise they are gonna look very stupid indeed. To be honest, the last couple of years Renault has been getting worse and worse and one can't really say Alonso got the team "fired up" (perhaps Stefano meant to say "get the team mate fired"? ;)), or managed to develop the car to become a forerunner, though maybe he was just waiting to get to Ferrari all this time. Interesting to see how things go.

As for Kimi, I have a feeling that his possible return to F1 will depend on what he sees his chances are of winning the WRC championship in the future. If, during the coming season, he gets the feeling that he has a genuine shot at winning the WRC DC at some point, then he most probably will continue in rallying and forget about F1. If he sees his chances to be slim at best, I suspect he will take a seat at Red Bull for 2011 season and return to F1.

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For Ferrari's sake, I hope Domenicali is right, otherwise they are gonna look very stupid indeed. To be honest, the last couple of years Renault has been getting worse and worse and one can't really say Alonso got the team "fired up" (perhaps Stefano meant to say "get the team mate fired"? ;)), or managed to develop the car to become a forerunner, though maybe he was just waiting to get to Ferrari all this time. Interesting to see how things go.

I can't believe that after so many posts on the subject, people still reads "driver Y helps developing the car" with "driver Y developed the car".

As for the car getting worse, you are right. I've been told by a guy very well connected with the guys at Enstone that the word among them was that the R29 was "a car Minardi would be ashamed of". Yet Alonso managed a podium at Singapore (insert some joke about Piquet and walls here), a second place start at China, Pole start at Hungary and two fastest laps. Not too shabby for a car that was the slowest on the grid. Heikki Kovalainenenenenen, Kubica, Heidfeld and Nakajima, with better cars weren't even close. (Granted, the BMW was Sh#t, but you can't deny that it was still a better smelling Sh#t than the R29)

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Ferrari confirms what I've been saying about Kimi since his first season at McLaren (it's nice to be right for a change). Now I need to go argue with my wife and go back to being wrong all the time*.

Disagree, its an excuse Ferrari are using to cover up the actual reason why they sent him off (Santander pressure and money)...Alonso is a very capable driver something I have always said even though I may not like him, but the kind of excuses Ferrari are coming up with are looking as if they are using Kimi as their scape goat for their pathetic performance. What was Massa doing then before he got injured? (Talking about the car's development). Kimi still draged the car to several podiums and even a win, and after he Massa's crash, he single handedly took Ferrari to almost third, something the insider's of Ferrari find it hard to belive....I just didn't read in some websites, I have spoken to some people personally.

If they belived Kimi lacked commitment etc etc, why did the extend his contract in first place? they would have noticed it in his first year.

Mclaren meanwhile have said more than two occassions that Kimi's technical input on the car is under estimated, but on the commercial side, he does slip behind everyone.

But Kimi is a fool.....the kind of salary and conditions he demanded was a bit too much for any team to meet. Formula1 funds, mainly come from commercial or sponsorships, and he wants to only drive the car, but when you move to a top team, you become one of the leading faces of the team, he didn't want to be like that, if Ferrari were pointing reasons like that, well, I would fully agree with them...

But anyways, I am sad to see him go. I expected him to land in Mclaren, he was the only driver who could have kept Hamilton honest in Mclaren....I really wanted to see that, but I don't think it will happen, but I get a cheeky feeling that He might replace Mark Webber or Vettel (when he is pulled in by Merc) next season....:D

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I can't believe that after so many posts on the subject, people still reads "driver Y helps developing the car" with "driver Y developed the car".

As for the car getting worse, you are right. I've been told by a guy very well connected with the guys at Enstone that the word among them was that the R29 was "a car Minardi would be ashamed of". Yet Alonso managed a podium at Singapore (insert some joke about Piquet and walls here), a second place start at China, Pole start at Hungary and two fastest laps. Not too shabby for a car that was the slowest on the grid. Heikki Kovalainenenenenen, Kubica, Heidfeld and Nakajima, with better cars weren't even close. (Granted, the BMW was Sh#t, but you can't deny that it was still a better smelling Sh#t than the R29)

I'm not saying Alonso's achievements with the car Renault provided him with were not very good. I'm simply pointing out the fact that, in Domenicali's words, Kimi "is very fast, perfect in a winning car", but that "Alonso is better at developing the car" ("better at helping develop the car" if you wish, but I'm just quoting Stefano here) and "firing up the team". Last couple of years have not shown to me that Alonso is any better at that than Kimi, while both are obviously enomously talented drivers, among the top three of the drivers this past decade. Sounds like Stefano just wants to give the "obvious" answer when inquired about this, and not want to go into details about why they really were ready to pay two top salaries to get a driver who isn't any better (at least imo) on track than the previous one. It feels like, since Todt and Brawn left the team, the decisions at Ferrari are made more with feeling than with rationale.

