"Raikkonen says he should be on top"

very good news for the Ferrari fans!

LONDON, England -- Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen, locked in a three-way tie for the Formula One championship lead, feels he should have won all three grands prix so far this season.

"Twenty two points are a good amount...but I think I could have got all the available points," the Finn, relaxing at home in Switzerland, said on Ferrari's Web site.

"I am sure we can be stronger if we manage to optimize the performance of the car and I hope we start doing so at the next test session."

Only Raikkonen and McLaren's 22-year-old British rookie Lewis Hamilton, who also has 22 points along with double world champion and team mate Fernando Alonso, have stood on the podium three times this season.

Raikkonen won the Australian season-opener, from pole position, and was third in Malaysia and Bahrain after qualifying on the second row in both races.

"It can't be denied that the main problem is in qualifying," said Raikkonen, whose Brazilian team mate Felipe Massa won from pole position in Bahrain.

"Our race pace is good and we can go up against anyone but over the single lap we are not there yet," added the Finn, who moved from McLaren at the end of last year to replace retiring seven times champion Michael Schumacher.

"If you are not up with the front runners right from the start then you can say goodbye to the chance of winning".

The next race is Alonso's home event, the Spanish Grand Prix in Barcelona on May 13.

Copyright 2007 Reuters.

 

Regardless, Alonso will likely win the WDC again this year...

 

And yet, his teammate seems to have no issues with that single lap pace, if the car stays together.

 

Good point, Massa seems to be able to get the pole position, and in Bahrain, fast lap of the race.

Its not the car, Kimi needs to get himself integrated into the team. There are on going transmission problems for both cars, but nevertheless, Phil seems to understand the car and his role much better.

 

Mighty big of Kimi to state that he should be winning races.

 

Oh really?

Did you see Heidfeld pass him in the BMW?

 

One pass in the 3rd race of a 17 race season is of no consequence as far as the WDC is concerned...

 

he's blaming a floresent light for his failure in Bahrain. he's gonna blame a screwdriver, a tyre warmer and Lewis Hamilton next. .

 

You are correct...but it just shows lack of consistancy which is essential to win WDC.

 

Given that he is the two-time defending WDC, I think Alonso has all the consistency he needs.

Your statement is completely ridiculous, given that it is the third race of the season and given that Alonso has a win and a 2nd in the other two races along with a share of the points lead.

 

If this were Alonso's quote instead of Kimi's, half the people here would be criticizing him for "whining".

 

Maybe so because FA is a dork and Kimi is cool.

So take your ball to the other end of the playground.

 

It isn't as ridiculous as saying 'he will likely win WDC again this year'

What isn't ridiculous to say, given the results so far this year, is the WDC could well be between 4 drivers one of which is Alonso.

 

Actually Fernando *****es about the car all of a sudden not being good and people trying to bring him down AFTER he loses.

Kimi just wants a bit more out of the car and seems to act like a cog in a system rather than Alonzo's I'm losing the championship due to 100 reasons that aren't my fault and are out of mu control.

 

You are right, but after-all, this is a Ferrari chat site.

In that light, Alonso is an ass, he earned 2006, lucked into 2005. He does not come close to Schumacher, Senna, Prost, or Lauda. He is a Damon Hill kind of guy.

Next subject.

 

Absolutely correct, this is Ferrarichat, and I agree with your evaluation of the man and the driver. He certainly does not come close to Schumacher, Senna, Prost or Lauda.

Was anybody saying that?

 

Alonso is a top notch driver (one of 3 at the moment) who dethroned Schumacher and who earned 2005 and 2006. He is young enough to have a good chance at matching Senna's 3, Lauda's 3 and Prost's 4 titles.

He is definitely not a Damon Hill kind of guy, that role of test driver who lucked into a once only championship is reserved at best for your boy Massa. But he probably won't even make it to one title.

 

Kimi should have these feelings. I'd be surprised if he didn't....

 

Exactly, I don't see why Alonso's pace would all of sudden disappear at this race. And I still cannot figure out why Kimi didn't nail Pole.

 

+1 Andreas. Ron you have to be kidding to compare him to Damon Hill, Ron don't let the red mist fool you. He is 10x's the driver that Massa is, and how unfortunate he is not partnered with Kimi at Ferrari, instead of that little twirp.

 

I agree that Alonso is not close to Schu-cheater, Senna, Prost or Lauda...he's much better. He won the WDC at a younger age than any F1 driver in history...TWICE...and he seems to be a nice guy as well...he is certainly a hard worker and in tip-top physical shape. I predict he will win a few more WDCs before he is done...starting in 2007.

 

Wow Franklin, pretty strong statement. I agree with you that he may have a chance to win it in 2007, but I would give him a bit more time than comparing him with the above guys. I also feel is currently the best driver in F1, and I still don't understand why everyone calls him a jerk.

 

Me neither.

First I thought it was because we're here on FChat and everybody is biased towards the boys in red and he took Schumacher off the pedastal and all that. But: A bunch of my friends in Europe feel the same way. Even people who hate Schumacher. I really don't get it.

I don't care much for his kangoroo/bull/whatever dance after a victory, but the "patented" jump on the podium by MS annoyed me just as much: These things are cool when they happen spontaneous, but when they become a routine, I smell branding and merchandising and an act.

 

+2

If he got the drive at Ferrari instead of Kimi, we wouldn't be having this discussion. Instead we would be talking about how bland and boring Kimi is and how he will never be WDC...

 

How many championships does he need to win before you will acknowledge that he is a world-class driver? He is already the youngest two-time WDC in history. He has accomplished more than Schumacher did at the same age.

He no more lucked into a WDC in 2005 than Schumacher "lucked" into his first two titles by Senna's fatal accident.