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Disagree, its an excuse Ferrari are using to cover up the actual reason why they sent him off (Santander pressure and money)...Alonso is a very capable driver something I have always said even though I may not like him, but the kind of excuses Ferrari are coming up with are looking as if they are using Kimi as their scape goat for their pathetic performance. What was Massa doing then before he got injured? (Talking about the car's development). Kimi still draged the car to several podiums and even a win, and after he Massa's crash, he single handedly took Ferrari to almost third, something the insider's of Ferrari find it hard to belive....I just didn't read in some websites, I have spoken to some people personally.

I agree with you on most of this. Except the notion that your reason (Santander) and the Ferrari-stated one are mutually exclusive. Also, Santander money may be good, but nothing, but *nothing* will make a team get rid of a driver that can win races. A share of the TV revenues can, in most cases, outshine sponsorship money. Can you forgive Ferrari for wanting the sponsor money *and* the TV revenues with Alonso? I can.

If they belived Kimi lacked commitment etc etc, why did the extend his contract in first place? they would have noticed it in his first year.

I think they believed that they could develop the car with their current drivers and Kimi is still quick. Now they see the chance to grab someone that by all accounts is *very* good at helping to develop the car *and* brings sponsorship money to boot. Keep in mind, too, that last year the Ferrari was near the front, and their need for driver development was far less than this year, and next year.

Mclaren meanwhile have said more than two occassions that Kimi's technical input on the car is under estimated, but on the commercial side, he does slip behind everyone.

Underestimated simply means he is better than he's viewed by the racing reporters/fans. It does *not* say how good he actually is. I can estimate him as lazy when he is in fact slightly better than lazy. I am underestimating him. This doesn't mean he's anywhere near average. You have to watch these subtle usages of language. Besides, there are also quotes out there from Sauber and McLaren that say he is a bit lazy during tests.

But Kimi is a fool.....the kind of salary and conditions he demanded was a bit too much for any team to meet. Formula1 funds, mainly come from commercial or sponsorships, and he wants to only drive the car, but when you move to a top team, you become one of the leading faces of the team, he didn't want to be like that, if Ferrari were pointing reasons like that, well, I would fully agree with them...

I'm of the opinion that teams often don't tell the truth in their press releases, but it's interesting that Ferrari chose those parting comments instead of something a bit kinder. He won a championship for them and Italians will give him a lot of respect for that....unless he did something that p!ssed them off. I can talk your ear off about on-track moves, but the motivations of an F1 team is something else entirely. I could well be wrong.

But anyways, I am sad to see him go. I expected him to land in Mclaren, he was the only driver who could have kept Hamilton honest in Mclaren....I really wanted to see that, but I don't think it will happen, but I get a cheeky feeling that He might replace Mark Webber or Vettel (when he is pulled in by Merc) next season....:D

I'm not convinced he would have been close to Hamilton. Kimi struggled against wee-Filipe at Ferrari (I don't rate Massa as high as Hamilton, as you would expect from the founder and prophet of the First Church of Hamilton. Amen)

And the fastest driver in F1 leaves.

I think I'm over it but I'm not.

Alonso better deliver.

Conditionally fastest.

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Ferrari and Domenicali are now under pressure more than the drivers. They developed a just right car in 2008 but they made far too many mistakes. In 2009 the car was undriveable. Next year they need a good car or Domenicali's a## could get very very hot. Once they got a winner car the pressure will be on Alonso's hands until he finds how to beat Massa. Everybody expects Alonso consistently beating Massa which might be just a dream. There are some tracks where Massa is really strong and Alonso will have to work consistently through out the whole season.

Neither Alonso nor Massa would turn F60 into a winner car but I think Alonso can find some extra tenths. Just let him work.

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I agree with you on most of this. Except the notion that your reason (Santander) and the Ferrari-stated one are mutually exclusive. Also, Santander money may be good, but nothing, but *nothing* will make a team get rid of a driver that can win races. A share of the TV revenues can, in most cases, outshine sponsorship money. Can you forgive Ferrari for wanting the sponsor money *and* the TV revenues with Alonso? I can.

I think they believed that they could develop the car with their current drivers and Kimi is still quick. Now they see the chance to grab someone that by all accounts is *very* good at helping to develop the car *and* brings sponsorship money to boot. Keep in mind, too, that last year the Ferrari was near the front, and their need for driver development was far less than this year, and next year.

Underestimated simply means he is better than he's viewed by the racing reporters/fans. It does *not* say how good he actually is. I can estimate him as lazy when he is in fact slightly better than lazy. I am underestimating him. This doesn't mean he's anywhere near average. You have to watch these subtle usages of language. Besides, there are also quotes out there from Sauber and McLaren that say he is a bit lazy during tests.

I'm of the opinion that teams often don't tell the truth in their press releases, but it's interesting that Ferrari chose those parting comments instead of something a bit kinder. He won a championship for them and Italians will give him a lot of respect for that....unless he did something that p!ssed them off. I can talk your ear off about on-track moves, but the motivations of an F1 team is something else entirely. I could well be wrong.

I'm not convinced he would have been close to Hamilton. Kimi struggled against wee-Filipe at Ferrari (I don't rate Massa as high as Hamilton, as you would expect from the founder and prophet of the First Church of Hamilton. Amen)

Conditionally fastest.

Well, that all just saved me a sh!t load of typing.

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Don't know why Ferrari couldn't just have said "Yeah Kimi was great, we think Alonso is a very good replacement however."

That would be an end of it.

I think Raikkonen will do quite well. Probably 5th or 6th overall.

Would love to see a return in '11

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And the fastest driver in F1 leaves.

I think I'm over it but I'm not.

Alonso better deliver.

After seeing Nando drive, he will for sure! I hope Kimi does well with his time in Citroen! There's also rumours floating that he could drive for Peugeot @ Le Mans which is a possibility seeing as Citroen & Peugeot are apart of the PSA group!

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I agree with you on most of this. Except the notion that your reason (Santander) and the Ferrari-stated one are mutually exclusive. Also, Santander money may be good, but nothing, but *nothing* will make a team get rid of a driver that can win races. A share of the TV revenues can, in most cases, outshine sponsorship money. Can you forgive Ferrari for wanting the sponsor money *and* the TV revenues with Alonso? I can.

I think they believed that they could develop the car with their current drivers and Kimi is still quick. Now they see the chance to grab someone that by all accounts is *very* good at helping to develop the car *and* brings sponsorship money to boot. Keep in mind, too, that last year the Ferrari was near the front, and their need for driver development was far less than this year, and next year.

Underestimated simply means he is better than he's viewed by the racing reporters/fans. It does *not* say how good he actually is. I can estimate him as lazy when he is in fact slightly better than lazy. I am underestimating him. This doesn't mean he's anywhere near average. You have to watch these subtle usages of language. Besides, there are also quotes out there from Sauber and McLaren that say he is a bit lazy during tests.

I'm of the opinion that teams often don't tell the truth in their press releases, but it's interesting that Ferrari chose those parting comments instead of something a bit kinder. He won a championship for them and Italians will give him a lot of respect for that....unless he did something that p!ssed them off. I can talk your ear off about on-track moves, but the motivations of an F1 team is something else entirely. I could well be wrong.

I'm not convinced he would have been close to Hamilton. Kimi struggled against wee-Filipe at Ferrari (I don't rate Massa as high as Hamilton, as you would expect from the founder and prophet of the First Church of Hamilton. Amen)

Conditionally fastest.

Sure, I can, if they admit that it was one of the main reason why they asked Kimi to move, instead of hitting out at him....

Past two years have shown that Alonso is over rated when it comes tothe so called car development, Renault hasn't done so well.....and if Ferrari starts doing well next year, I am sure everyone will credit Alonso, but Ferrari had shifted the focus on 2010 car long before signing Alonso.

If you read Martin's latest comment about Kimi, you will understand what I really meant. anyways, we both have had completely different opinions on Kimi even though we agree about Lewis...

yes, May be Kimi doesn't like pasta, but as I said, they are only covering up the actual reason why they signed Alonso so early, if they admited (which they wont) I will respect that, because in the end youneed money.

Well, I run the church now, you had been wandering about with few stolen cans of beer, but anyways, I didn't mean to say he would beat Lewis, or vice versa, I just thought he would be his best team mate ashe could push Lewis.

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Well, I run the church now, you had been wandering about with few stolen cans of beer, but anyways, I didn't mean to say he would beat Lewis, or vice versa, I just thought he would be his best team mate ashe could push Lewis.

I guess this means that I need to talk to you to join your church, just look at how long I've been having a Hamilton statement in my signature I guess that will give me some credit if I finally decide to fill out the application :P

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I guess this means that I need to talk to you to join your church, just look at how long I've been having a Hamilton statement in my signature I guess that will give me some credit if I finally decide to fill out the application :P

Bring few busty virgins, and make sure Mike doesnt read this PM.

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